Conservation of an antique carpet

These photographs illustrate a typical example of a conservation treatment : the pile of the carpet has completely disappeared in many areas, a result of age and of wear, leaving the weft exposed (reddish areas) and in some cases missing, revealing the warps, some of which are broken.

The conservation of this object involves the realignment of the warp threads and the consolidation using laid couching stitches of the ground weave (warp and weft) onto a linen support, dyed a colour that blends easily with those of the rest of the carpet.