The most expensive carpet in the world

Everyone knows from school that a royal robe or church vestment can be embroidered with gold and precious stones. But few people know that a carpet can also be precious.

For us, a carpet is a utilitarian item of textile production. This is a product that absorbs noise and insulates the room, floor covering and wall decoration. And in the past, a carpet was a sign of wealth.

Today, antique oriental carpets are highly valued by collectors and are purchased for incredible prices. Of course, it is unlikely that anyone will walk on a carpet worth 33 million 765 thousand dollars. That’s exactly how much the Clark Carpet with Crescent Leaves was sold for at Sotheby’s in 2014. Today this is a carpet considered the most expensive.

And the Baroda Pearl Carpet is the most expensive precious carpet in the world. The last owner purchased it for almost $5.5 million.

REFERENCE. Such a product cannot be woven in the usual way. Since only gold threads are suitable for stringing stones!

The history of the creation of the most expensive carpet

It owes its name to the princely state of Baroda. It was this principality that was ruled by the richest Maharaja Gaekwad Khand Rao.

The Indian prince was a follower of Islam, and the carpet has a sacred meaning in this religion. Therefore, Khand Rao issued an order to create a product of extraordinary beauty. It was supposed to cover the tomb of the Prophet Muhammad in Medina. This is how the Maharaja planned to show his respect for religion.

According to another version, the carpet was supposed to be a gift to a completely earthly woman with whom the Maharaja was in love.

Be that as it may, work began in 1865. The purchase of materials alone cost 120 thousand dollars.

REFERENCE. It took 5 whole years to create the most expensive and valuable masterpiece of carpet weaving and inlay. Although its size is not so large: 264x173 cm.

Unfortunately, the Maharaja was not destined to see the masterpiece. The ruler died shortly before it was completed. However, the man-made miracle also did not reach the grave of the Prophet. It became the family treasure of the princely state of Baroda.

Description of the most expensive carpet

The pearl product has the shape of a rectangle, woven from natural silk threads. It is completely sewn with pearls and multi-colored glass beads.

When creating a unique ornament, the craftsmen were inspired by motifs traditional to Indian art during the Mughal Empire. The carpet has a border decorated with 32 small rosettes of large pearls and precious stones. The three large central rosettes are completely set with diamonds. And framed with scarlet gold and silver.

Not only the luxury and elegance of the design is impressive, but also the number of precious stones required to decorate the surface of the carpet. These are two and a half thousand diamonds, more than a thousand rubies, six hundred of the best Colombian emeralds! The density of pearl embroidery is also amazing: there are 4990 pearls per 1 square decimeter! The total weight of the pearls is 30,000 carats. Natural pearls from Qatar and Bahrain, considered one of the best in the world, were used for decoration.

I wonder if all these stones were not used as decoration, could their total cost compete with the price of an amazing carpet?