The 7ft x 3ft 9in (2.13 x 1.1m) fragment, with so-called Lotto decoration, can be dated to the first half of the 16th century.
The style is named after the Italian Renaissance painter Lorenzo Lotto, who depicted weaves of this type in several of his paintings. Such prestigious carpets were highly prized in 16th century Italy and this example was woven in Anatolia to celebrate the wedding of two members of the patrician families.
This particular fragment was shown at the Exhibition of Masterpieces of Muhammadan Art in Munich in 1910 and published in a book two years later. Since then, it has been in the possession of the same family. Another fragment, which was almost certainly part of the same carpet, belongs to the Silesian Museum of Art and Antiquities, Wroclaw, Poland.
The bidding in Wiesbaden started at €15,000 and a London dealer had to bid €57,500 (£49,570) before the competition gave in.
