A carpet is a heavy textile floor covering, either hand-knotted, hand-woven or machine-made, and in historic usage the word could also describe a textile laid over a table. In the antiques world the term covers oriental knotted carpets from Persia, Turkey, the Caucasus, India and China, European pile and flatwoven carpets, and fitted or strip carpeting from British looms.
Oriental carpets were imported into Europe from the Renaissance onwards and were initially so precious that they were displayed on tables and chests rather than walked upon. English hand-knotted carpet manufacture flourished at Axminster and Moorfields in the eighteenth century, while France produced grand Savonnerie pile carpets and Aubusson flatweaves. Brussels and Wilton looped and cut-pile carpets, woven in narrow strips and sewn together, furnished many Georgian and Victorian rooms. When buying, collectors consider design, the quality and number of knots, the use of natural dyes, the evenness of the pile and the condition of the ends and edges. Moth damage, rot, heavy wear and later repainting reduce value. A good antique carpet brings warmth and colour to a room and remains one of the most effective ways of anchoring a traditional interior.
