Brussels Tapestry - "Tapestry of Perseus and Andromeda Returning to Sephiros
Reference number :78J/ VEN52
Origin : Flanders - Brussels
Period : XVIIth century
Provenance :Private Collection
Composition: Wool and silk
Dimension: 3.765 W x 2.90 H
For a long time, the upholsterers of Arras or Tournai were the most productive. Tournai was a city of French political obedience until 1521. The first mentions of upholsterers in Tournai date back to 1295. The tapestry workshops of Tournai produced important historiated hangings illustrating the same subject of biblical, historical, mythological or romantic inspiration, taking up the chivalrous ideals of the court of Burgundy. In 1448, Philippe le Bon commissioned the hanging of the History of Gédéon or the Golden Fleece to be delivered in four years, and which was, according to Eugène Soil, "the most famous piece to come out of the workshops in Tournai".1 Around 1530, Tournai, which had taken over the first place in Arras in the production of tapestries, saw new competitors develop, Brussels, Lille, etc. The production of tapestries will stop in Tournai in 1720.
The importance of the Arras tapestries can be seen in the name "arazzo" or "arrazzy" used in Italy or Poland, "drap de Ras" in Spain to designate the tapestries, long after Arras had lost its predominance. The decadence of Arras began when, in 1398, the Duke of Burgundy, Philip the Good, decided, in order to redress the city's finances, to double the tax on the high hills. Merchants and tapestry workers then began to leave the city to settle in Tournai, Lille, Oudenaarde, then Brussels and Bruges2. As early as 1449, Duke Philip the Good preferred to order the hanging of the story of Gideon in Tournai rather than in Arras. In 1456, the bourgeois of Arras complained to the Duke of Burgundy that the workers in Haute-Lisse were leaving Arras to settle in Valenciennes, Tournai, Bergues and other towns. Arras then lost the duke's orders. Charles the Bold's demands for money to finance the war began to ruin the city3. The conquest of Arras by Louis XI led to the relocation of the tapestry workshops to the Habsburg Netherlands in 1477, and the control of Brussels by the House of Habsburg and the difficulties of Arras allowed the development of production in Brussels.
At the beginning of the 16th century, the rise to the main thrones of Europe of sovereigns enamoured of grandeur, and in the Netherlands of regents passionate about tapestry, was to be the source of rivalry between the various royal and princely courts to possess the most beautiful tapestries, which was favourable to the Brussels workshops which employed up to 15,000 people in the 16th century.
A regulation of 1476 stipulated that only painters were allowed to design the models of the tapestries, unless they were green.Our house assures you the sale of a tapestry with invoice and approved expertise, well cleaned, in good condition with its fixing system. If it should be necessary, we will specify the work that has been carried out. All our tapestries can be presented to you at your home in France and neighbouring countries before your final decision.
