An old hooked rug in good condition is worth about $2000

An old hooked rug in good condition is worth about $2,000 Q: I have enclosed a photo of a handmade rug that my grandmotherrecently gave to me. It is oval and approximately 9 by 12 feet.There are two labels on the rug — one is still readable, theother is not. The rug is in very good shape for its age. Can youtell me anything about this rug and its value? A: Alarm bells go off in our heads when we read that something isin "very good shape for its age." All too often, what this means isthat the object in question actually looks as if it has beendisputed territory in a least two wars and at some point has beenrun over by a fast moving truck. Condition is very important in a 20th century Hand hooked rug such asthis one, so we spent a lot of time carefully examining thephotograph to make sure that this piece is in good condition. Webelieve that it may be. One thing that helped us reach thisconclusion is that the bands of crimson and navy are very brightand this suggests that this rug may not have had a great deal offoot traffic over the 60 to 75 years of its existence. The fabric is probably wool, and we do not see any signs of mothdamage. That, too, is a good sign. Graphically, this oval rug isvery interesting with a flower garden in the center that issurrounded with concentric bands of leaves in gold, cream, andcrimson. There is not a great deal of information out there about thePriscilla Turner Rug Guild, but we do know that it was initiallylocated in Turner, Maine. Harvey De Frost, Muriel Morrell, MerleMorrell, Dr. William Webber, and Maj. George Webber owned agristmill on the Nezinscot River in Turner Village and in October1922, De Frost and Muriel Morrell began preparing the building tobe a rug factory. Initially, the company was called "DeForest Products Company," butthen became "DeForest Association," and finally Priscilla TurnerRug Company. Who "Priscilla Turner" might have been we have noidea, but she does sound like someone who just stepped off theMayflower with a rug hook in her hand. Anyway, the company went out of business after about 12 years, butthere are vague references to it having been started up again inAuburn/Lewiston, Maine, and operating into the early 1940s. Thereis also some indication that the company was still working in anIndustrial Park in Lewiston, Maine, in 1986, but this may or maynot be correct. For further information, the reader might trycontacting the Turner Museum and Historical Association in Turner,Maine (207-225-2629). Each Pricilla Turner rug should have the name of the person whohooked it along with the pattern number and the rug's size. It isunfortunate that the label with this information on this rug hasbeen worn so badly that the notations are no longer readable, andthis will detract a bit from the value of the rug. As for the insurance-replacement value of this piece, it is arather large example (most we found were 3 by 5 feet or 6 by 9feet), and the design is very attractive. If it truly is inexcellent condition, it should be valued in the neighborhood of$1,800 to $2,000. nnn Helaine Fendelman and Joe Rosson are the authors of "Price ItYourself" (HarperResource, $19.95). E-mail