Embroidered bridal handkerchief made by an unidentified enslaved seamstress
date: label: Date
content: ca. 1860
name: label: Owned by
content: Old Slave Mart Museum, American, founded 1937
label: Used by
content: Eliza Abigail Toomer, American, 1843 - 1906
label: Owned by
content: Mary Belle Morrison, American, 1872 - 1968
notes: label: Description
content: A framed handkerchief.
label: Description
content: The square handkerchief is made out of a thin off white thread. It was delicately woven and has a decorative border with embroiderd dots, ovals, and scalloped edges. There are many holes of varying sizes on the handkerchief. There are three emroiderd cursive letters in the proper top right corver. They are in a diagonal line and read [AET].
label: Description
content: There is a rectangle label in the bottom proper left corner. It has black typed text and reads [ (underlined) BRIDAL HANDKERCHIEF / MADE BY A SLAVE SEAMSTRESS 9/underlined) / FOR - ELIZA ABIGAIL TOOMER / WHO MARRIED - R.L. MORRISON / November 1, 1860 / PRESENTED TO THE OLD SLAVE MART MUSEUM BY / (MISS) MARY BELLE MORRISON. June, 1949.
label: Description
content: The cloth is mounted to a beige board under glass and in a black wooden frame.
label: Description
content: The back of the frame is coverd in brown cardboard. It is discolored and stained in several areas. There are also some torn areas along the edges. There is a nail in the back of the frame.
place: label: Place made
content: McClellanville, Charleston County, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
label: Place collected
content: Charleston, South Carolina, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Craftsmanship
label: Topic
content: Domestic life
label: Topic
content: Skilled labor
label: Topic
content: Slavery
label: Topic
content: U.S. History, 1815-1861
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Slavery and Freedom Objects
label: Classification
content: Textiles and Quilts
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2017.108.17.3
objectType: label: Type
content: handkerchiefs
label: Type
content: whitework
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: thread, mounting board, cardboard, wood, glass, metal, paper, ink, and tape
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 18 × 16 3/4 × 1/2 in. (45.7 × 42.5 × 1.3 cm)