Silk Western European Rugs
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Material: Silk
Pretty antique french Aubusson tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful antique French Aubusson tapestry featuring a view of a woman showing a bird in the nature in the woods. With nice natural colours in the hues of yellow, green, pink, o...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Wonderful extremely fine antique silk french Beauvais tapestry «Flower Harvest»
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful late 19th century French Aubusson tapestry of Beauvais with a nice design of flower Harvest, Beautiful women are gathering flowers in the garden and the woods, chatti...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk
Nice modern French Aubusson Tapestry by « Lartigaud »
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Discover the elegance of modern French tapestry with the exquisite design by Jean Michel Lartigaud. This limited edition masterpiece, woven in vibrant shades of orange, yellow, red, ...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton, Silk
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Verdure Tapestry with Louis XVI Revival Style
Located in Dallas, TX
79208 Late 19th Century Antique French Aubusson Tapestry, 06'00 x 08'10. A lavish panorama of pastoral enchantment unfurls across this handwoven French Aubusson tapestry, a masterwor...
Category
Late 19th Century French Gothic Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Gorgeous Antique Large 17th century Aubusson Tapestry historical battle scene
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful and rare 17th century French Aubusson tapestry with a nice design in style of Louis XVI, featuring a historical battle probably from Alexander or a Roman battle, conqu...
Category
17th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk, Wool
cc-tapis Rug Ultimate Bliss Gold by Mae Engelgeer for Duplex, Showroom Sample
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Duplex launches “Gold is Bold" project: a unique collaboration with cc-tapis to celebrate boldness.
The iconic Biss rug collection designed by Mae Engelgeer and hand knotted in N...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Orizzonti Selva Rug by Eligo Studio
By cc-tapis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Handwoven in the cc-tapis atelier in Kathmandu, Nepal. The rug is made with a cotton weave, Himalayan wool and bamboo silk pile coming from the areas surrounding the atelier. The sal...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton, Wool, Silk
Antique french Aubusson tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful late 19th century Aubusson tapestry originally made for covering the seat of an antique sofa with a beautiful floral design and nice natural colours, entirely and fine...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Nice modern French Aubusson Tapestry by « Lartigaud »
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Discover the elegance of modern French tapestry with the exquisite "Floride" (Florida) design by Jean Michel Lartigaud. This limited edition masterpiece, woven in vibrant shades of o...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton, Silk
Rare Oversized Antique Savonnerie Rug from Real Fabrica de Tapices – Rug & Kilim
Located in Long Island City, NY
This oversized 16x19 antique rug is a fabulous and extremely collectible early-20th-century Savonnerie rug from the famed “Real Fabrica de Tapices” ...
Category
Early 1900s Spanish Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk
Late 19th Century French Verdure Aubusson Tapestry with Louis XV Style
By Jean-Baptiste Oudry
Located in Dallas, TX
78831 Late 19th Century Antique French Aubusson Verdure Tapestry, 06'10 x 09'08. Woven in the storied ateliers of Aubusson during the late 19th century, this handwoven wool and silk ...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Strict Rayures So Much Fun Collection by Claude Cartier Studio
By cc-tapis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
So much fun is a collection of rugs where black and white geometric elements define joyful and colorful patterns giving life to 3 different designs, customizable in multiple variations in terms of size, colors, and textures. A collection that offers different production techniques from hand knotted to hand-woven.
Claude Cartier Decoration...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk, Wool
Evolution Part II Rug by Illulian Design Studio Limited Edition
By Illulian
Located in Milan, IT
These unique rug models are customizable in terms of size, colors, shape and composition (percentage of silk compared to the percentage of Himalayan wool or other materials requested...
Category
2010s Italian Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Pure La'c'K Rug by Christophe Delcourt
By cc-tapis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
La(c)k Pure rug, designed by Christophe Delcourt, is part of "Pure", a Mood, a subtle aesthetic, and a selection of cc-tapis classic rugs interpreted in a soft and elegant palette. T...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Late 16th Century Flemish Historical Tapestry, with the Roman General Scipio
Located in New York, NY
A Flemish tapestry from the late 16th century, with the renowned Roman general, Scipio at left, after having conquered Carthage in the Battle of Zama, en...
