A History of Tufted Rugs

Prototype. Chapter text drafted from the research notes and not yet checked at the archives. Images awaiting permission are marked.

Axminster carpet attributed to Thomas Whitty, ca. 1765 (Met 2025.725)

Axminster carpet attributed to Thomas Whitty, ca. 1765 (Met 2025.725)

Object · checked at the source

Made by
Attributed to Thomas Whitty (1713–1792); Axminster carpet manufactory
Date
ca. 1765
Place
Axminster, Devon
Held by
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Collection
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Number
2025.725
Materials
wool
Size
17 ft × 14 ft 11 3/4 in. (518.2 × 456.6 cm), irregular rectangle
Themes
Woven carpet

Cite this source

Attributed to Thomas Whitty (1713–1792); Axminster carpet manufactory. Axminster carpet attributed to Thomas Whitty, ca. 1765 (Met 2025.725), ca. 1765. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2025.725. metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/928622.

Research notes

Hand-knotted wool carpet ("Wool; knotted pile"), attributed to Thomas Whitty of the Axminster carpet manufactory, ca. 1765 (the Met's date range 1760–1770). Acquired by the Met in 2025: "Purchase, F.J. Hakimian Gift, in memory of Joseph Hakimian, and Christian Keesee and Anonymous Gifts, in memory of Irene Roosevelt Aitken, 2025". Gallery 511. Public domain image. Why it matters: a dated Whitty attribution from his first decade at Axminster (his first carpet was finished in 1755), a generation earlier than the Met's other Whitty carpet (57.162, ca. 1780–90). Source: Met Collection API, object 928622 (record dated 2026-07-16), saved in research/fetched.