Sotheby’s To Sell the Pearl Carpet of Baroda in Its First-Ever Series of Auctions in Doha

The Pearl Carpet of Baroda

Sotheby’s To Sell the Pearl Carpet of Baroda in Its First-Ever Series of Auctions in Doha

Sotheby’s is delighted to announce that it is to sell the Pearl Carpet of Baroda, one ofthe most extraordinary masterpieces of its kind ever to come on the market. The carpet will form the centrepiece ofSotheby’s inaugural series of sales in Doha and be sold alongside other objects in the Arts of the Islamic World auctionon 19th March 2009.

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The carpet is traditionally believed to have been created as a gift for the tomb of the ProphetMohammad in Medina and was commissioned by “Gaekwar” Kande Rao, the Maharaja of Baroda. The intended giftwas clearly never delivered as the Maharaja died before he made the donation and the carpet therefore remained in hisfamily. Bidding on this will start around US$5 million but is expected to rise considerably higher.

Mary Jo Otsea, Worldwide Director of Rugs and Carpets at Sotheby’s said: “It is fitting that an historic object asmagnificent and unique as the Pearl Carpet of Baroda is a major highlight of our inaugural series of auctions in Doha.The carpet has never appeared at auction before and the sale therefore represents an unparalleled opportunity toacquire an extraordinarily significant work of art. I am delighted that Middle Eastern collectors will be able to view thisstunning work.”

This splendid carpet has a surface that is entirely embellished, createdusing an estimated two million natural seed pearls, known as “Basra”pearls originally collected in the waters of the Gulf. The design is pickedout in coloured glass beads and the whole richly encrusted andembellished with gold set diamonds and precious stones in theirhundreds. The design of the work echoes many of the details found inSafavid and Mughal carpet designs with dense fields of swirling flowering vines that here form a deconstructed series ofthree Mughal-style arches. Whilst this commission appears to have been unique, parts of the design reflect 18th-centuryIndia’s fashionable millefleurs motif. Across the centre there are three large round ‘rosettes’ each made of table cutdiamonds set in silvered gold. Further smaller diamond rosettes in the border, all of which are embellished with sapphires,rubies and emeralds set in gold.

It is widely reported that when he commissioned the work, the Maharaja wanted tocreate a carpet that would be suitable for the tomb of the Prophet Mohammad inMedina. These reports suggest that he wanted it to cover the tomb in a way thatechoed the tomb of Mughal Empress Mumtaz Mahal in the Taj Mahal. It is alsoreported that the Maharaja turned to Islam later in his life, but it is no surprise thathis death derailed any plans to send the carpet overseas. The work thereforeentered the family collection and remained there for over 100 years. The carpet istestament to the splendour and opulence that surrounded the Maharaja and his court. Exhibited in 1902-3 as a highlightof the great Delhi Exhibition displaying the wealth of the Maharajas, it was later moved to Monaco with Maharani SitaDevi – the ‘most flamboyant Maharani’ – who took the carpet along with her jewellery collection when she moved to theMediterranean. For the first time in over 80 years the carpet was once again showcased in the 1985 landmark exhibitionIndia at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.