Kilim-nama

Antiquary

 In recent months, my efforts to track down ancient kilims and carpets have been laid low by the manouevrings of itinerant Kashmiri carpet salesmen who will go to any length to convince you that a recent, hand-knotted wool carpet is over a hundred years old, holding up patched tufts of repair work as proof.

 Unfortunately, even as the awareness of antique carpets has begun to increase amidst the lunching lot, the fake antique carpet business has also increased exponentially.

 For many, of course, it is the need for the weathered look, as opposed to its antique value, that is an over-riding concern, and it is this set of people who are most likely to be exploited by unscrupulous carpet traders who do not mind aging new carpets to increase their antique value.

 Which, of course, again throws up the argument whether every old carpet should be considered an antique purely on the basis of age rather than quality of workmanship, and rarity of the product.

 Therefore, it is advisable to have someone knowledgeable view likely purchases, especially since colours, motifs and provenance (rather than knots) should be used to judge an old carpet.

 This is particularly important when you consider that a standard 5x8 carpet costing Rs 20,000 may be passed off as a bargain for Rs 80,000 on the false premise of its antique value.

 It was in the 16th century that the finest Persian carpets came to be woven, under the Safavid dynasty. They were almost certainly imported to India in vast numbers