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Priceless Indian pearl carpet to go under hammer in Doha
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-19 17:15

NEW DELHI -- The World renowned auction house, Sotheby's is all set to put under hammer a priceless piece of Indian heritage Thursday in Doha, Qatar, the official website of the auction house said.


The Pearl Carpet was created in the late 1860s. [Agencies]

To be auctioned among other world renowned items, the Baroda pearl carpet already commands a price of $5 million. It is expected to fetch far higher than the reserve price, the website said.

This comes weeks after some items belonging to India's modern founding father Mahatma Gandhi were auctioned in New York.  

Encrusted with 2.2 million Basra pearls, and weighing 30,000 carats, the Baroda pearl carpet was commissioned in 1865 by Indian city Baroda's King Khande Rao Gaekwad, as a gift for the Mausoleum of Prophet Mohammed at Medina.

The silk carpet also has three large diamond-filled rose designs in silvered gold, besides pearls. The carpet has been a part of the king's family collection.  

In 1943, the then King of Baroda, Sir Pratap Sinh Gaikwad, married a woman known as Sita Devi, who took up her residence in Europe and soon, most of the Baroda treasures were transferred to her mansions in Monte Carlo in Monaco neighboring southern France.

In 1947, the state of Baroda was merged with India. The Indian government deposed Gaikwad and forced him to return to India some of the most precious items, but the pearl carpet continued to be in the possession of Sita Devi.