Unique Indian carpet set a record at Sotheby's
Unique Indian carpet set a record at Sotheby's

Video: Unique Indian carpet set a record at Sotheby's

Video: Unique Indian carpet set a record at Sotheby's
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A unique Indian carpet, embroidered with pearls and diamonds, set a record for the auction at Sotheby's. A jeweled rug from the Indian Maharaja family sold for $ 5.458 million, making it the most expensive carpet in the world.

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The carpet, woven in the 19th century, was supposed to decorate the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina. But due to the death of the donor, the ruler of the principality of Baroda, Khanda Rao, this work of art has remained in the maharaja's family to this day.

The carpet measuring 173 by 264 centimeters is embroidered with beads, pearls and adorned with precious stones - emeralds, rubies and diamonds. According to experts, there are almost 5,000 pearls and beads for every square decimeter of carpet. In total, about 2.2 million pearls and beads are sewn onto the silk fabric.

The Pearl Carpet was exhibited several times, including at the Indian Art Exhibition in Delhi in 1902-1903, at the India Exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1985.

As noted by AFP, the auctioneers hoped for a much higher result, but only three buyers claimed the lot. The auctioneers even had to lower the starting price for the lot: initially the auction was supposed to start at $ 5 million, but eventually started from $ 4.5 million. The name of the buyer of the carpet was not disclosed.

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