Hair work embroideries

These ten ‘hair work’ embroideries are all worked on silk and date back to the 18th century. As a specialist form of needlework, the gift adds a fascinating dimension to Bury Art Museum’s needlework samplers. The works help to illustrate the lives of 'genteel' ladies, fitting well into the museum’s displays of crafts and pastimes, gender issues, and providing a link to the social process of mourning.