An old hooked rug in good condition is worth about $2,000

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Dear Helaine and Joe:I have enclosed a photo of a handmade rug that my grandmother recently gave to me. It is oval and approximately 9 by 12 feet. There are two labels on the rug -- one is still readable, the other is not. The rug is in very good shape for its age. Can you tell me anything about this rug and its value?Thank you,S.P., Baldwinsville, N.Y.Dear S.P.:Alarm bells go off in our heads when we read that something is in "very good shape for its age." All too often, what this means is that the object in question actually looks as if it has been disputed territory in a least two wars and at some point has been run over by a fast-moving truck.Condition is very important in a 20th-century hooked rug such as this one, so we spent a lot of time carefully examining the photograph to make sure that this piece is in good condition. We believe that it may be. One thing that helped us reach this conclusion is that the bands of crimson and navy are very bright and this suggests that this rug may not have had a great deal of foot traffic over the 60 to 75 years of its existence.The fabric is probably wool and we do not see any signs of moth damage. That, too, is a good sign. Graphically, this oval rug is very interesting, with a flower garden in the center that is surrounded with concentric bands of leaves in gold, cream and crimson.There is not a great deal of information out there about the Priscilla Turner Rug Guild, but we do know that it was initially located in Turner, Maine. Harvey DeFrost, Muriel Morrell, Merle Morrell, Dr. William Webber and Maj. George Webber owned a gristmill on the Nezinscot River in Turner Village, and in October 1922 DeFrost and Muriel Morrell began preparing the building to be a rug factory.Initially, the company was called "DeFrost Products Company," but then became "DeFrost Association," and, finally, Priscilla Turner Rug Company. Who "Priscilla Turner" might have been we have no idea, but she does sound like someone who just stepped off the Mayflower with a rug hook in hand.Anyway, the company went out of business after about 12 years, but there are vague references to it having been started up again in Auburn/Lewiston, Maine, and operating into the early 1940s. There is also some indication that the company was still working in an industrial park in Lewiston in 1986, but this may or may not be correct. For further information, S.P. might try contacting the Turner Museum and Historical Association in Turner, Maine (207-225-2629).Each Priscilla Turner rug should have the name of the person who hooked it, along with the pattern number and the rug's size. It is unfortunate that the label with this information on the rug belonging to S.P. has been worn so badly that the notations are no longer readable, and this will detract a bit from the value of the rug.As for the insurance-replacement value of this piece, it is a rather large example (most we found were 3 by 5 feet or 6 by 9 feet), and the design is very attractive. If it truly is in excellent condition, it should be valued in the neighborhood of $1,800 to $2,000.(Helaine Fendelman and Joe Rosson are the authors of "Price It Yourself" (HarperResource, $19.95). Contact them at Treasures in Your Attic, 5201 Kingston Pike, Suite 6 - 323, Knoxville, TN. 37919. E-mail them at treasures(at)knology.net.)