Jane Van Alst
American, born 1819
Geneology Sampler
1831/32
Linen plain weave with silk tent stitch, stem stitch, and cross stitch embroidery
22 1/2 x 23 inches (57.15 x 58.42 centimeters)
Gift from the Collection of Rosalind and Edwin Miller, 1999.
1999.004.002

Eleven-year-old Jean Van Alst made this sampler to exhibit her embroidery skills, to record the birth dates of her family members, and to memorialize the deaths of a brother and sister. She signed and dated it on January 31, 1831. Six months later her father died and she returned to her work, adding his death date and the birth date of her sister Elizabeth, as well as the dedication that appears on the Neoclassical urns.