On January 12, Grogan & Company Fine Art Auctioneers and Appraisers conducted its annual fine Oriental rugs, carpets and textiles auction. The auction netted $800,000 from the sale of 127 rugs, and was well-attended by collectors, dealers and rug experts from around the world.
The sale began with a collection of Persian and European textiles from the Sixteenth⁎ineteenth Centuries. The highlight, an elaborately woven Eighteenth Century Persian shawl, sparked competitive bidding from collectors in the room and phone bidders, surpassing its $1/1,500 estimate to sell for $6,900. An Ottoman cut velvet textile in the shape of a cross from the Sixteenth/Seventeenth Century sold to a London dealer for $6,900 against a $2/3,000 estimate, and a Coptic “Rabbit” textile, only 4½ by 3½ inches, brought $920 against a $300/500 estimate.
The highlight of the sale was a stunning Bakshaish carpet from the first half of the Nineteenth Century. The impressive 10-foot-7-inch-by-7-foot-6-inch carpet sold for $54,625 to a Massachusetts collector. A silk warp Serapi square rug, circa 1875, exceeded its $20/30,000 estimate to sell for $48,875, and an ivory ground Indian carpet, circa 1880, sold to an Italian dealer for $43,125 against a $10/20,000 presale estimate.
One of auctioneer Michael Grogan’s favorite rugs in the sale, an extraordinary Caucasian yellow field rug from the early Nineteenth Century, brought a respectable $37,375. “The superb condition and brilliant coloration of this rug is remarkable,” noted Grogan.
A collection of Soumac bags included a mid-Nineteenth Century example from the Caucasus with a bold design, which brought $6,325, and a trans-Caucasian bag face from the late Nineteenth Century brought $4,025. A rare Nineteenth Century Turkoman Eagle Gul Torba sold within estimate for $10,925; however, a rare Nineteenth Century Turkoman trapping exceeded its $1/2,000 estimate to sell for $9,200. One of the surprises of the sale, a Karachoph Kazak rug with significant wear sparked competitive bidding, soaring beyond its $2/4,000 estimate to sell for $17,250. “The strong interest in this Kazak proved that rarity is more important than condition,” surmised Grogan.
A late catalog entry, an early Nineteenth Century Yomud main carpet from Turkestan, more than tripled its presale estimate of $3/5,000 to sell for $18,400, and the last lot of the sale, a Tabriz Haji Jalil carpet, circa 1900, exceeded its $5/10,000 estimate to sell for $18,400. Other rugs of note included a 140 colorful and unusual Bakshaish rug, circa 1850, which sold for $12,650, and a Sarouk Ferraghan carpet, circa 1880, which sold for $17,825.
All prices reported include a 15 percent buyer’s premium. For information, www.groganco.com or 781-461-9500.
