NEW YORK - Sotheby's plans to auction a curated group of nearly 200 Middle Eastern, Russian and Asian textiles, rugs, and carpets, hailing from distinguished private collections on Oct. 1. Beginning today, Sept. 25 to Sept. 30, Sotheby's New York auction house is exhibiting the rugs, some of which have been on the auction block before, while others are new-to-the-market.

Most of the items up for grabs include a large selection of collectible tribal and city rugs and room-size furnishing carpets from the 19th century, as well as a number of fine and rare classical weavings from the Safavid and Ottoman eras as well. The auction opens with a group of fresh-to-the-market, vibrant Uzbek suzanis from a Russian collection (which are expected to sell from between $5,000 to $12,000.

Still, the highlights of the upcoming auction include a Yomud C-gül main carpet ($80,000 to $120,000), a Kelekian 'vase' carpet fragment ($150,000 to $250,000), and the auction's cover piece: a rich 'Polonaise' silk and metal-thread rug previously from the estate of King Umberto II of Italy, expected to fetch between $800,000 to $1,200,000.  When Lot 68, as the Polonaise will be listed for the auction, was last on the open market in London in 1984, it sold for what was then the world record sum of almost a quarter of a million dollars.

"The rugs that bring the highest prices at the moment are the pre-1800 weavings, often referred to as 'classical' carpets," said Mary Jo Otsea, a senior consultant, rugs and carpets at Sotheby's. "As these are the oldest, they are the most rare, and collectors and institutions will compete for these pieces with determination.  In the current sale, this would be the cover lot, no. 68, as well as lots 66, 98, 50 and 51."

But many of the rugs carry a modest price tag and the auction actually proves quite affordable in some cases, with options beginning at an estimated $1,500 to $2,000 for a c1900, West Turkestan Yomud carpet.

"Our buyers are an international group of collectors, dealers, decorators, people who are furnishing [their homes] and institutions," says Otsea. "There are pieces at different price levels and of many different styles. We always try to have a wide variety of works so as to appeal to as broad an audience as possible."

Sotheby's last major carpet auction was held on Jan. 31, 2014 and also sold off rugs, carpets and textiles from private collections. That sale raised $4 million with many lots selling for well over estimate, according to Sotheby's. Leading the sale was a Safavid 'vase'-technique carpet fragment which brought $365,000 - over three times the high estimate. Also performing strongly was an Eagle Kazak rug which sold for $233,000, far more than the estimated value of $120,000.

Prior to that sale, in June 2013, Sotheby's auctioned off a range of stunning pieces collected by copper baron William A. Clark, a collector of 16th and 17th century carpets. In fact, that auction made history with the sale of a 17th century sickle-leaf, vine scroll and palmette 'vase'-technique carpet, which sold for an astounding price of $33,765,000, and making it the most expensive carpet in the world.

"There are collectors who focus on tribal rugs alone, as well as individuals who simply prefer to live with them for their patterns and colors. As in most areas of the rug market, the audience is smaller now than say 15 years ago.  This is mostly due to furnishing trends as many people now prefer to use very simple, neutral colored carpets in their homes. Collectors are the strongest and most determined buyers of tribal rugs, and they will compete strongly for a great, rare piece."

09.25.15