HERITAGE SAMPLER

This sampler is packed with motifs and symbolism in celebration of the Year 2000. The centre of the design is star-shaped, symbolic of the Star of Bethlehem and the birth of Jesus, which is of course the point in time that marks the beginning of the first Millennium. The Greek letters X (chi) and P (rho) are the first two letters of Christ’s name and together became one of the first Christian Symbols. Greek letters alpha and omega also feature, symbolising the beginning and the end.

I have featured events surrounding the year 1066 which brought images of the Bayeux Tapestry to mind - William the Conqueror crossing the English Channel, his adversary King Harold, together with a bird motif and that of Halley’s Comet, all appear on the tapestry. The simplicity of the medieval design seemed just right for this project and the famous tapestry was used as a style cue for the rest of the piece.

Columbus journeyed to the New World in 1492 in the Santa Maria, using some of the crude but effective navigational equipment depicted. Hargreaves Spinning Jenny, an early invention in the Industrial Revolution period (1750-1830) seemed an appropriate item to celebrate on this sampler. Textile technology has moved on apace, but Hargreaves’ original machine was the beginning of mass produced quality spun yarn .... and where would we stitchers be without that?!

The Moon Landing of 1969 inspired world-wide interest in space exploration and technology. In recent times our earth again witnessed the return of Halley’s Comet, which the Bayeux Tapestry shows occuring at the beginning of the Millennium too. So much has changed, but how comforting to realise that out there some things remain the same.

People have always felt the need to communicate or tell a story. In 1066 they stitched the tale of the Norman Conquest on huge pieces of linen, and in 1476 Caxton set up the first printing press in London so that for the first time books could be available in larger numbers to more of the population. The William Caxton monogram, shown on the sampler, was printed on the first edition of the ‘Canterbury Tales’.

Personal communications have developed amazingly since 1840, when the Penny Black stamp was introduced in the reign of Queen Victoria, and sending letters by post became an affordable reality. Since experiments in the early 1960’s, advances in Internet technology mean that some of us can now easily and economically communicate with people anywhere in the world using the World Wide Web.

The tiny clocks at the bottom of the sampler are set at one-o-clock and two-o-clock, symbolising the first and second Millennia. One cannot help wonder what will happen as time moves on and the clock hand slowly begins moving towards three - there will be much to marvel at and surely many more excellent excuses for a sampler!

The women of Bayeux would be incredulous could they see the developments and events that followed them. But how wonderful it is that we are still telling our tale in fabric and threads, just as they did! In a world forever changing, yet another reminder that some things are ever constant!