The Holy Carpet

The Holy Carpet, also known as Ardabil, is a 16th century Persian rug presently on exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, with a purchase price of $3,000. This is another another object with a fascinating backstory. It was commissioned about 1539 by Shah Tahmasp I to adorn his ancestors' shrine in a mosque in Ardabil (from where the rug derives its name), where it remained until its sale in 1890. The London Museum despatched its best negotiators on behalf of Ziegler, an English-Persian rug company, who bought the carpet for $3,000, an amount thought impossible at the time.

This carpet's production procedure is noteworthy: the knots in this item are incredibly fine, as is typical of carpets from the Kashan region. With a density of 520,000 knots per square meter and a total of 26 million knots, the Holy Carpet measures 61.5 square feet. Indeed, holy carpet!

This magnificent item is made of silk and fine wool, with motifs that have perplexed interpreters for years. It appears to be a sky, with the glass mosque lamps representing stars reflected on a sea surface with floating lotus flowers. The Holy Carpet is both wonderful and mysterious.

Cost: $3,000