This wonderfully detailed needlework of a biblical scene was made c 1700 by a young Austrian woman -- about 50 years before her famous Viennese countrywoman, Marie Antionette, was even born.  The entire surface is worked in silk thread and the  primary stitch appears to be a French knot although I am not at all sure I’m right about that. The artist masterfully uses the size of her stitches to show distance and the texture of the objects she rendered in silk. For example, the skin of the two figures is worked in the tiniest stitches I’ve ever seen (I initially thought they were done in paint!), whereas the stitches on the tree trunks and rocks in the foreground are larger. The colors are strong and jewel-like in quality. It comes in what I think is the original late 17th/early 18th century frame and glass which itself is unbelievably rare and quite valuable. Each of the 4 carved corners have some damage, but the rest of the frame in wonderful condition. In the center of each side of the frame is an incised flower surrounded with decorative incised dots. A conservator has cleaned the piece and used all the original fittings and backings so that they stay with the piece while ensuring that only archival materials now touch this treasure. The frame is approximately 10.5” x 14” excluding the protruding decorative corners;  sight of the piece is 7.875”  x 11.5”.