a dog in stitches

Embroidery, 1800s, New Zealand, maker unknown. Gift of Adrienne Stonyer, 1981. Te Papa (PC002029)

A cushion?  A seat panel?  Part of a screen?  We'll never know; the hands that finished this goofy boy and his ring of roses (brown ones, which are a tad depressing) didn't get around to the background.  This item is part of the collections of Te Papa Tongarewa, the Museum of New Zealand, and dates from the 1800s.  It may have been a precolored design on the canvas, a craft kit type which became popular in the second half of the century.