If you have an antique Persian or Oriental rug, you may wonder what its appraised value is for insurance purposes, or if you’ve decided to sell it.
Read below for tips on how to appraise the value of an antique Persian or Oriental rug.
- Take a look at its design. How intricate is it? Does it have a sense of visual depth? Are the proportions of the design’s elements effective? The level and quality of the overall design/composition as well as how the rug’s colors work together are important when appraising a rug’s value.
- Rugs created before 1900 or even earlier are the most sought after because these rugs tend to have more naturally dyed colors, original designs, and even hues not found in rugs of more recent vintage.
A Sultanabad antique Persian rug.
- The older the rug, the more wear that’s allowed. A rug that was woven 70 years ago, for example, but shows more wear than one created 200 years ago, will be of lesser value.
- A rug’s value also is determined by how much restoration work has been performed upon it. The restoration’s execution also is important. Chemical washing and lessening the size of a rug during restoration can have a great affect – negatively – on a rug’s value.
- The more natural the dyes, the better.
- Does the rug’s overall design and craftsmanship make it a true work of art? If so, it will be far more valuable to collectors than even an older rug in better shape.
- In addition, rugs with more traditional designs tend to be more coveted by collectors, making them more valuable than a rug with a design that less traditional.
- Rugs woven in the 1800s and earlier, as well as those in the “city” styles of the Kashan, Haji, Tabriz, Jalili, Motasham, Kermanshah, and Ferahan Sarouks, can be very valuable, as can the tribal styles (Caucasian, Qashqai, and Afshar) and the “village’ styles of Bakshaish, Ziegler Sultanbad, and the better Serapis, tend to be sought after by collectors.
- The higher quality of the wool, the more valuable the rug. A good wool is one that has a high lanolin content, which gives the rug a luster and even a radiance to the colors, thus helping clarify the rugs’ design.
- Finally, you should have a professional appraiser take a look at the rug and give you an estimate. You may want to have it seen by more than one appraiser.
If you have an antique rug you need to be cleaned, bring it to the Dallas Persian rug cleaning experts at Persian Rug Cleaner of Dallas. Give us a call at 972-447-9600.
Image by Alen Erfanian (Alen Erfanian) [CC BY 4.0] via Wikimedia Commons
