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Labors of the Months

second quarter 17th century
Not on view
A Year in Miniature




Figurative scenes rendered in needlework were popular in English Renaissance homes; these textiles often functioned as cushion covers or table and cupboard carpets. A talented female amateur likely sewed this piece using a professionally prepared kit with the design outlined in advance on canvas. Here, a circuitous path leads through each month’s activities. Some of the figures are at rest, but most are at work, reflecting the realities of seventeenth-century British rural life.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Labors of the Months
  • Date: second quarter 17th century
  • Culture: British
  • Medium: Canvas worked in wool, silk , and metal thread; tent, Gobelin, back, cross, and couching stitches
  • Dimensions: Overall: 21 1/2 x 23 1/2 in. (54.6 x 59.7 cm)
  • Classification: Textiles-Embroidered
  • Credit Line: Gift of Irwin Untermyer, 1964
  • Object Number: 64.101.1324
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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The Wayfarer Crowned by Happiness from The Table of Cebes, David Kandel German, Wool and silk on canvas (cross-stitch, 48-56 per sq. in., 9 per sq. cm.; tent stitch, 156-190 per sq. in., 30-36 per sq. cm.), French
The Wayfarer Crowned by Happiness from The Table of Cebes
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Alto Recorder, Joseph Bradbury British, Wood, ivory, British
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The Garden of False Learning from The Table of Cebes, David Kandel German, Wool and silk on canvas (cross stitch, 48-56 per sq. in., 9 per sq. cm; tent stitch, 156-190 per sq. in., 30-36 per sq. cm.), French
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