Only 16 complete Ming Dragon Carpets are known to exist. At Christie’s Exceptional Sale in Paris last month one of the sold for €6,881,000 nearly double its low estimate. It depicts two five-clawed dragons chasing a flaming pearl with scrolling clouds above and rolling waves beneath. Like all Ming carpets, this example was once a dark imperial red which has now faded to a golden yellow.
Bought by an American couple on their honeymoon in 1920 the carpet would originally have been placed beneath the emperor’s throne in Beijing’s Forbidden City. ‘It is in amazing condition,’ said Christie’s specialist Louise Broadhurst. ‘It’s rare to find one that hasn’t been cut in some way.’