Category
16th Century European Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Antique 18th Century French Landscape Verdure Tapestry, with Birds in the Woods
Located in New York, NY
An antique 18th century French Beauvais landscape verdure tapestry, size 12'1 H x 10'1 W. This tapestry features a group of birds in a verdant woodland setting near a bridge, with th...
Category
18th Century Belgian Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Pretty small 20th century french Aubusson tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful 20th century Aubusson tapestry with a design of tapestries from 18th or 18th centuries, with the nature and with trees with bird and the river, a country house behind,...
Category
1970s French Aubusson Vintage Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Rug Bliss Round in Sand by Mae Engelgeer
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Born in France. Designed in Milan. Produced in Nepal.
cc-tapis is an Italian company which produces contemporary hand-knotted rugs which are created in Nepal by expert Tibetan artis...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Late 17th Century Franco-Flemish Rustic Tapestry
Located in New York, NY
A Franco-Flemish rustic tapestry, possibly Lille or Aubusson, from the late 17th century, featuring a rustic scene with a group of people singing and playing music in a verdant setti...
Category
Late 17th Century European Rustic Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Early 18th century Flemish antique tapestry 10x13 Verdure Wool & Silk 297x384cm
Located in New York, NY
Early 18th Century Antique Flemish Tapestry Fine Verdure Wool & Silk
9'9" x 12'7"(10x13) 297cm x 384cm
Circa 1720
"This is a very fine Authentic Antique Flemish wool & silk Tapest...
Category
Early 18th Century French Baroque Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Louis XIV Style Antique French Aubusson Verdure Tapestry, Venus and Adonis
Located in Dallas, TX
Louis XIV Style Antique French Aubusson Verdure Tapestry, Venus and Adonis Wall Hanging 13'09 x 09'05. Drawing inspiration by Italian Baroque painter, Francesco Albani...
Category
Mid-18th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis NAÏF CROWN handmade rug in himalayan wool by David/Nicolas
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Naïf Collection projects the designers’ sensibility for geometric shapes applied to an extremely suggestive form of sincere raw beauty. Guided by instinct rather than rigor, the coll...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis NAÏF TRIANGLES handmade rug in wool by David/Nicolas
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Naïf Collection projects the designers’ sensibility for geometric shapes applied to an extremely suggestive form of sincere raw beauty. Guided by instinct rather than rigor, the coll...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
17th Century Needlework Armorial Table Carpet
Located in Canterbury, GB
A RARE HERALDIC TABLE CARPET 17TH CENTURY
Circa 1650 Probably Netherlands
Entirely hand worked in gross and petit point silk and wool needlework. Central oval petit point cartou...
Category
17th Century Dutch Baroque Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Antique 17th Century Flemish Historical Tapestry, Featuring Dido and Aeneas
Located in New York, NY
A French Aubusson historical tapestry from the late 17th century, depicting Aeneas relating his adventures to Dido, from 'The Story of Dido and Aeneas'...
Category
17th Century Belgian Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
18th Century French Felletin Chinoiserie Mythological Tapestry w/ Trees & Satyrs
Located in New York, NY
An 18th century French Felletin chinoiserie mythological tapestry, size 11'6"H x 17'9"W.
This grand mythological tapestry depicts a mythological forest scene, with various satyrs and other mythological figures reveling in Dionysian fashion in the confines of the woodland setting. Finely detailed, with nimble articulation of figures and form, the piece also incorporates chinoiserie motifs, with stylized trees and bushes that have Oriental styling. The lower right corner of the primary field features both the town mark and weaver's mark, as well as the French symbol of the fleur de lis. The tapestry is enclosed within an elaborate outer border, featuring pendant...
Category
18th Century French Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Rug Bliss Ultimate Undyed Round Natural by Mae Engelgeer
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Born in France. Designed in Milan. Produced in Nepal.
cc-tapis is an Italian company which produces contemporary hand-knotted rugs which are created in Nepal by expert Tibetan artis...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Tapestry Inspired by Francois Boucher
Located in Dallas, TX
73139 Late 19th Century Antique French Aubusson Tapestry, 05'02 x 06'04. Woven in the celebrated ateliers of Aubusson during the late 19th century, this exquisite French tapestry ech...
