About
Since 1982, my part-time business has used the name “East of the Bosphorus” to give geographical scope to the antique rugs and textiles I sell. While I was first involved in mostly Kurdish flatweave and Tibetan pieces, I have been also interested in Ersari pieces, and so my business has grown more diverse over the years. This, my first web site, is organized in part because of my decision to stop doing rug and textile shows.
I will be posting antique rugs and fragments that I believe to have special character based on aesthetic considerations and estimated age. Now that the rush of old pieces from Central Asia after the collapse of the USSR has slowed considerably, it is harder to find great pieces---and, they are more expensive. And clearly there are more problematic “over-restored” rugs, and also more fakes entering the market, a consequence of an increasingly sophisticated repair industry and (unfortunately) a steep price curve. The fact that in 2007 the US dollar has depreciated significantly against the Euro, and also the Turkish lira does not help matters for some North Americans.
You will find that I am relentlessly upfront about any piece I am selling, supplying extra images with thorough commentary on request, and guaranteeing satisfaction. Up to now, I am proud to say that no one has ever returned a piece to me.
I will be pleased to help clients look for oversize antique rugs of character, and to navigate the world of new, handwoven, vegetally dyed rugs to find quality and beauty. I particularly enjoy working with new collectors because collecting opportunities are still out there.
Finally, and with the help of many, many others, I periodically teach a course in rug aesthetics and economics to undergraduates at Williams College. I will take a group of mostly art history majors to Turkey in January 2008. Some of these students will be future museum curators and directors. Others may be collectors. Because collectors seem to be growing older, and some rug clubs are disappearing for want of new members, I believe it is important to transmit our knowledge of rugs and textiles and experience and enthusiasm to young people.
Nicholas H.Wright