Specialized vs Eclectic Collecting

Anyone seeking to become  a serious collector  needs to find a focus, or at lest a set of boundaries that will govern the range or nature of the collection. Ore common approach is to focus on rugs from a particular region., say, only  Turkish rugs, or Caucasian rugs, or Turkoman.. With in such an approach it is even possible to settle on a few specific sub-groupings, say Kazak or Kuba for Caucasian, or Yomud for Turkomans.  One can then decide whether to go for a representative range of specific designs, or to focus even more on a few specific design types,  possibly emphasizing stages of development. Alternatively, it is possible to approach collecting from an eclectic perspective. One can collect a wider range of different rug types from various regions, with a focus on quality of drawing and coloration. The decision to go either way is a matter of taste and temprament. Specialists are not more knowledgeable that eclecticists. Indeed, a eclectic collectors will have to learn a great deal in order to become familiar and competent with the wider range of rugs they acquire.