This stunning all-time-classic hand-made carpet with geometric patterns was made by my grandmother's grandmother in Kavalos village in the Greek island of Lefkada more than 150 years ago. For the past couple of weeks it has been lying full of colour on our Irish floor and it seems more contemporary and glorious than ever. Funny how mater travels in time and space. I bet if you told those hard-working and proud Lefkadian women that their artwork would end up two centuries later in Ireland they would not believe you, as mum said. This was a bridal dowry that was handed from generation to generation until it reached me. The natural colours used to dye the threads include walnuts, poppies, and egg yolks, among others! The wise art of poverty could show us one or two things about home economy in the present.My great great great great great great-grandmother I salute your imagination and your skilled fingers !
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