It was just before I went away earlier this month that the Holiday 2007 edition of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Store catalog arrived.

I immediately searched for the scarf section, as I had fallen in love with a particular one during the “Christmas in May� preview I attended at the museum this spring.

Well, it was right there on page 55: The William Morris Patchwork Oblong Scarf.

It’s a gorgeous stretch of silk based on 19th-century textile designs by Morris and priced at $60. From the moment I saw it, I decided it would make a lovely birthday treat, so I may just have to pick it up soon.

The catalog, to be sure, is filled with dozens and dozens of other great finds that will help fill out those holiday-shopping lists.

But before moving on to that ol’ holiday-shopping season, I’ve just heard that the store’s fall sale is soon to get under way.

And it sounds pretty impressive, with savings of 20 to 50 percent off original prices on selected merchandise. The sale will feature sculpture reproductions, decorative arts, jewelry, scarves, ties, accessories and books.

Some of the choices? An orchid shawl in pink that was originally $175 will be $87.50. It’s based on the works of British artist John Nugent Fitch (1840-1927).

That’s one of the things I love about the items sold at the Met store — they are based on works in the museum’s vast collections or created in cooperation with other art, botanical and historical institutions around the world.

There’s a story behind all that beauty and function.

Take the Chinese butterfly trumpet vase, for another example. Its design is adapted from a pair of 19th-century white-satin sleevebands (which decorated the wrist openings of garments in the Qing dynasty, 1644-1911). It’s going to be reduced to $63.75, from $85.

Also, a Flora gold-beaded pearl necklace, based on one worn by a subject in a Rembrandt painting, was $175 and will be $131.25.

Of course, there’s plenty more on sale.

The special pricing will run Thursday (Sept. 27) through Oct. 28 at all of the MMA retail locations.

This includes, of course, the shop right at the museum itself, at 1000 Fifth Ave. in Manhattan, but also at The Westchester, at 125 Westchester Ave. in White Plains.

Hurry in, too, as quantities will be limited.

For general information on store locations, call 800-468-7386.

To reach the local store, call 914-993-1470.