Antique Axminster Botanic Handmade Wool Carpet BB1316 14'4" × 15'6" $60,000

A late 19th century Axminster antique carpet, the black field with pink floral branches around a yellow-vinery formed red cusped medallion containing a leafy yellow and ivory floral centerpiece with an inner cartouche frame and an outer red palmette border.

An Axminster carpet is a type of pile carpet named for Axminster, a town in Southwest England which continues to produce carpets today. These European carpets are made distinctive by their bright colors, and they are traditionally made from wool. Like the antique area rugs they often featured classical motifs borrowed from Renaissance architectural elements and floral patterns while a few designs embraced Oriental patterns. William Morris and CFA Voysey are famous designers who drew patterns for Axminster carpets and rugs in the late 19th/early 20th century. Most people associate Axminster with quality, since it has been a renowned name in carpet making for centuries.