400-year-old Mughal hunting carpet once owned by Remarque offered at NY auction

A Mughal hunting carpet is a richly decorated Indian textile from the Mughal era, featuring animals in hunting scenes alongside flowers and vines. This particular example matters because it combines age, artistic quality, documented ownership and a strong auction history. It dates to the first half of the 17th century and is connected with prominent collectors and cultural figures.

The carpet is divided into four nearly identical sections. One section shows a tiger ready to pounce on a white zebu bull, while a spotted leopard bites a blue deer. Lions appear along the border, attacking or feeding on fawns. Charles T. Yerkes, Erich Maria Remarque and the Thyssen-Bornemisza family owned or held it at different points.

Sotheby’s lists it as lot 43 in its Magnum Opus | Evening Auction in New York on October 21, 2026. Its estimate is 250,000–350,000. The sale renews attention on an extraordinary textile that previously sold for £314,500 in 2013.

The carpet was made nearly 400 years ago, during the first half of the 17th century. Its age places it within a period associated in the article with flourishing courtly art and architecture under the Mughal Empire. Its survival, original pile and documented history make its age especially meaningful to collectors and specialists.

It measures approximately 473 centimetres by 200 centimetres. In imperial measurements, that is about 15 feet 6 inches by 6 feet 7 inches. The large textile was woven with a wool pile on a cotton foundation. Its size allowed the maker to develop repeated floral patterns, vivid color contrasts and several animal scenes across the surface.

Sotheby’s lists the textile as lot 43 in its Magnum Opus | Evening Auction in New York on October 21, 2026. The auction house gives an estimate of 250,000–350,000. It previously sold for £314,500, including the buyer’s premium, in 2013.

The carpet’s design combines nature, hunting and intense color. A wine-red background supports flowers, leaves and animals. The pattern is divided into four nearly identical sections. Palmettes and rosette blossoms connect through elongated leaves, creating a repeated ornamental structure rather than a single isolated scene.

The animals make the design especially dramatic. A tiger appears ready to pounce on a white zebu bull. A spotted leopard bites into a blue deer. Lions attack or feed on fawns in the border. Deep blue, ivory and other vivid shades contrast with the wine-red field, giving the motifs a strong visual presence.

The textile’s construction also matters. It was woven with a wool pile on a cotton foundation. That combination created a durable surface for the detailed imagery. The article also notes original pile, along with repairs and areas of wear, showing how materials and later condition both shape the carpet’s story.

The article presents the Mughal Empire as the historical setting for the carpet’s creation. The first half of the 17th century was linked with flourishing courtly art and architecture under Mughal rule. In that environment, carpets could serve as highly refined works of art, combining complex decoration with impressive technical skill.

This carpet illustrates that courtly quality through its repeated sections, flowering vines and dramatic animal scenes. Sotheby’s 2013 catalogue suggested that its accomplished workmanship pointed toward a court design workshop. Art historian Friedrich Spuhler added that the treatment of the corners indicated the involvement of skilled court designers.

The article does not explain the Mughal Empire’s wider political history or give a specific reason for every workshop commission. It does show why the carpet attracts attention today: its design and execution suggest access to highly skilled makers. That connection strengthens the textile’s artistic importance and helps distinguish it from an ordinary old carpet.

The carpet’s ownership history is unusually prominent. One early documented owner was American financier Charles T. Yerkes, who built an extraordinary collection of Oriental carpets. After his death, the carpet appeared in the 1910 catalogue of The Yerkes Collection of Oriental Carpets. It later became associated with German novelist Erich Maria Remarque in Ascona, Switzerland.

The recorded chain continued through a private Swiss collection and The Textile Gallery in London. In 1986, the carpet entered the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection. The Thyssen family had a major connection with historical carpets through Heinrich, Baron Thyssen-Bornemisza, and his son Hans-Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza, who rebuilt and expanded the family collection.

Famous previous owners do not replace the carpet’s age or workmanship, but they make its provenance more distinctive. A clear history can reassure collectors and support scholarly interest. Well-known names can also attract wider attention at auction, potentially strengthening competition and the price, although the article does not guarantee a particular financial effect.

In 2013, Sotheby’s offered the carpet in London with an estimate of £100,000–£150,000. It performed far above that range, selling for £314,500 including the buyer’s premium, according to HALI. That result confirmed strong interest in the carpet’s combination of age, design, craftsmanship and ownership history.

The 2026 sale brings the textile back to Sotheby’s calendar. It is listed as lot 43 in the Magnum Opus | Evening Auction in New York on October 21, 2026. This time, Sotheby’s estimates it at 250,000–350,000. The estimate is stated in a different currency from the 2013 result, so the figures cannot be compared directly without conversion.

The article does not identify one definite cause for any change in value. Continued collector interest, the Yerkes, Remarque and Thyssen-Bornemisza associations, and the earlier strong result may support attention. Its age, artistic quality and documented history remain central to the next sale.

Experts judge an old textile by combining artistic quality with physical evidence and documented history. Craftsmanship includes the precision of the weaving, the complexity of the design and signs of skilled production. Provenance means tracing ownership and publication records. A strong provenance can clarify where an object has been and why it matters.

This carpet offers several concrete examples. Sotheby’s 2013 catalogue described accomplished workmanship and suggested a court design workshop. Friedrich Spuhler said the corner treatment indicated skilled court designers. The carpet retains its original pile, but it also has repairs and areas of wear. Its ownership is documented through Yerkes, Remarque and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection.

Condition does not simply make an old textile valuable or worthless. Specialists consider how much original material remains, what was restored and how visibly it has aged. The final judgment also reflects rarity, design, provenance and buyer demand. Its £314,500 result in 2013 shows how these factors can combine strongly at auction.