Antique Bezalel Rug 41317
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Antique Bezalel, Israel, early twentieth century
In this incomparable little rug from the Holy Land, biblical imagery and folk wisdom come together with charming effect. Below, Adam and Eve flank the tree of knowledge and the serpent amidst the menagerie of the Garden of Eden. Above them a stepped facade supports a series of figures personifying the ascent and decline of the human lifespan in a composition evoking the form and content of antique folk art samplers. Trumpteting angels hover above with the sun and moon, while borders of trees and animals evoke paradise in the surrounding border.
