CENTRAL PERSIA, MID 17TH CENTURY

There is a wonderful exuberance to the design of this Isfahan. The large feathery sickle leaves create an interesting rhythm across the field design which is complemented by the magnificent undulating arabesque border with cleverly resolved corners. A comparable carpet formerly in the Convento da Estrela, Lisbon and now in the Museu Nacional de Arte Antigua is published in Jessica Hallett and Teresa Pacheco Pereira, The Oriental Carpet in Portugal, Lisbon, 2007, pl.38, p.105.