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George Washington purchased this desk from the French minister to the United States for Martha Washington to use during the presidency. Called a bonheur du jour, it was used by upper-class women to answer correspondence. The mahogany and white oak desk has several compartments, as well as a writing flap that folds out specifically for this purpose. Details such as secret compartments and a marble top are elements that make me wish I could own a similar example for myself. 

Notable: Two letters between George and Martha Washington were found behind one of the drawers; they are two of only three known to have survived.

— Megan Little, registrar

Explore this Object

The Mount Vernon collection contains more than 50 pieces of mourning jewelry and other objects with hair from George Washington, Martha Washington, and their family members. Hair was placed in rings, lockets, and brooches, often in braided or decorative patterns. These ob­jects were a way to showcase love and admiration for a de­ceased loved one. Jewelry containing George Washington’s hair was also considered a relic of a great leader. 

Notable: This locket features the hair of two people, George Wash­ington and Zachary Taylor, the first and 12th U.S. presidents.

— Madeline Altobelli, assistant collections manager 

This scrap of paper written by Washington containing the “head measure of Giles and Paris” represents a rare glimpse into the physical presence of the enslaved beyond what we find in the archaeological record. The paper bears two lines representing the circumference of enslaved coach­men Giles’s and Paris’s old caps. These measurements were then used to make new caps for them, which would feature “fuller and thicker tassels.” The note on the paper explains which lines represent Giles and which Paris. 

Notable: Textiles and works on paper (even brief notes like this) can only be exhibited for short periods of time due to the risk of light dam­age, including fading of inks and pigments. To preserve such items, we rotate them off view every six months.

— Caroline Fowler, assistant collections manager 

“Sacred to the Memory of Washington” depicts Liberty sit­ting on the British lion and reviewing the texts of the U.S. Constitution and the French Rights of Man. Behind her is a monu­ment to Washington. Elizabeth Miltimore’s political commentary, worked in silk embroidery and watercolor, is one example of the ways in which young women in the early American republic expressed their creativity and knowledge within the constraints of a patriarchal society. These works offer insights into the lives and values of their makers, who were later marginalized and excluded from the art historical record. 

Notable: The artist drew inspiration for this piece from various printed sources. The over­all design is based on an unidentified print that relates to both the American and French Revolutions, as evidenced by the com­bination of English and French phrases stitched throughout. 

— Lindsay Chase, assistant collections manager 

This sampler passed through Martha Washington to her descendants and then to Mount Vernon, but it was created by a now unknown maker, almost certainly a female, in 17th-century England and then brought to Virginia. Of all the things someone could have chosen to pack when immigrating to a foreign land, she chose something of exquisite beauty. It reminds me of the fundamental human need for art. 

Notable: Despite the losses, close observers can still follow the maker’s improving skill from the top band to the bottom band—the evenness of the stitches and tension improve dramatically.

— Amanda Isaac, chief curator, fine and decorative arts