These are the softest, heaviest towels I own, and I have Renaissance by Christy and other Egyptian cotton towels as well. These are the towels I put out for guests when I want them to feel pampered. The only reason they do not have five stars is because they arrived in a plastic case that leached petroleum-based plastic smell into them. I ran them through the washer/dryer five times to get the smell out, but it was worth it. Smell is now completely gone, they've been used and washed multiple times since, the deep aubergine color hasn't changed at all, and these are simply luscious!