Protection of floor coverings

I am seeking advice on strategies for protecting historic floor
coverings in a large historic house which is open to the public and
which hosts numerous social events.Most if not all of the rugs in
the particular house I am involved with are  exposed to foot traffic
and have been for numerous years.Most of the furnishings date from
the 16th century.I am particularly interested in the types of
runners that can be laid down as a barrier to foot traffic and what
the benefits/negatives would be and purchasing sources for suitable
runners.I would appreciate any recommendations from persons who have
dealt with this problem and leads to other sources of information
concerning this subject.

                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 12:16
                 Distributed: Thursday, August 6, 1998
                       Message Id: cdl-12-16-009
                                  ***