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Lot Essay
Axminster carpets were quickly recognised as the best English produced carpets available, with Thomas Whitty winning the prize offered for carpet weaving by the Society of Arts in 1757, 1758 and 1759. The fame of Axminster carpets was well appreciated as evidenced by a royal visit from George III in 1783, the commissioning of carpets by the Prince of Wales, as well as commissions from the leading architectural designers of the day such as Robert Adam.
The present carpet has an abundance of small floral sprays which are naturalistically drawn and are strewn across the field in a loose fashion that is less typical of the often more controlled neo-classical designs of the same period which would be set within a series of formal borders. For a full discussion of British carpet production see: Sarah B. Sherrill, Carpets and Rugs of Europe and America , New York, 1996, ch.5, pp.131-237
The present carpet has an abundance of small floral sprays which are naturalistically drawn and are strewn across the field in a loose fashion that is less typical of the often more controlled neo-classical designs of the same period which would be set within a series of formal borders. For a full discussion of British carpet production see: Sarah B. Sherrill, Carpets and Rugs of Europe and America , New York, 1996, ch.5, pp.131-237