The most expensive rugs in the world

In 2013, a Persian Kerman rug was sold at auction for 34 million dollars , and in doing so it unseated the  Kerman vase rug, which had been regarded as the world's most expensive rug up to that point. 

The Oriental rug, sold at auction by the New York auction house Sotheby’s, dates from the first half of the 17th century and measures 2.7 x 2 metres. It is adorned with a golden sickle-leaf pattern on a red ground, framed by a blue border. The rug was made in Kerman, in south-eastern Iran.

Originally taken over from the holdings of the collector and namesake William A. Clark, the exceptional piece was finally released for auction by the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, where it achieved an absolute record price. The “Clark Sickle-Leaf Carpet” is therefore the most expensive rugever to go under the hammer. And not only that: it is at the same time the most expensive Islamic work of art ever auctioned, which means it holds two world records at once.