News & Information on Antique Oriental Rugs and Persian Carpets

“When designing a room I always start with the carpet. In this Study on the Upper East Side, I found a carpet design that has a wonderfully playful African vibe: its warm creams, browns, blues, and mustards undulate across the floor. The upholstery fabrics and wall paint colors play off of them as well as the colors and textures of the parchment goat skin desk, custom desk chair, and the hand painted custom sidetable.”

- Interior Designer Adrienne Neff

Adrienne Neff Design Services, LLC

www.adrienneneff.com

What do decorators look for when shopping for antique rugs? Who would be better to answer that than one of New York’s finest young up and coming interior decorator Harry Cushing (of Harry Cushing and Company)? He was nice enough to share his thoughts with us:

 “To us an antique carpet is a living thing that reflects a rich history.  It was made by hand often by a single artisan (sometimes with the help of family members) who had to depended on the materials that were available to them at any given time.  Depending on size and intricacy of design many antique carpets took years to complete.  In some instances the carpet was made in more than one place as it started in one location and then the fabricator moved to another.  Sometimes particular yarns or dyes were available at the beginning of the process but were not available at the end. When completed, the carpet’s design, texture, color reflected all these variables as well as environmental conditions.  So in addition to the more obvious characteristics that one looks for such as size, color and design we have a great appreciation for the way in which a carpet’s history is represented through its visual appearance.  We love interesting color combinations and color variations (even from one end of the carpet to the other), indications of a hand-made product, (reasonable) signs of wear and the many characteristics that result in the representation of a warm, hand-made, living work of art.”  

I was asked by a young collector about recent trends in the rug industry and thought it would be nice to share some of my thoughts. It is my feeling that the wave of the future may just rest in the past. As a part of the antique rug trade for the last 12 years, I can’t help but fall in love with a new rug every single day. Rugs, tapestries and textiles of the late 19th century are some of the most beautiful / decorative art forms in the world, and there are days when I can’t help but feel like a kid in candy store. As the years go by, I tend to gravitate more towards the early rugs of the 16th and 17th centuries. Some of these early antique rugs are a true testament to the greatness of empires long forgotten. It feels like no matter how omnipotent and grand the empire might have been (like the Safavid, Mamluk, Mughal and Ottoman) they were no match for the longevity of the art that they bestowed onto us all. Early rugs have a uniqueness that cannot be matched, and they are the best examples of the roots from which this whole industry eventually blossomed. More and more young collectors are turning away from the art world in favor of antique rugs. Economically, it makes a great amount of sense… if someone would like to acquire a painting by an old master, it would be practically impossible to find one for less than $1,000,000 (and naturally, that is a very low estimate and by no means is representative of any great piece from any such artist). In contrast, early pieces are still tremendously undervalued. For a fraction of the price of a great work of art, one can easily attain one of the best early pieces in the world – a true museum-quality piece (a term that is used all too loosely in our industry). Fortunately for me, I work for one of the world’s top wholesalers of great antique carpets. Jason’s taste is not in the interest of buying purely for the sake of making money. That is why so many unique pieces come through our doors every year. It is my opinion that over these next few years (and as the economy around the world strengthens) this continuing interest in early pieces will only escalate. If I were a gambling man, I would surely bet the house on these pieces (and I guess I kind of am)! I will follow up with some additional entries and examples of such rugs.

Omri Schwartz
NAZMIYAL
COLLECTION
31 East 32nd Street
New York, NY 10016
T 212 545 8029
F 212 213 5995

I had a client call me the other day with a question about Mashad rugs. He seemed upset that he could hardly find any antique Mashsad’s (or Meshads) on our site. So it made think that perhaps I should write something to address this issue. Similar to antique Serapi and Heriz rugs (which were made in the same place) Mashad and Khorassan’s are at times interchangeable. Mashad is the city and Khorassan is the entire district. So while all Mashad’s are Khorassan’s – not all Khorassans are Mashads! The trade as a whole tends to prefer referencing the older and more “classy” Mashads as Khorassan and while structurally they vary a bit the end user should not care about the name but rather the overall look and price. So rest assured, if you are looking for a Mashad or Khorassan you are in essence looking for the same overall type of rug. I will single out and clarify other similar discrepancies in my next posts. I am here to help people learn about antique carpets so don’t be shy… keep on emailing or calling me with questions (any question) and I will do my best to address every single one of them.

Omri Schwartz
NAZMIYAL
COLLECTION
31 East 32nd Street
New York, NY 10016
T 212 545 8029
F 212 213 5995