Category
Late 19th Century French Belle Époque Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Pure Campo Rug by Leonardo Talarico
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Campo Pure rug, designed by Leonardo Talarico, is part of "Pure", a Mood, a subtle aesthetic, and a selection of cc-tapis classic rugs interpreted in a soft and elegant palette. The ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Linen, Silk
Pretty antique 17th century French Aubusson Tapestry fragment
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
"Exquisite fragment of a border of a French Aubusson tapestry from the middle of the 17th century, featuring a beautiful design of flowers and nice natural colours, entirely hand wov...
Category
Mid-17th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
17th Century Antique Flemish Verdure Tapestry w/ Trees & bird
Located in New York, NY
An antique 17th century Flemish Verdure Landscape Tapestry
An antique 17th century Flemish verdure landscape tapestry, size: 7.4 H x 4.9 W. This fine handwoven European wall hanging...
Category
17th Century Belgian Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Disco So Much Fun Collection by Claude Cartier Studio
By cc-tapis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
So much fun is a collection of rugs where black and white geometric elements define joyful and colorful patterns giving life to 3 different designs, customizable in multiple variations in terms of size, colors, and textures. A collection that offers different production techniques from hand-knotted to hand-woven.
Claude Cartier Decoration...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Very Beautiful Antique Pair of silk velvet Curtains
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Wonderful pair of curtains from late 19th century, with a nice silk velvet tissue and a needlepoint band applied on it.
Size of each piece is 105x295 cm
✨✨✨
"Experience the epitome o...
Category
Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk
French Savonnerie Signed Rug, Circa 1930 - 3m50x2m55 - No. 1466
By Savonnerie
Located in Paris, FR
Condition: Perfect condition
Material: Wool
Length: 350 cm
Width: 255 cm
Depth: 2 cm
Located a stone's throw from the Eiffel Tower in Paris, we are a French family business
speciali...
Category
1930s French French Provincial Vintage Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Antique Late 17th Century Flemish Old Testament Biblical Cain and Able Tapestry
Located in New York, NY
An antique late 17th century Flemish Biblical tapestry, size: 9'5 H x 6'5 W, envisioning the Old Testament Biblical conflict between Cain and Able, with ...
Category
Late 17th Century Belgian Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Nidus Carpet
Located in Düsseldorf, DE
In an exhilarating exchange with the renowned textile designer Nadine Goepfert, we derived this carpet design from the floor plans of the project Sankt Göres - a reinvention of the t...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Nice French modern needlepoint Tapestry « Toffoli »
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
« La maternité » maternity
Discover the exquisite beauty of this authentic needlepoint tapestry, meticulously hand embroidered . this masterpiece features a captivating design by L...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton, Silk
1820's Antique French Aubusson Tapestry with Venus and Adonis, 07'00 x 14'06
Located in Dallas, TX
77237 Antique French Aubusson Tapestry with Venus and Adonis, 07'00 x 14'06. This magnificent handwoven wool and silk antique French Aubusson tapestry exudes the grandeur and elegance of the Early 19th Century, drawing inspiration from the works of Italian Baroque painter Francesco Albani...
Category
Early 19th Century French Louis XIV Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Pretty fine large antique french Aubusson tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful late 19th century French Aubusson tapestry with a nice design of a village, with nature, trees, birds, a river, chickens. a mill on the edge of the river, village hous...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Late 19th-Century Antique French Aubusson Tapestry Inspired by Francois Boucher
Located in Dallas, TX
73625 Late 19th-Century Antique French Aubusson Tapestry, 07'06 x 09'00. Inspired by the refined visions of François Boucher and his renowned Pastorale Series, this exquisite, handwo...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Pretty mid 20th century french Aubusson tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful 20th century Aubusson tapestry with a design with a signature « Popelin » , probably iinspired by the paintings of French painter « Francois Boucher » with the shepher...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Metroquadro Dusk Rug
By cc-tapis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Handwoven in the cc-tapis atelier in Kathmandu, Nepal. The rug is made with a cotton weave, Himalayan wool and bamboo silk pile coming from the areas surrounding the atelier. The sal...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton, Silk
cc-tapis Rug Ultimate Bliss Gold Round by Mae Engelgeer for Duplex
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Duplex launches “Gold is Bold" project: a unique collaboration with cc-tapis to celebrate boldness.
