Collection Highlights
Speech of His Excellency George Washington, Esq; president of the United States of America, delivered to the Honorable the Congress
Date:
Object Number:
LIB.SY.1789.39
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Museum Collections
Luce Center
Pincushion
Object Number:
Z.1549.13
Date:
1830-1900
Medium:
Silk, mother of pearl, metal
Dimensions:
Overall: 6 7/8 x 2 3/8 x 1/4 in. ( 17.5 x 6 x 0.6 cm )
Description:
Pincushion in the shape of a guitar, with a bow at the top, the body of the guitar is yellow moiré, the back and neck are of black silk, the strings and frets are red silk floss, the outer edge of the body is decorated with mother of pearl beads and a row of pins; pins are meant to slide into the sides of the body.
Gallery Label:
In the United States, guitar playing joined needlework as a mark of feminine accomplishment during the early nineteenth century. Guitar-shaped pincushions symbolically linked the two, and instructions on how to make them appeared in girls' and women's books beginning the 1830s.
Credit Line:
Gift of Walter S. Poor
Due to ongoing research, information about this object is subject to change.
