A carpet studded with pearls and gems and commissioned for the tomb of the Prophet Mohammed has sold for £3.8m at an auction in Doha, Qatar.

A detail of the Pearl Carpet of Baroda displayed at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Doha

The Pearl Carpet of Baroda, now the world's most expensive, is believed to have been created in India more than 100 years ago as a gift to the tomb in the holy city of Medina, Saudi Arabia.

Sotheby's said it had expected bidding for the Pearl Carpet of Baroda to start at $5 million and believed it would fetch a much higher price. Earlier estimates anticipated the lot fetching as much as £14.5 million.

But the starting price was brought down to $4.5 million because there were few buyers than expected.

It finally sold for almost $5.5 million.

Habib Basha, a Sotheby's spokesman, said that the eventual buyer was one of three bidders, and wished to remain anonymous.

The carpet is traditionally believed to have been commissioned by the maharajah of Baroda as a gift for the prophet's tomb.

The maharajah died before the donation was made and the pearl carpet remained in his family.

It has an entirely embellished surface, studded with an estimated two million natural seed pearls known as basra which were harvested from the waters of the Gulf.

The carpet was exhibited in 1902-3 as a highlight of the great Delhi Exhibition, and was later moved to Monaco. It was showcased again in 1985 in New York.

The carpet was among a host of Islamic items on auction in Doha.

It has overtaken in value the $4.45 million (£3.1 million) paid for a silk Persian carpet at Christies in New York last year.