Welcome to the world of Oriental Rugs. Bokharas are classic patterns for library rugs. This ebay item you have posted is also interesting correct me if I am wrong but this is the link as I have found:
http://rover.ebay.com/ro...9&mtid=824&kw=lg This rug appears to be in good to very good condition wool pile on cotton foundation hand knotted carpet from Iran. There is a good possibility this rug may have at some point been very lightly used as the pile shows not unlike that of a washed rug. We can conclude this from the slight matting of the tips of the wool in the pile of the rug. This should not necessarily affect your decision, but do know there is a good chance this carpet was used.
The price is very appetizing, however there are aspects of this rug which could very well place it into the "seconds good" category. Although most all hand knotted rugs will have their own imperfections, specific examples such as this could be said to have more charm than that of the next. From the eyes of a rug person, I like to see some inconsistency within a rug as it makes the rug more interesting. From a consumers standpoint, there is the desire for perfect symmetry to center their rooms. This rug does have an imbalance in design specifically in the medallion.
Although the angle of the photograph would normally be the culprit to this illusion, it's clear there is a significant scale difference in mapping from one end of the rug to the other. There are also minor inconsistencies within the rug itself (which should not necessarily affect your decision), but are notable aspects of Oriental Rugs by nature: one of the design elements in the border has been cut off halfway in the corners. In general this is considered to be less detrimental to the value of the rug.
Just for fun I did this appraisal for you which values the rug at around $800 or so which would be typical of retail value. The only thing you would have to double check is condition and yarn ply:
http://www.RugRag.com/Ap...3-4224-AEA6-629449F4CCE0The rug is advertised at 100 kpsi which would put it in the lower part of the price bracket of 99-130 kpsi.
Good luck to you and your husband in shopping. I think this rug you picked out is very charming, handsome and full of character. This company advertising the rug you like on ebay appears to have a fairly good return policy although you should clarify everything with them prior to purchase. Remember, although we are happy to help there may be other elements to this rug which we are unable to detect via internet or due to lack of photographs such as odor, color run, repairs, uneven pile height, dry rot and moth damages. Be sure to ask your seller that this rug is free of any and all of these elements
cloudband attached the following image(s):
