What is meant when a rug is described as ‘antique’?

What is meant when a rug is described as ‘antique’?
Technically, it refers to the carpet being at least 100 years old. A rug bearing an authentic date prior to l915 is clearly antique in 2015. Dates are sometimes altered, forged, inserted or otherwise hanky-pankied, and rugs with dates not in accordance with accepted stylistic or typological evolution must be scrutinized. What about carpets not bearing dates or other chronologically definitive inscriptions (i.e., a patron’s or artist’s name whose dates can be independently established)? We must fall back upon general, accumulated knowledge/ trade wisdom. Long experience tells an expert how a rug physically ages, how a new carpet gets to be 50 or 100 years old, and in what contexts it has been owned (American, European, Persian). A consensus of experts helps:if everybody agrees on a period, then it may be accepted by anyone else considering the piece. Close comparison is essential: if a rug is in general physical and stylistic conformity with other pieces universally taken as of a certain period, then that rug is also of that era. As the pool of comparanda gets larger, the chance for an anomaly to slip through decreases. The closer the comparables, the better the odds of a correct attribution. For example, Oushaks with both field and border adapted from classic Persian carpets fits neatly in the general style of Oushaks from about 1895 to 1915 or so, when books of illustrations of early carpets first became available as design inspirations. The adaptations are not exact, but the carpets form a structurally coherent group, differing only in color schemes and patterns. A carpet must have some date of origin, so how does it best fit in with the evolution of the type? Expertise, whether derived from handling the material exclusively or with a substantial dollop of book learning added, knows how it fits in. Published comparanda, in respectable auction catalogues, monographs or exhibitions, are the touchstone of attribution. If esteemed experts agree on a certain date and publicly say it, you can pretty much accept that when exposed to obviously similar carpets.