The iconic Biss rug collection designed by Mae Engelgeer and hand knotted in N...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Hello Sonia! Rhapsody 3 in Light Red by Studiopepe
By Studiopepe, cc-tapis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Geometric elements, evoking the avant-garde textiles of the early 1900s, a theme which runs through the whole Hello Sonia Family, are now arranged harmonio...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Antique French Tapestry Wool & Silk Masque Vase Exotic Flowers 4x5 122x 142cm
Located in New York, NY
Antique French Tapestry Wool & Silk Masquerade Vase Exotic Flowers 4x5 1920 4' x 4'8" 122cm x 142cm
"A magnificent antique French tapestry depicting an ornate vase full of flowers....
Category
1920s French Baroque Vintage Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Bobyrug’s Nice mid century French Aubusson Tapestry by « Lartigaud »
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Discover the elegance of modern French tapestry with the exquisite "Caraïbes" design by Jean Michel Lartigaud. This limited edition masterpiece, woven in vibrant shades of orange, ye...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton, Silk
Pretty antique Hungarian embroidery tissue
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful antique hungarian embroidered tissue fragment , with beautiful designs of flowers and with nice natural colours, entirely hand embroide...
Category
Early 19th Century Hungarian Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk
Antique Tapestry One of pair 3'7'' x 5'2''
Located in New York, NY
Antique Tapestry One of pair 3'7'' x 5'2''.
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Tabriz Destroyer Rug by cc-tapis
By cc-tapis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Hand knotted in the cc-tapis atelier in Kathmandu, Nepal. The rug is made with a cotton weave, a Himalayan wool and pure silk, coming from the areas surrounding the atelier. 152.000 individual knots per square meter approximately. The sale of every rug supports cc-foreducation. Size: 7.2' x 7.5' ft. A+ (152.000 knots/sqm approximate).
An inter-galactic, shape-shifting army of contemporary hand knotted rugs taking inspiration from traditional rug motifs and icons. The Rug Invaders...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton, Wool, Silk
21st Century Art Deco Elie Saab Maison Wool and Bamboo Silk Monogram Rug, Italy
Located in Mariano Comense, CO
21st century Art Deco Elie Saab Maison wool and bamboo silk monogram rug, Italy
The Elie Saab crest, a distinctive element of the Elie Saab universe, becomes the focal point of this impressive and scenographic PALMIER Rug, created in partnership with Sahrai. Inspired by an imperial and royal pattern synonyms with luxury and innate elegance, the crest represents the initials of Elie Saab creating a seal that portrays the brand’s identity and is embellished on gowns and accessories reflecting sophistication and distinction. Combining the distinctive Elie Saab crest with the shapes and colours inspired by the natural elements of the Middle Eastern landscapes...
Category
2010s Italian Art Deco Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
cc-tapis Hello Sonia! Rhapsody 3 in Dark Blue by Studiopepe
By cc-tapis, Studiopepe
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Geometric elements, evoking the avant-garde textiles of the early 1900s, a theme which runs through the whole Hello Sonia Family, are now arranged harmoniously in a musical score...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Nepalese Modern Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Antique 17th Century Flemish Mythological Tapestry, with the Courtship of Apollo
Located in New York, NY
An antique 17th century Flemish mythological tapestry, size 9'1 H x 12'8 W, envisioning The Courtship of Apollo, with the Greek deity Apollo at left with his lyre and laurel garland,...
Category
17th Century Belgian Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Pretty fine antique silk french Aubusson tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful late 19th century French Aubusson tapestry with a nice design in the garden, two women sitting and talking while a man plays music, with nice light colours with yello...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk
Antique Lumbar Pillow Case Made from an 18th-19th Century, European Embroidery
Located in Istanbul, TR
It does not come with an insert but a bag made to size to accommodate insert materials.
