Garden Carpet

The earliest Persian garden carpets date from the seventeenth century. This example from Kurdistan or northwestern Iran dates from about 1800. The composition comprises two repeats of the classic Islamic garden plan, known as "Four Gardens" (Chahar Bagh). It shows a wide central stream of water intersected by narrower courses, all of them enlivened by fish. The units separated by the streams represent ornamental pools or flowerbeds, and the composition as a whole abounds with flowering plants, shrubs, and trees.