A wool velvet pile-knotted Savonnerie carpet, French Restauration, circa 1820

For a similar model, see E. Floret, Great carpets of the world, Paris, 1996, p. 261.

An identical carpet was sold at Christie's New York on 17 May 2006, lot 80 ($96,000).

In a way, the Empire and Restoration revived the tradition of Louis XIV by creating admirable compositions for prestigious locations (Grand Cabinet de l'Empereur, Salle du Trône in the Tuileries Palace). With the troubles of the French Revolution behind him, Napoleon, by decree of 28 Florail XII (1803), used the royal palaces to restore the glory of the carpet workshops of yesteryear. The style of the design and many of the motifs, such as the large central medallions, the flower-filled horns of plenty, the corner roundels, the acanthus scrolls around the rosettes and the dense floral bouquets, are reminiscent of the work of Jacques-Louis de la Hamayde de Saint-Ange-Desmaison, known simply as Saint-Ange (1780 - 1860). The use of shades of pink and golden yellow is also recurrent in his carpet designs. He was probably the most influential carpet designer of the late Empire and Restoration periods. After studying with the draughtsmen Percier and Fontaine, and Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart, he became the principal draughtsman for the Mobilier Impérial, designing not only carpets but also porcelain for Sèvres.