Your antique carpets and tapestry
are among the most beautiful items you will own but they are probably
subject to the most abuse, as caring for antique carpets and tapestries
can be a time consuming job.
The term carpet was originally used to describe coverings for tables,
beds, and other furniture, and only from the early 18th century
was it associated with floor coverings.
 The
history of rugs and carpets from distinct areas is divided into
two major traditions: the Asian and the Western.
The older and more opulent carpet is in the Asian tradition, and
includes makers from central asia, the middle east, north africa,
indian, and china.
The western tradition, derived from the asian, was established
much later. It had a brief period of individuality in france, but
succumbed to imitation and to mechanical weaving in the 19th century.
The origins of the technique of pile-woven carpets in europe are
obscure, although asian carpets were imported from early times.
The earliest european pile carpets were produced in 12th and 13th
century spain, which had familiar ties with the islamic world. All
carpets were woven with a single warp knot particular to the spanish.
France was the most important centre
of pile-woven carpet manufacture in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Two major weaving centres were savonnerie in 1627 and aubusson in
1742. Both centres were established for the production of carpets
based on eastern techniques; today the name savonnerie is synonymous
with luxurious french pile carpets.
It wasn't until the second half of the 16th century and the early
part of the 17th century that carpets were produced in England.
The three main centres of production were kidderminster, wilton,
and axminster. Those first machine manufactured carpets were cheap,
coarse, reversible floor coverings woven for purely utilitarian
purposes.
What
to know when buying valuable antique carpets and tapestries.
New carpets are fine for decoration, but it's better to concentrate
on village carpets and kilims
woven for personal use instead of purely commercial ones. However,
only by handling older pieces can you learn to appreciate the uniqueness,
the beauty and the originality that are a part of textile art.
Commercial weaving incorporates traditional motifs, but you still
won't get the feeling of the older pieces, even if the weaver has
made a perfect copy.
There are no fixed patterns, antique
carpets and tapestries were handmade and when someone produces something
with their own hands, they put a lot of themselves and their own
artistry into the creation.
As a collector if you decide to collect antique carpets instead
of newer, commercial ones, don't be in a hurry. You should read
various carpet catalogues, which provide an enormous amount of information,
and look and touch as many pieces as possible. You should compare
the quality, the designs, the colour combinations, the weaving techniques
and everything else about them.
 Only
then will you decide whether you want to purchase pieces for investment
purposes, or whether you want to buy more decorative items you can
use every day. If you choose to use what you collect, then quality
becomes paramount and should be your first consideration.
Always select carpets made with vegetable
dyes as, if the colour is natural, it shouldn't undergo any
changes when exposed to chemicals or sunshine. You can determine
if the colours have remained true to the original hues by comparing
the front face and the underside of a carpet. There can be a little
difference, but basically the colours should be the same.
Collectors should note that in antique pieces, natural dyes don't
produce bright colours, only deeper shades, which appear to be shinier
than those in new carpets.
Also, older carpets are made from higher quality, hand-spun wool,
which is softer and only absorbs the dyes, not external pollutants
such as dust and dirt.
It's important to understand that
older carpets contain abrage
or variations within the colour itself. This occurs because hand
spun and dyed wool cannot absorb the dyes evenly. This is natural
and not a mistake; a result of the dying process.
Antique carpets also suffer oxidation of the black, and sometimes
brown wool. Most blacks oxidize after a period of 60 or 70 years,
resulting in a lower pile than other colours in the carpet. This
is a result of the amount of carbon contained in the dye and varies
with region and origin.
You also find that aniline
dyes, (natural dyes strengthened with chemicals), have been
used in carpets for the past 150 years. Aniline dyes produce different
colours from those of natural vegetable dyes. However, some shades
never contain any chemicals, such as cochineal, a burgundy colour
made from the secretions of the female cochineal insect.
If you like cochineal, you'll have
to look for carpets of 90 to 150 years of age, as that's when it
was used in Anatolia.
This sort of rarity
makes antique carpets all the more valuable and some places are
known for always using specific colours, such as saffron in Konya
carpets and the pinks in pieces from Bergama, Kirsehir and Sirvan.
Watch for repairs on older carpets. An antique carpet will almost
always have repairs, even if it's been put away in a chest or hung
on the wall for years. This doesn't affect the value if the repairs
have been professionally done. If not, it loses its originality
and its value.
Always check the availability of a particular kind of antique carpet.
If there are a lot of them around or a significant quantity for
sale then that type will not be as valuable as one that is very
rarely seen.
Age isn't always the determining factor
.... you might see a 100 year old rug that can be easily found in
the commercial market, but there are some carpets, especially Topkapi
woven in the 1920s; that are extremely valuable due to their limited
number. The rarer the piece the better the investment.
Remember - Never be afraid to use
the antique carpets and tapestries you have purchased, especially
those under 100 years of age. If they are truly old, 200 or 300
years of age, then treat them with great care and always place them
in a low-traffic area.
Tapestry is probably the oldest of the flat-surfaced patterned carpet weaves.
Wefts, or horizontal threads,
that do not run the full width of the fabric, are the most common
hallmarks. Instead, discontinuous wefts of different colours, form
the design patterns.
Soumak, another technique for making flat-woven rugs, originated in the
Middle East as early as the 7th century BC., and with this method
wefts are wrapped onto the warps
in a lateral direction. Frequently, rows of soumak are alternated
with rows of plain weave.
Other flat-woven rug techniques include brocading and embroidery.
In some cases, two or more techniques may be used in the production
of a single rug.
Ingrain carpet, popular in middle-class
homes in 18th and 19th century America, was a flat, woven, reversible
wool carpet.
This coarse rug was woven on a jacquard loom accommodating up to
six coloured weft threads. At least one room had ingrain carpet
in many middle class homes of the 1800s
Carpet knots
The Turkish Knot -- also known as
the ghiordes or symmetrical knot. Used on nearly all turkish, caucasian
and british carpets and by most turkish tribal groups.
The Persian Knot --
also known as the semeh or asymmetric knot. Used on most persian,
central asian, indian and chinese carpets. It produces more knots
per square inch and more detailed pattern definition than the turkish
knot.
The Spanish Knot -- used on spanish
carpets. It is looped around single alternate warps, making horizontal
and vertical lines slightly rough and the diagonals smooth.
The Jufti Knot -- covers
four warp threads making a coarse weave. Found on 17thC. persian
rugs and 19th and 20th century rugs from eastern iran.
Tips for displaying your antique carpet or tapestry
Delicate or rare items should only be wall-hung length ways so that the weight is taken by the warp.
Small items should be mounted by a specialist framer onto a linen
backing and fitted into a wooden stretcher and then box mounted
with a Perspex window for further protection.
For larger textiles, you should sew wide Velcro tape along the
top edge of the back (taking care to sew between the carpet threads
and not through them), and staple the receiving velcro strip to
a wooden batten fixed to the wall.
Heavy textiles will need additional support tapes running vertically
down the back to help spread the weight.
Dyes can fade in intense light from bright sunshine or spotlights.
So use cool-beam, fibre optic or low wattage incandescent lights
for any highlighting effect and draw curtains when a room is not
in use during the day.
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