So tender and lovely. The handwritten text covering every unstitched inch of this looks to me to be German; I find it hard to decipher but certain phrases seems to appear over and over, so surely a poem or perhaps specifically a prayer. Perhaps it speaks of a sailor lost at sea, which the anchor leaning against the cross at center would suggest, and, with those two wonderful burning hearts, of the true love between the one lost and the one left behind. To my eye the embroidery is perfection, with tiny gold beads used for the centers of the blue flowers and the perimeters of the hearts, and then this terrific patch of green with a lighter green stripe as of hit by a ray of light, and dotted with flowers all over. Dated at lower right corner Marz (March) 31, 1850.
Framed: 7 1/8" x 5". Paper size: 5 5/8 x 3 3/16. Very good antique condition, with one small hole in the paper at center left. I found the mourning card near Albany, NY and put it in this early-mid 19th c. frame that I think suits it perfectly. (archival mat behind it).
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