History in the Details: Conserving Rare Quillwork at Cogswell’s Grant

Objects conservation can be a race against time. Like all collections, ours faces wear and tear, environmental threats, and the more mundane damage that comes with age. Every piece tells a story, and with thirty-eight historic sites and more than 125,000 objects, Historic New England relies on a dedicated team of curators and conservators to care for its collections. They are responsible for cleaning and repairing items and researching and planning the best way interpret three centuries of objects.

The Summer 2026 issue of Historic New England magazine includes a feature on the conservation of a rare object from our collection: A quillwork sconce on display at Cogswell’s Grant in Essex, Massachusetts. Written by Curator of Collections Erica Lome and Director of Conservation Michaela Neiro, the piece piqued readers’ interest in how our collections team goes about its work.

The quillwork sconce at Cogswell’s Grant is believed to have been made around three hundred years ago by Mehitable Rindge, a schoolgirl from Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She would have spent weeks shaping crushed glass into intricate floral designs, possibly as part of a school project. Conserving delicate quillwork isn’t easy—in fact, Michaela took a short course to better prepare for the task. Tracing the history of centuries-old objects isn’t always straightforward, either, so Erica stepped in to research the sconce’s maker and look for other examples of similar schoolgirl art (there aren’t many left). It was the combination of Michaela’s observations during conservation and Erica’s research findings that led them to realize that Mehitable was the sconce’s likely maker.

The story of the sconce’s conservation is part forensic science, part historical mystery, and it offers a fascinating look at the collaborative, hands-on work our collections team does every day. We asked Michaela and Erica to share more about the quillwork sconce, the careful process of conserving it, and how behind-the-scenes efforts like theirs help bring history to life for visitors at our historic sites—watch in the video below.

Written by Ciara Foley, Marketing Associate