Linen in the back.
Zipper closure.
Dry cleaning is recommended.
Category
Early 19th Century Italian Suzani Antique Silk Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk
Tapestry Royal Manufacture of Aubusson, Louis XVI period 1738 at the Gobelins
Located in Madrid, ES
Tapestry from the Royal Manufacture of Aubusson, Louis XVI period , made in 1738 at the Gobelins
One panel from a series of Gobelins tapestries depicting the History of Esther, illustrating Esther seated and attended by handmaidens, one washing her feet in golden basin, another fastening a bracelet, another offering a mirror, all observed by Mordecai, woven in the workshop of Michele Audran after a design by J. F. de Troy.
The Toilet of Esther c.1778-85.Royal Collection Trust-Queens Audience Chamber
Windsor Castle
The Sketches for the Esther Cycle by Jean-François de Troy (1736)
“and the maid was fair and beautiful; whom Mor’decai, ..., took for his own daughter.” (Est. 2:7)
A supple and undulating genius, both a flattering portraitist and a prolix history painter, as well as a brilliant genre painter, in a gallant or worldly vein, Jean-François de Troy (Paris, 1679 – Rome, 1752), solicited, although he had passed the threshold of old age, a new royal commission up to his ambitions. To obtain it, he submitted – successfully - for the approval of the Bâtiments du roi (administration), seven modelli painted in 1736 with his usual alacrity.
Inspired by one of the most novelistic texts of the Old Testament, the Book of Esther, these sketches in a rapid and virtuoso manner were transformed by the artist, between 1737 and 1740 into large cartoons intended to serve as models for the weavers of the Gobelins factory. Showing undeniable ease and skill in the composition in perfect harmony with the sensitivities of the times, the tapestry set met with great success.
The Story of Esther perfectly corresponded to the plan of the Bâtiments du roi to renew the repertoire of tapestry models used for the weavers of the royal factories while it also conformed to the tastes of Louis XV’s subjects for a fantastical Orient, the set for a dramatic tale in which splendour, love and death were combined. Indeed, no tapestry set was woven in France during the 18th century as often as that of Esther.
The series of modelli painted by de Troy during the year 1736 looks to the history of French painting and decoration under Louis XV as much as it does the history of the Gobelins. It probably counts among the most important rococo pictorial groups to have remained in private hands. First the Biblical source illustrated by De Troy which constitutes the base of one of the richest iconographical traditions of Western art will be considered. Then the circumstances and specific character of French civilisation during the reigns of Louis XIV and Louis XV which contributed to making the theme of Esther a relevant subject, both attractive to contemporaries and remarkably in line with the sensitivities of the time will be elucidated.
An examination of the exceptional series of sketches united here, the cartoons and the tapestries that they anticipate as well as a study of their reception will close this essay. The Book of Esther: A scriptural source at the source of rich iconography.
The origin of the Esther tapestry set by Jean-François de Troy – origin and creation of a masterpiece
According to the evidence of one of the artist’s early biographers, the chevalier de Valory, author of a posthumous elegy of the master, read at the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture on 6 February 1762, it was apparently due to early16 rivalry with François Lemoyne (1688-1737), his younger colleague who had precisely just been appointed First Painter to the King in 1736, that had encouraged François de Troy to seek a commission allowing him to show off his ease and his promptitude at the expense of a rival who was notoriously laborious: “M. De Troy, retaining some resentment of the kind of disadvantage which he believed to have suffered compared with his emulator looked to regain some territory by making use of the facility his rival did not possess.
Lemoyne was excessively long in the creation of his works,and M. De Troy of a rare celerity: consequently, with this particular talent, the latter offered to the court to make paintings appropriate to be executed at the Gobelins Factory; and it is to this circumstance that we owe the beautiful series of the Story of Esther, which would be sufficient alone to give him a great reputation.”17 Beyond the suspicion inspired by the topos, which still constitutes, more or less, a tale of rivalries between artists in ancient literature, there is probably some truth in what Valory reports although A.-J. Dezalier d’Argenville (who indicates rather spitefully that de Troy did not hesitate to “cut prices” to impose himself, benefitting from the productivity assured by the unlikely rapidity of his brush)18 proves to be more evasive: “As he looked to busy himself, he had offered to make the paintings that serve as models for the King’s tapestries cheaply: which did not please his colleagues.
