This vintage Chinese pictorial rug, woven circa 1970, is a beautiful and calming scene of nature. Two fenghuang, the Chinese phoenix, find one another beneath a flowering tree. One flies in with its magnificent tail trailing behind, while the other waits among peonies and blue scholar’s rocks. A burnt sienna sun hangs in the distance, giving the scene the feeling of a quiet meeting, possibly at dusk.
The fenghuang is a mythical bird associated with harmony, virtue, prosperity and renewal. Paired with peonies, which represent beauty, honor and abundance, the design becomes more than decorative. It is a romantic picture filled with wishes for a beautiful and fortunate life. This is a sweet piece to collect for a curated home and embodies a lot of symbolism and meaning.
The open camel-gold ground allows every part of the scene to breathe. Inky indigo, dusty rose, powder blue, mauve and soft ivory form the birds, flowers, leaves and rocks, all hand knotted with vegetable-dyed wool. Without a traditional border, the design reads like a painting rendered in wool.
The wool is soft to the touch, and the rug has a wonderfully loose, floppy handle that drapes with ease. There is minor scattered wear throughout the field, adding small marks of age without taking away from the pictorial scene.
At 4’5” x 6’7”, it would bring warmth and a bit of romance to a living room, bedroom, entry, library or office. It would be beautiful on the floor beneath a writing desk or coffee table, but it also begs to be hung on a wall and appreciated as woven art. Romantic, unusual and full of symbolism, it holds an entire little world within it. It's in clean condition and ready for its next chapter of life.
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The Rug Rundown…
the wool…the weave…the wear
Size: 4’5” x 6’7
Origin: China
Age: Circa 1970
Material: Vegetable dyed wool
Construction: Hand knotted
Design: Pictorial scene with two long-tailed birds, flowering branches, peonies, rocks and a red sun
Condition: Soft wool with a floppy handle and minor scattered wear consistent with age. Please see all photos for condition details and full character.
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:: Please consider a rug pad for this old beauty, to keep it protected and wiggle free. Click below if you want to add one at BPR and we will custom cut it to size:
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