Savonnerie rug factory

The whole production of the Savonnerie factory was controlled by the reigning king. Only by his favor could anyone own one of these superb rugs.

In 1661 Louis XIV ordered no less than ninety great carpets for the Louvre. It was more than twenty years before the last one was finished. Two large rugs made for the King of Siam brought the factory ninety thousand dollars in 1688.

Versailles was furnished with Savonneries. So were the rooms of the French Pope at Fontainebleau and other palaces all over France. See Plate V.

Like the Aubusson, the designs of these magnificent rugs fol­lowed the fashions of the times. The same motifs were used. But in Savonneries, because they were made for palaces and were often of great size, the ornament was more ornate, massive and in larger scale.