He was given a choice of two tapestry series to be made and he took the Story of Esther and that of Jason”.19 Whether or not the choice was actually left to de Troy (which would appear rather casual on the royal administration’s part all the same), it seems likely that the artist, whose contemporaries extol his “fire”, as the faculty of invention was then called, must have ardently aspired to the possibility of using on a very large scale the “creative genius” with which Dezallier d’Argenville credits him. The decoration of the private apartments, the fashion for which Louis XV had promoted at Versailles and Fontainebleau, offered little opportunity to excel in this area. Other than painting for altarpieces, only tapestries could allow comparison with Lemoyne who had been granted – unfortunately for him – a major decoration: the enormous ceiling of the Hercules Room at Versailles. Favoured by the recent improvement in France’s financial situation, the revival of patronage offered de Troy a commission fitting for him, in a field in which, however, he had hardly any experience.
Anxious to renew the repertoire of models available to the Gobelins factory, the Duc d’Antin, surintendant des Bâtiments du roi from 1708 to 1736 followed by his successor, Philibert Orry comte de Vignory, gave him the task of producing seven large cartoons inspired by the Book of Esther corresponding to the brilliant sketches or modelli which de Troy had produced in one go, or almost (very few preparatory drawings can in fact be linked to the Esther cycle and all seem to be at the execution stage of the cartoons).20 Subjected to the approval of the Administration des Bâtiments according to the procedure in use for projects being planned for the Gobelins, sketches made rapidly during 1736 were approved and the project launched immediately. Thereupon came the news of François Lemoyne’s death, who, ground down by work and a victim of his private torment, committed suicide on 4 June 1737.
Against all expectations, de Troy did not replace his rival in the position of First Painter (which remained vacant until the appointment of Charles Coypel in January 1747), which would perhaps have made him too obviously the beneficiary of the drama. The awarding of the position of Director of the French Academy in Rome came to console him while he had already produced (or he was in the process of finishing), in Paris, three of the seven cartoons of the cycle (The Fainting of Esther finished in 1737 and the Toilet and Coronation of Esther, both finished in 1738).
De Troy, we can see, did not follow the order of the narrative but began with the subjects which apparently offered the least difficulty because he had already depicted them, or because they fall into a strong pictorial tradition (such is the case especially for the Fainting of Esther). He had hardly settled at the Palazzo Mancini in August 1738, when his first task which awaited the new director of the French Academy naturally consisted of honouring the royal commission and finishing without delay the final cartoons of the Story of Esther after the sketches he must have taken with him. As prompt as ever, de Troy discharged himself of the execution of the four remaining cartoons in only two years, by beginning with the largest format which allowed him to strike the imagination and to impose himself as soon as he arrived on the Roman stage: the Triumph of Mor’decai which was finished in 1739 (like Esther’s Banquet).
The following year, the Mor’decai's Disdain and The Sentencing of Haman were brought to an end in the same Neo-Venetian style, obviously tributary to Veronese with its choice of “open” monumental architecture which is characteristic of the entire cycle.21 The series, it should be noted, was almost augmented with some additional scenes in the mid 1740s. Indeed, the first tapestry set finished at the Gobelins in 1744 proved to be unsuitable for the arrangement of the Dauphine’s apartments at Versailles for which it had been intended to decorate the walls the following year (cf infra). Informed of this, de Troy, considering that the story of Esther offered “several good subjects,” immediately offered to illustrate one or new subject among those “which could appear to be the most interesting”.
