A SMALL NINGXIA 'DEER AND CRANES' RUG, QING China, 19th century. Finely woven wool carpet with two deer and two cranes, one in flight, next to a tree and a craggy rock, and under a lingzhishaped cloud. Provenance: Old Austrian private collection. Condition: Good condition with some soiling and wear. Dimensions: Size 130 x 68.5 cm NINGXIA In the diary of a Jesuit priest, Father Gerbillon, it is recorded that the Kangxi Emperor visited Ningxia in 1697 and was presented with several locally made carpets which he took back with him to the Empress. With Imperial interest in the Ningxia carpets and their designs being closely related to court styles of the Ming period, their appeal increased throughout the 18th and 19th century. Ancestor portraits are significant in contributing dates to styles of carpets. In these portraits, the carpets are often visible at the edges of the thrones. The Chinese production of wool carpets and rugs spanned over several centuries and they do not appear to have been exported to Europe in the first quarter of the eighteenth century which was the height of the Chinoiserie fashion. It was only at the beginning of the twentieth century that the West became aware of Chinese carpets, largely through the dealers at the time which included Larkin & Kemp in London, and Yamanaka, Tiffany, Dilley and others in New York. Their interest to the present market is their understated elegance and balanced composition with their reduced and subtle range of colors. 寧夏鹿鶴紋小毯，清代 中國，十九世紀。精細編織的羊毛地毯，上面有兩頭鹿和兩只仙鶴，其中一只正在飛行中，緊挨著一棵樹和一塊岩石，空中一片靈芝形雲朵。 來源：奧地利私人老收藏 品相：品相良好，一些污漬和磨損 尺寸：130 x 68.5 厘米