This cot is decorated in the painted tradition of Northern and Eastern Europe, unusually designed as a scaled down four poster bed. It differs somewhat, in decorative terms, from the more famous tradition of Norwegian folk painting, rosemaling (rose painting). It is simply coloured duck-egg blue, with geometrical motifs and lines in dark green and brown, rather than the more complex rose designs most popular through the early to mid 19th century. This is perhaps because at the time of its manufacture, rosemaling was considered slightly old fashioned; it may also be because the thin beams of the bed do not have enough surface area to develop the rose patterns.