OAKLAND, CA.- When Claremont Rug Company announced an exhibit of a recent acquisition of 175 art-level, 19th century Oriental rugs, not even Gallery president Jan David Winitz was prepared for the response. “We know that art connoisseurs are increasingly turning their attention to the finest 19th century Oriental carpets,” said Winitz, “but we did not expect that we would sell more than 15 per cent of the rugs, including the one that we featured in our announcement on the first day. Word of the caliber of the rugs being offered spread very rapidly among our ongoing clientele the art and collecting community.” Rugs in the exhibit are valued between $20,000 and $500,000 per carpet. “In the past decade, only our Hudson River Valley Collection has attracted this level of interest,” he said. “Clients are very serious about making sure that they are investing in tangible assets of superb artistic merit. They know, as a recent article in the Financ