Vintage Patchwork Modern Overdyed Hand Knotted Area Carpet-Ultramarine 11084 10' x 14'

Ultramarine occupies a particular place in the history of pigment. Ground from lapis lazuli, it was for centuries more expensive than gold and reserved in European painting for the robes of the Madonna and the cloaks of court figures. In carpet weaving the equivalent saturation came from indigo doubled or trebled in a long fermentation vat. The ultramarine over-dye in this patchwork chases that older blue, taking vintage carpet panels and bathing them in indigo so deep the original pattern reads as a record beneath the colour.

Three weavers committed six months to this construction. Salvaged carpet sections from two-to-four-decade-old village looms were measured, trimmed, and seamed onto a fresh cotton foundation. The over-dye bath was indigo, fermented for two weeks before the wool went in and lifted out in stages so the blue oxidised into its final shade in air rather than in liquid. The hand-spun wool absorbs indigo unevenly by design; the variation is the signature of the process.

The composition

A field of saturated blue reads as a single continuous surface. Up close the field breaks into ultramarine, navy, prussian, and the rare midnight where the indigo soaked through fully. Original medallions, borders, and lozenges from the source carpets surface as topographical ghosts in the colour. The eye registers a unified blue first and only afterwards begins reading the carpets underneath.

What you are buying

Comparable ultramarine over-dye patchworks list with Western dealers at $15,000 to $22,000 once shipping settles. Hand-knotting at every layer. The rug appreciates with use rather than depreciating, and the indigo continues to oxidise into a richer, slightly violet blue across the first decade of ownership.

The piece in a room

10' x 14' (305 x 427 cm) covers the floor of a long living room or formal dining hall. Indigo of this depth carries bone-white plaster, brass, raw oak, and aged leather. It supports both Indian rosewood and English mahogany. Avoid pairing with strong cobalt textiles; the rug expects to be the dominant blue in the composition.

Conservation

Rotate the rug a half turn each spring and autumn. Vacuum weekly, suction only. Blot spills with cotton, working from the outside in. Wool conservator wash every five to seven years. Indigo is photochromic; gentle UV exposure restores depth that interior light slowly washes flat.

Reference

• Medium: hand-knotted wool on cotton foundation, vintage panels reassembled
• Dimensions: 305 x 427 cm (10' x 14')
• Construction: asymmetric knot, edge-bound seams
• Hands: 3 weavers, 6 months
• Pile: 8 mm, hand-spun village wool
• Dye: vegetable over-dye, fermented indigo
• Origin: India

Free shipping across India. Cash on delivery available. 7-day exchange. Crated for safe overland transport.