Tapestry fragment, 6ft 5in x 3ft 5in (1.95 x 1.04m), from the Life of Scipio series designed by Giulio Romano and woven by the Manufacture des Gobelins Paris in the 17th century. It is priced at £4800 from Markus Voigt at London Antique Rug & Textile Art (LARTA) Fair.
The event, which runs from January 23-28, takes place on the mezzanine of Battersea Evolution, running alongside the Decorative fair, and hosts 15 exhibitors.
Showing a bearded man in a helmet, the tapestry fragment is from the Life of Scipio, a piece chronicling the story of the Roman statesman who was instrumental in Rome’s victory against Carthage.
The piece was designed by Giulio Romano (c.1499-1546), an Italian painter, architect and pupil of Raphael, and was woven by the Manufacture des Gobelins Paris in the 17th century.
Priced at £4800, it is far from the most expensive item on offer. James Cohen, for example, brings a Ziegler & Co carpet, once in the Elveden Hall home of the Maharajah Duleep Singh, for £25,000, and Nomadic Rugs Gallery offers an early 20th century Anatolian Oushak carpet for £19,000.
But a good spread of items is available, with many highlights in the three figures.
Also showing are organiser Aaron Nejad, Jenny Hicks Beach and Phil Bell Antique Oriental Rugs. Joining for the first time is Textile Antiques, while Villa Rosemaine and Gideon Hatch join Voigt in returning after some time away.
Aaron Nejad Gallery offers this silk embroidered purse from the Lakai tribe of Uzbekistan, c.1900, for £575 at LARTA Fair.
Textile adventures
Beyond the commercial offerings, there will be a talk from Chris Aslan, author of Unravelling the Silk Road and A Carpet Ride to Khiva, on January 25.
Titled How to Get Down from a Yak: Adventures in central Asian nomadic textiles, the talk covers houses made of wool, embroideries that ward off evil and kilims that store kitchenware. Tickets are free but must be booked in advance through the LARTA website.
