Most iconic Persian rug may fetch $8 million in New York auction
Daily Mail: When it comes to home furnishings there aren't many things more stylish than an authentic Persian rug but savvy shoppers won't be able to pick up this magic carpet in a holiday bazaar. The ancient rug, measuring about 5.5 square meters only, dates back to the 1650s and is estimated to sell for an incredible $8 million when it goes on sale at auction this summer at Sotheby's in New York.
The intricately woven Sickle-Leaf carpet of red, blue and green colours is without question one of the most iconic and important carpets ever to appear at auction. It was made during the Safavid dynasty in Persia in the 1650s and made by several weavers at a very sophisticated workshop in south east Persia.
William Clark, a billionaire industrialist who also became a senator, purchased it from a dealer in Paris while on a tour of Europe in the early 1900s.
He must have hung it because it is in very good condition and is unlikely to have spent much time on the floor. He bequeathed his collection of carpets to the Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1925 and it is being sold by them for future acquisitions.
