8'1" x 10'1" Aubusson Flat Weave Rug | Burgundy Field, Ivory Floral Medallion | Brand New, Never Used

This is a hand-woven Aubusson flat weave in the classic French salon manner, 8'1" x 10'1" of wool tapestry with no pile at all, so the drawing sits flush with the surface and reads like a painted panel rather than a carpeted floor. The burgundy ground carries an ivory oval reserve, a garland of open roses and a bouquet medallion at the center, and the whole piece is finished with a deep camel border and four flowered corner cartouches. It has never been on a floor: brand new, perfect condition, with the crisp selvedges and full body of a rug that came straight from the loom to storage. Flat weaves of this scale sit beautifully under furniture, which is why they remain one of the most practical choices among 8 x 10 area rugs. Every rug we sell ships with a certificate of authenticity.

Design and Motifs

The composition works in concentric rings. At the heart is a small ivory oval holding a tied bouquet of roses, buds and leafy sprays, ringed by a beaded gold and blush guard. Around that sits a larger cream cartouche edged in a scalloped band, then a full garland of open roses and blossoms that circles the medallion like a wreath. Beyond the wreath, long feathered fern fronds radiate outward across the cream ground and dissolve into large scrolling acanthus leaves that curl into the burgundy field at every side. Top and bottom centers each carry a heart shaped scroll cresting with a single furled leaf, a detail the Aubusson workshops used to anchor the vertical axis. The 4 corners hold ivory shield cartouches, each with its own small rose bouquet in sage and pink, framed by curling foliate scrolls. The border answers the field with a wide camel band of interlocking leaf and dart forms in ivory and brown, flanked by narrow plain guard stripes and a salmon outer edge.

A Palette of Burgundy, Ivory and Faded Rose

Color is what carries this rug. The field is a true burgundy, a deep wine red with no orange in it, and it is used sparingly, held to the outer field so it frames the pale center rather than dominating the room. Inside that frame the ground shifts to warm ivory and clotted cream, with the innermost reserve lightening almost to white so the bouquet reads clearly from standing height. The flowers are worked in muted blush, dusty rose and a deeper old pink, with rose buds picked out slightly stronger than the open blooms. Foliage runs through soft sage and olive green into an antique gold, and those same golds carry the acanthus scrolls and the fern fronds so the drawing never looks disconnected from the border. The border itself is a dry camel and biscuit brown with ivory reversals, and a soft salmon apricot outer stripe warms the whole edge. It is a restrained, faded palette by design, the tapestry look of old French panels, and it settles easily against wood floors, dark antiques or painted furniture.

Aubusson Weaving and the Hand-Woven Tapestry Tradition

Aubusson takes its name from the French town whose looms supplied the salons and chateaux of the 18th and 19th centuries with flat tapestry floor coverings, woven rather than knotted, in the soft chalky palette collectors still chase today. This piece is made in China, where the best contemporary hand-woven tapestry work is now produced, and it is faithful to the original method: wool wefts packed by hand over a cotton warp, no pile, each color area built up separately so the curved lines of the scrollwork stay clean. The reverse, shown in the photographs, carries the loose yarn tails typical of genuine tapestry weave and confirms the piece was built by hand rather than machine loomed. The result is thin, strong and dense, which is why a flat weave of this kind slides under doors, sits flat beneath a dining table and shows chair legs no resistance. Buyers comparing this to knotted pile pieces will find the distinction explained in our guide to what actually separates a Persian rug from an Oriental rug.