Width: 9 ft. (2.74 m)
Depth: 12 ft. (3.66 m)
Country of Origin: China
Style: Art Deco
Maker: Walter Nichols
Condition: Excellent
Year: 19th C.

Magnificent handwoven and hand-knotted Art Deco rug with a beautiful floral pattern. This is a Nichols rug circa 1920. This is one of the nicest rugs we have ever seen.

Production for Nichols rugs and carpets was mainly during the 1920's to 1930's (although there were some earlier and later pieces too). Made in China, these carpets were woven with solid quality wool pile and cotton foundation: many still exist today.

What was particularly unusual about these carpets (outside of their Art Deco design) was the unique use of colors which tended to be bold and bright. Colors played a very large role in Nichols rugs, those of which often included mint and lime greens, bronze, mustard, gold, red, magenta, purple, blue and other highly energized colors.

Designs were simple: If a Nichols rug even had a border, it would usually be very thick, with a possibility of a small buffer border to the field which typically would be wide and open. Often, diagonally mapped floral spandrels stretched toward the center of the rug. Commonly, opposite corners held unbalanced weight in regards to design.

How to identify a Nichols rug? In many of the Nichols Art Deco rugs, you'll find the knot count is usually in the vicinity of 42 kpsi, double or more yarn ply, and most often, a white edge woven on either side of the rug (perpendicular to the fringe).