ENGLAND, LATE 18TH CENTURY

The rich colors, bold design elements, and overall Neoclassical design found in this carpet are typical to the production at Axminster in the late eighteenth century. With its flower-filled central medallion and floral wreath, rinceaux formed by acanthi, and solid-colored field, the present lot is particularly similar to the Axminster carpet in the White Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace, see Bertram Jacobs, Axminster Carpets, Leigh-on-Sea, 1970, pl. 7. Other related carpets include two carpets from the Getty collection, sold Sotheby's New York, 12 November, 1999 lots 407 and 416, and a carpet from the collection of the late Lord and Lady Iliffe of Basildon Park, see Christie's, London, 5 June 2008, lot 8.
In 1755 Thomas Whitty established his carpet manufacturing workshop at Axminster in Devon. His success was almost immediate; Whitty's Axminster carpets were highly regarded by the Society of Arts and were awarded the Prize offered for carpet weaving in 1757 (shared with Thomas Moore of Moorfields), 1758 (shared with Peter Parisot of Exeter) and 1759 which he won outright. Leading architectural designers including Robert Adam and James Wyatt turned to Whitty to create some of their designs. Even the Prince of Wales became a patron, commissioning a number of carpets. The full achievement was acknowledged in 1783 with the royal visit of George III to the workshop.