Sampler of embroidered linen with silk and cotton in cross, satin and Florentine stitches and with drawn thread work. In the centre is a square of drawn work containing a stag with a branch in its mouth. Beneath is the inscription LO HISO ROSA MARI / A VASCONCELDS AGOS / TO 23 DE 1860. Around are panels of drawn work and embroidery with geometrical and floral designs, and borders of floral designs and borders of foliage. Sampler of embroidered linen with silk and cotton, made by Rosa Maria Vasconcelos, Mexico, dated 1860. In their earliest form, samplers were put together by embroiderers as personal reference works. They showed trials of patterns and stitches that had been copied from other embroideries. They were records of particular effects achieved that could be re-created again. In England and elsewhere in Europe in the 17th century they developed into a method of instruction and practice for girls learning needlework. In the 18th century and into the 19th century sampler-making was part of a girl’s school education. This Mexican example from 1860 is worked in the tradition of Spanish samplers, with its areas of geometric patterning.