Nov 09 2006
Stick to Your Criteria; Love What You Buy…
Written by Joan Guryan
Thursday, 09 November 2006
Twenty years ago, when I first became interested in antique rugs, I was spending my summers in a small rural town in Vermont. I was definitely a novice, though I thought I knew a little more than I did. One of the major events of the weekend was the local auction, at the firehouse.
You always arrived at these auctions early, to preview the auction items, and catch up on the local gossip. You could fine anything from farm implements to fine china. So, occasionally there were antique rugs. While very often these were American antique, such as hook rugs, sometimes there were antique Persian rugs.
One particular auction day, my husband and I arrived early; as we looked around I spotted what I thought was a Sarouk. The rug, though beautiful, with rich blues and reds, did not meet my criteria for buying it. Simply put, I did not love it. Being a novice, I was not sure of it’s value. I was swept away by the excitement of bidding on something I thought might be a treasure. Someone else thought so also. I was approached by a gentleman, who sensed my interest. He asked me if I was interested in becoming his partner on thisrug . I decided that half the investment on something I was unsure of was better than 100%. In hind sight, he probably just wanted me out of the picture, so I would not drive the price up.
Well the gentleman and I bought the rug very cheaply; no one else was bidding seriously on it. We went back to my home to settle up. When I looked the rug over carefully, I decided that not only did I not like it for myself, but it was not such a prize. So I was happy to have Ali buy me out.
I learned a valuable lesson. Stick to my criteria; buy only what I love, from someone I trust. Also, continue search for knowledge about antique rugs.
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