This fragmentary carpet features a design influenced by French Neoclassical taste popular in Russia in the early 19th century. Commonly found design elements in 19th century Russian carpets, such as overall pattern, multi-flower wreath medallions, finely drawn foliage and rinceaux leafy stems, are all sourced from French Charles X pile and flat-woven carpets. In this example, intricately and realistically drawn floral wreath medallions repeat and are linked by leafy green foliage with green floral roundels at the interstices.
A kilim carpet attributed to St. Petersburg that sold at Sotheby’s New York, 28 April 2010, lot 24 shares with this carpet a very similar overall repeat of wreath medallions in a plafond format. Echoing ceiling decorations, plafond designs consist of floral arrangements enclosed in interconnected geometrical compartments. The use of a wreath medallion in a plafond format can also be found in a similar flatwoven carpet that was sold at Sotheby’s 17 October 2015, lot 735. The closest comparable, a pile fragment formerly in the Carmen Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, displays a nearly identical treatment of rose blossoms and scrolling green foliage, as well as a similar fine weave, indicating that they are perhaps from the same workshop.
Very little is known about carpet production in Russia, the Ukraine and Moldova which makes it difficult to ascribe carpets with certainty to specific workshops. The Imperial Tapestry Factory was established in 1716 in the vicinity of St. Petersburg by Peter the Great (reigned 1682-1725) and produced tapestries as well as flat-woven and knotted pile carpets for the court. In addition, several estate workshops were set up by wealthy landowners, to produce carpets and other furnishings; these were mainly in the province of Moscow but also in Kursk, Vornonezh, Tambov and Nizhni Novgorod. Unfortunately, there is little documentation and not much has been written about the various rich weaving traditions from this area (please see Sherrill, Sarah B., Carpets and Rugs of Europe and America, Abbeville Press, 1995, pp.280-289 for further discussion of Russian and related carpet weaving industries).