Sewing steps

Sewing steps

United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing (“Shakers”)

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Sewing steps provided a resting place for the feet of Shaker sisters while they were seated during handiwork. The rugged, hand-hooked needlework cover protected the wood finish. This example belonged to A. Rosetta Stephens (1861–1947) who was born in England and emigrated to New Lebanon, New York.


The American Wing

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The American Wing's ever-evolving collection comprises some 20,000 works of art by African American, Euro American, Latin American, and Native American men and women. Ranging from the colonial to early-modern periods, the holdings include painting, sculpture, works on paper, and decorative arts—including furniture, textiles, ceramics, glass, silver, metalwork, jewelry, basketry, quill and bead embroidery—as well as historical interiors and architectural fragments.