Trust The Attention To Detail To A Professional Rug Dealer
Each year in April, September and December, Oriental Rug auctions are held in London and New York at Sotheby’s and Christie’s. These auctions attract international attention and are attended by collectors large and small as well as professional rug dealers from all over the world.
The exceptional pieces offered for sale through these houses set the standard of acceptable quality and condition. Many are extremely rare and prices attained are often record breaking. It is also common to see copies of these fine works of art appear in dealer’s showrooms within one or two years of major sale.
On Thursday, July 8, 1999, a special auction was held at Christie’s of London featuring the collection of the barons Nathaniel and Albert Von Rothschild.
Lot # 188 was a Persian Tabriz medallion carpet measuring 11ft 9 in by 8 in. and dating from 3rd quarter 16th century during the reign of Safavid dynasty. The beautiful indigo field and burgundy red border are still brilliant; the colors have retained their full depth with no evidence of oxidation or fading. The pre-auction estimate was $430,000.00 to $705,200.00. The actual sale price was $2, 745,980.00.
When and Where did the Oriental rug originate?
The exact date and place of origin of rug weaving is not known. It is estimated that weaving, as we know it today, evolved in Egypt and central Asia around the second millennium BC. The earliest example of knotted pile carpet was found in 1947 in a frozen tomb at Pazyryk in the Altai mountains near Mongolia. It has been dated to 5th century BC and is now displayed at the Heritage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
The rug is referred to as the Pazyryk and measures 5 by 6 feet. It is woven with Turkish or Symmetrical knots and has a tile-work central motif surrounded by borders depicting wildlife and horsemen. It exhibits a highly advanced use of dye, design and weaving technique. This proves that by this time, the art of rug making had already attained a highly skilled level.