The directeur des Bâtiments Orry, who managed the State’s accounts, obviously judged it less costly to have one of the tapestries widened to fill in the end of the Dauphine’s bedroom,22 which has probably deprived us of very original compositions, because de Troy had already illustrated the most famous themes, those that benefitted from a strongly established iconographical tradition and from which it was not easy to deviate
The Tapestry Set of the Story of Esther
Placed on the tapestry looms of the Gobelins at the end of the 1730s in Michel Audran’s workshop, the cycle created by de Troy aroused true infatuation. The few hundred tapestries made between 1738 and 1797 – all in high-warp tapestry and woven in wool and silk except for four in low-warp made in Neilson’s workshop – show the impressive success of a tapestry set that was without any doubt the most frequently woven of the 18th century in France.
29 Only three cartoons had been delivered by de Troy in 1738 when the first tapestry set was begun by Audran under the expert eye of Jean-Baptiste Oudry to whom the Directeur général des bâtiments, Philibert Orry had assigned the (weekly) supervision of the weaving. During the summer of 1738, the piece of the Fainting of Esther, which Oudry judged to be admirable, was finished.
During the winter of 1742, Oudry informed Orry that about two ells of the Triumph of Mor’decai had been made “with no faults”,that the Coronation of Esther was finished and that the Esther at her Toilet “a very gracious tapestry” was “a little over half” finished. Exhibited at Versailles in 1743, these two last pieces were admired by Louis XV and the Court.
On 3 December 1744, the set of seven tapestries was finally delivered to the Garde Meuble. It was intended, the honour was not slight, to decorate the apartments of the Infanta Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain whose marriage to the young Dauphin Louis-Ferdinand had been fixed for the following year (it took place on 23 February 1745). Apparently it was thought that the theme of Esther the biblical heroine and wife of a foreign sovereign was appropriate for the apartments of the Spanish Dauphine.
As early as the month of March, the architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel informed de Troy that her grand cabinet was decorated with the “Esther tapestry set” specifying however that “for lack of two small or one large piece, we have not been able to decorate the end of the room”. This difficulty led immediately to the Banquet episode being woven a second time in two parts (they were delivered to the Garde-Meuble on 30 December 1746) to garnish the panels on each side of the bed of the Dauphine who would hardly enjoy them (she died on 22 July 1746 and the decoration was installed for the new Dauphine Maria Josepha of Saxony).
The appearance of the set’s remarkable border, which imitated a richly sculpted wooden frame, should be mentioned. Conceived in 1738 by the ornamentalist Pierre Josse-Perrot and used in the later weavings until 1768, it tended to reinforce the resolutely painterly appearance of the tapestry set which, in this regard, pushed the art of tapestry as far as its ultimate mimetic possibilities. With the exception of Mor’decai's Disdain which had been removed earlier, the “editio princeps” of the story of Esther (from then on in nine pieces) remained at Versailles until the Revolution. Of the eight surviving tapestries, four are at the chateau of Compiègne and four belong today to the Mobilier National. No less than seven tapestry sets reputed to be complete (one of them in fact only had six tapestries) would be produced officially at the Gobelins up to 1772.
Literature:
1- The Œuvres mêlées of an emulator of Racine, the Abbé Augustin NADAL thus include an Esther. Divertissement spiritual which is exactly contemporary with Jean François de Troy’s cycle since it was performed in 1735 and published in Paris three years later.
2-Le Siècle de Louis XIV, 1751, 1785 ed., p. 96-97 for French ed.
3- Lemoyne and de Troy had been obliged to share the First Prize in the competition organised in 1727 between the most prominent history painters of the Académie Royale.
4- Mémoires…, pub. L. DUSSIEUX et al., 1854, II, p.265.
5-The fact that de Troy, at the risk of falling out with his colleagues, did not hesitate to make use of prices in order to convince the new directeur des Bâtiments Philibert Orry, is confirmed by Mariette who adds tersely “it caused much shouting” (pub. 1851-1860, II, p. 103).
6- Abrégé de la vie des plus fameux peintres…, ed. 1762, IV, p. 368-369 20 Early comments on the painter are inclined to present him as a kind of “pure painter”, doing without the medium of drawing, a few intermediary studies between the Esther sketches and the large cartoons at the Louvre nevertheless show that de Troy used red chalk (see in the catalogue, the notice for the Meal of Esther and Ahasuerus under the entry drawing) to change one or other figure.
