This circa-1940 vintage Swedish flatweave rug is handwoven in wool and features an all-over design of parallel lines that traverse the space horizontally in shades of chalky white and blue, with interspersed geometric motifs in between, against a terracotta field. In Sweden, carpets and antique area rugs have been hand-knotted in wool for centuries, taking on many different forms and functions over the course of time. By the beginning of the twentieth century, the craft was seen as being an important artistic and cultural practice throughout Sweden, and designers began to make Scandinavian rugs with crosswords that had a broad international appeal. Scandinavian rugs from the mid-twentieth century, endorsed by such fixtures of modernism as Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright, remain among the most desirable and sought after in the vintage area rug world.