Card Table with Needlework Top
Needlework top embroidered by Mercy Otis Warren, 1750-1770

Card games were a popular form of entertainment in the 18th century. The hand-worked petit point depicts a game of "Loo." The cards have been dealt and the mother-of-pearl counters, both round and in the shape of fish, are seen. The table’s round corners provide places to set candles. The top could be folded when the table was not in use.

The table belonged to Mercy Otis Warren, 1728-1814, who embroidered the top with wool threads on canvas. A native of Barnstable, Massachusetts (on Cape Cod), Mercy moved to Plymouth when she married James Warren. Mercy and her husband were both ardent patriots and influential in revolutionary circles. A woman of many accomplishments, Mercy was a political critic, writer and historian. Her works include plays, poetry, and a three-volume history of the American Revolution.