Schoolgirl samplers and pictorial needlework are among the most sought-after textile collectables. This informative and colourful volume serves as a guide to developing an appraiser's eye and a connoisseur's knowledge. The authors share the secrets of professional appraisers as they show how to assess value in a sampler using a compare-and-contrast format. Apparently similar pieces are analyzed side-by-side to determine why one is more valuable than the other, or why one is a treasure and the other, not quite. On each spread, full colour photographs of two samplers, related in motif and point of origin, appear on facing pages, surrounded by call-outs highlighting each sampler's value features - those key factors, such as design, execution, material, and condition that account for the item's relative market value. Introductory text and captions provide essential historical and technical information on the featured samplers, while sidebars provide close-up details or additional information on the design, creation, and evolution of sampler art.The 60 sampler comparisons that make up the core of the book cover the entire range of the subject on both sides of the Atlantic from the 17th through to the 19th-centuries. This main section is preceded by an overview of the history of samplers and a gallery of sampler masterworks in addition to sections on buying, caring for, and displaying samplers, a comprehensive bibliography, and a resource list.