It's not unusal to need to store your Oriental Rug for an extended periods of time. Don't worry, it won't take it personally: Unless of course you don't store it properly... Maybe you just rolled the rug up for a party and forgot about it. Or possibly you moved and the rug didn't really fit with the new decor. Either way, there are certain things to remember before leaving the rug unattended for too long a period of time.
Starching a rug is basically a process which takes an otherwise irregular carpet, and uses various corrective procedures to bring the rug back to it's original intended straight and true condition. In this article, we discuss what the process is in more depth, teach you how to identify the implementation of such practice, as well as address other questions which may play a role in your purchasing decisions.
In the case of a heavily curved runner (a strong bow in the middle) for example, it is not unusual for less reputable sellers to not only omit a written description, but also attempt to hide such physical characteristic of a rug. The reason for doing so has a great deal to do with the intensity of the process to fix such a bowed shape: It is time consuming, expensive, and not always guarentteed. From the standpoint of the seller, it is better to sell a rug as-is for at a lower price point rather than opt for a procedure which may or may not work. Conversely, from the consumer's perspective, what good is a "boomerang runner" in your hallway? When two corners of the runner are kissing one wall, and the center of the rug is crawling up the opposite wall, there's no real utility.
Steve Boodakian of This Old House recently wrote an article on how to choose an Oriental Rug. There are some excellent points within this article which are worth mentioning, and several suggestions which may also be added.
Mr. Boodakian mentions it's a good idea to consider drawing a rough sketch of the room. While this certainly may be productive, it's not the best way to get a feel for the space. We recommend a better alternative should you have the time, is to take a look at some standard rug sizes, then apply them to the actual space under consideration. Take an old newspaper, spread it out, and masking tape it together into the size of your ideal rug, so you may actually gauge it's size on your floor, in proper proportion to the other fixtures in the room.
It is evident from the design where there is now a "Tree of Life" design, there once was a figure head which is believed to have been that of a Persian Shah. Re-woven area is raised slightly higher than surrounding, original pile. Why this carpet has been subject to altercation is unknown. Perhaps out of resentment to historic conditions, or simply to replace a worn/damaged area in the center field.