7-C. GASTINEL-COURAL (cat. exp. PARIS, 1985, p. 9-13) as well as the article by J. VITTET, exh. cat. LA ROCHE-GUYON, 2001, p. 51-55.
8-The Hermitage in St. Petersburg conserves five tapestries of these two royal gifts whose provenance still awaits elucidation (as far as we are aware). In 1766, the Grand Marshal of Russia, Count Razumovski (or Razamowski), acquired the Fainting and the Banquet extracted from the sixth weaving (J. VITTET, 2001, p. 53).
9- Lettres écrites de Suisse, d’Italie…,quoted by J. VITTET, op. cit., p. 54.
10-The tapestry set remained in the hands of a branch of the Hapsburg-Lorraine family until 1933 (ibid. P. 54).
11-Quoted by Chr. LERIBAULT, 2002, p. 97, note 269.
12-Y. CANTAREL-BESSON, 1992, p. 241.
Catalogue
The Esther at her Toilet
Oil on canvas, 57 x 51 cm Provenance: Painted in 1736 at the same time as the six other modelli of the Story of Esther intended to be presented, for approval, to the direction des Bâtiments du Roi; perhaps identifiable among a lot of sketches by Jean-François de Troy in the post mortem inventory of the amateur, historian and critic Claude-Henri Watelet (1718-1786) drawn up on 13 January 1786 and following days (A.N. T 978, n° 30) then in the sale of the property of the deceased, Paris, 12 June 1786, n° 33; Paris, François Marcille Collection (who owned a series of six sketches from which the Triumph of Mor’decai was missing, see infra); Paris, Marcille Sale, Hôtel Drouot, 12-13 January 1857, n° 36; Asnières, Mme de Chavanne de Palmassy ( ?) collection; Paris, Galerie Cailleux; Paris, Humbert de Wendel collection (acquired from the Galerie Cailleux in 1928); by inheritance in the same family; Paris, Sotheby’s, 23 June 2011, n° 61. In order not to add unnecessarily to the technical commentary on each work, the catalogue raisonné by Chr. Leribault which contains a substantial bibliography on the series should be referred to. The other bibliographical references only concern the publications and exhibitions to have appeared and been presented more recently. Bibliography and Exhibitions: Chr. LERIBAULT, 2002, n° P. 247 (repr.); E. LIMARDO DATURI, 2004, p. 28; Exh. cat. NANTES, 2011, p. 138, n° 34, referred to in note 1; Sotheby’s catalogue, Tableaux anciens et du XIXe siècle, 23 June 2011, n° 61 (repr.).
Related Works:
Tapestry cartoon: The cartoon (oil on canvas, 329 x 320 cm), the third made by the artist in Paris after the sketches had been approved by the direction des Bâtiments, is in the Louvre (Inv. 8315). It previously bore the painter’s signature and the date 1738 (inscriptions which are found on the tapestries). The royal administration paid 1600 livres for it on 21 June 1738 and it was exhibited at the Salon in the year of its creation.
Summary Biography
1679 (27 January): Baptism in Paris (Parish of St. Nicolas du Chardonnet) of Jean-François de Troy, son of the painter François de Troy and Jeanne Cotelle, sister of the painter Jean II Cotelle.
1696-1698: Studies (apparently rather turbulent) at the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture.
1698-1708: First trip to Italy. Is obliged to leave Rome in January 1711 after a tempestuous affair (a duel?), de Troy extends the traditional Roman experience as a pensionnaire at the Académie de France by also visiting Tuscany where he stays for a long time, Venice (his art in face has a strongly Venetian character) and Genoa.
1708: De Troy (whose father had been elected Director of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture on 7 July) is agréé and immediately received at the Académie with Apollo and Diana Piercing with their Arrows the Children of Niobe (Montpellier, Musée Fabre) on 28 July.
1710: First royal commission, paid for on 10 May (a sketch representing “the Promotion of the Order of the Holy Spirit” for the tapestry series of the History of the King).
1716: Jean-François de Troy is elected Assistant Professor at the Academy.
1720: He is appointed Professor.
1723: The artist creates the double portrait of Louis XV...
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