Concerns & considerations: seams
Many people today are unfamiliar with the method of weaving wilton, axminister and velvet rugs and carpets often assumed that seams are a manufacturing defect or the rug was cut apart and sown back together during its life. These assumptions couldn't be more incorrect.
The majority of wilton rugs, axminister rugs and velvets were woven in strips and sewn together. This allowed rug and carpet mills to easily accomodate a customers need for different sizes. Seams were sown by hand and by machine.
Although there were many variations of carpet and rug strip sizes in the earliest years, the standards were: 18 inches, 27 inches and 36 inches.
Examples
The weave mark on this jacquard brussels reads "SHUTTLEWORTH".
In this case, the weave mark only designates the name of the original mill manufacturer, Shuttleworth Mills (of Philadelphia).
Additional note regarding quality designations:
As mentioned above, many of the mills produced numerous qualities/product lines. Each of these quality/product lines was designed to compete with similar quality/product lines manufactured by competing mills. The actual weaving specifications of the highest quality product line from all of these mills was a 9.33 pitch by 13.33 row count tufts of wool per square inch (observed as 248-250 knots per inch by the typical rug dealer). Each tuft is comprised by multiple cords of worsted wool which when the pile is cut give two corded ends of wool which create the pile.
The anglo-persian from Whittall, the Herati from Karagheusian, the Karnak from Shuttleworth, the Karnak from Mohawk, the Royal Kashan from Thomas Develon, and the Buckinghamn from Fetterolf, among others, are all of the same 9.33 pitch by 13.33 row quality. One should not be considered superior or lesser than the others.
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