PEGASUS RUG GALLERY
owner Behie Khalighi turned a hobby into a living
when she decided to start dealing in antique rugs and textiles.
|
Pegasus
Rug Gallery owner Behie Khalighi wants to make one thing
very
clear: She has newer had, nor will she ever have, a closing
out or going out of business sale.
She
makes the point to separate herself from merchants who specialize
in one massive sale after another, often leading to the besmirching
of the rug industry as a whole.
Khalighi
and her husband started collecting antique and rare rugs when
they still lived in Iran. "At that time there were only a
hand full of collectors and most were our friends so collecting
and finding antique pieces was allot easier".
They
were both teachers in their native land, but upon coming to
Canada they decided to try turning their hobby into a living.
They
never looked back.
"We're
very interested in collecting old rug," said Khalighi.
"Most
of my inventory is antique and old rugs."
|
by Joanna Piros
One area where reproductions are not recommended, is in the arcane world of Persian carpets. When Behie Khalighi and her husband were newlyweds in 1964 in Iran, they began to tour the villages of Azerbaijan buying and trading antique rugs as a hobby. They eventually gave up teaching and became buyers and traders full time, souring carpets for private collectors. That was a long time ago, says Khalighi. " Today we have a team in Iran that collects and puts aside rugs for us. My husband goes and selects from those and when he has chosen, then the process of restoration and washing starts. Washing has to be under strict supervision because it is so important to the rugs final look." From the time the rugs are selected, washed and repaired by experts in Iran, to their arrival at Pegasus Rug Gallery, a great deal of time passes and anticipation mounts. "This March I went to Iran after many years, and chose a shipment," says Khalighi. "Today I am still waiting for that shipment to get here, " My clients are all waiting for this shipment because they know it will be worth it. Finding good quality old carpets which are also unique and rare takes time and hard work but we enjoy it and appreciate it."
Pegasus Rug Gallery has some carpets which are 200 years old but that is unusual. Generally the carpets which sell more frequently are made during the turn of this century although, says Khalighi, you could look at a carpet which is 100 years old and swear it was new. That only applies, of course, in the case of care, good quality material and workmanship from that period. The price range is vast but normally, she says, a 5 by 7 rug which is not a museum piece in good condition will fetch around $3500.
If you're very lucky, your rug will have a history. Persian rugs carry the name of the place where they are woven so that's a beginning. Khalighi recalls a massive early Bijar her husband was called to look at: "They found this old carpet - 12 by 18 feet - in a mosque in Hamedan....other dealers were interested too....it was extremely expensive and sometimes when a rug is that much money it is a little difficult for us but we knew that it is a special piece and we must buy it....so he bought it and then it had to be moved from the mosque to Tehran which was difficult because during the many years in the mosque it had not been washed and it was so heavy with dirt and dust....it took almost a year to get it ready to come to Vancouver and last year I sold it to a special client."
Despite the variety of antiques and collectibles available, the common thread among dealers is a genuine desire to inform people about the history of things and their place in the world, while at the same time finding them a new place to reside.