Auction 86 - Part I - Rare & Important Items
arbadiah Rug – David's Tower – Jerusalem, 1920s
Opening: $1,000
Estimate: $2,000 - $4,000
Sold for: $2,250
Including buyer's premium
Pictorial rug depicting David's Tower, made by Marbadiah/Bezalel. [Jerusalem, 1920s.]
Wool knot-pile; cotton foundation.
Rug in bold red, ochre and black. The main central panel features a mihrab-like arched window, showing David's Tower. The arched panel border reads, "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning" (Psalms 137:5; Hebrew), and at its base the words “Tower of David” in Hebrew. The rest of the panel is strewn with a repeating pattern of candelabra. The rug’s wide border displays a repetitive cartouche and floral pattern; the cartouches quote – again – the verses from Psalms 137:5-6: "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning; If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy." The four corners of the border contain characteristic Bezalel candelabra.
93x72 cm. Good condition. Some fading to edges. Cropped fringes. Straps sewn to the upper and lower edges on verso.
Provenance: The Anton Felton Collection.
Reference: Jewish Carpets, by Anton Felton. Woodbridge: Antique Collectors' Club, 1997, pp. 103.
Wool knot-pile; cotton foundation.
Rug in bold red, ochre and black. The main central panel features a mihrab-like arched window, showing David's Tower. The arched panel border reads, "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning" (Psalms 137:5; Hebrew), and at its base the words “Tower of David” in Hebrew. The rest of the panel is strewn with a repeating pattern of candelabra. The rug’s wide border displays a repetitive cartouche and floral pattern; the cartouches quote – again – the verses from Psalms 137:5-6: "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning; If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy." The four corners of the border contain characteristic Bezalel candelabra.
93x72 cm. Good condition. Some fading to edges. Cropped fringes. Straps sewn to the upper and lower edges on verso.
Provenance: The Anton Felton Collection.
Reference: Jewish Carpets, by Anton Felton. Woodbridge: Antique Collectors' Club, 1997, pp. 103.
Jewish Ceremonial Art, Carpets
Jewish Ceremonial Art, Carpets