Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
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Item Ships From: Continental Europe
Opinion Ciatti Firenze Sacristy Dome Large Round Rug
By Opinion Ciatti, Sebastiano Tosi
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The carpet collection Firenze is born from the collaboration between Sebastiano Tosi and Lapo Ciatti, inviting us to look higher and to be inebriated by beauty. In a game of mirrors ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Velvet
Small 'Shade' Hand-Loomed Outdoor Rug for Nanimarquina
By Begüm Cana Özgür, Nanimarquina
Located in Glendale, CA
Small 'Shade' Hand-Loomed outdoor rug for Nanimarquina.
The 'Shade' collection is inspired by magical moments in nature where colors melt elegantly into one another and speak for ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Polyester
Trendy Shiny Rug 70 V
By Sitap Carpet Couture
Located in Milan, IT
Eclectic, bold and bright, the Trendy Shiny 70 V is the perfect solution if you are looking for a solid-colored rug with a big personality. It takes pride of place in the bedroom, li...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Textile
Kandinsky Wassily Denmark Ege Art Line Tappeto Design 1980’s
By Ege Art Line, (after) Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Taranto, IT
Kandinsky, Wassily (1866-1944) Tapestry “Small Worlds I”, tufted wool after a work from 1922, sign./dat., on verso with adhesive label “EGE AXMINISTER A...
Category
1980s Danish Post-Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Modern Rectangular Ethnic Beige Rug Organic Irregular Stripes Pattern Red, Brown
By Hommes Studio
Located in Porto, PT
Modern Ethnic Beige Rug Organic Irregular Stripes Pattern Red, Brown
The Dill Rug brings a refreshing character between tradition and modernity to your space. An organic and irregul...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Organic Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Synthetic, Natural Fiber
21th Century Minimal Sand Wool Rug Rectangular Modern Organic Black Lines
By Hommes Studio
Located in Porto, PT
21th Century Minimal Sand Wool Rug Rectangular Modern Organic Black Lines
Hydrus Rug is a modern organic rug inspired by the daring movement of wat...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Scandinavian Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Espansione and Luce by Giacomo Balla
By Boralevi Firenze
Located in Milan, IT
As its name suggests, this superb rug is an explosion of light that seems to emanate from the center in a kaleidoscope of colors. Based on the eponymous 1987 painting by Futurist art...
Category
2010s Italian Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Textile
Pretty mid century french Aubusson tapestry « the sleeping hunter »
By Royal Manufacture of Aubusson
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Chasseurs endormi ( the sleeping hunter )
Very beautiful mid 20th century French Aubusson tapestry featuring a part of the famous painting of J.B Huet, titled « hunters rest ». With ...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Circular Metamorphosis Wool and Art Silk Rug FB Collection
By Franco Bianchini
Located in Milan, IT
A wavy and earth-toned pattern in opposite sections of this wool and artificial silk rug add a touch of color and elegance. A designer logo and cotton backing complete this beige rug...
Category
2010s Italian Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Late 1960s German Woven Pure Wool Flower Rug Wolf Bauer with Artist Signature
By Wolf Bauer
Located in Firenze, FI
This circular vintage carpet in the shape of a flower was loom-woven with pure wool. The beauty of this decorative element lies in the very particular shape and in the different shad...
Category
1960s German Post-Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Jean Rouzaud Hand Tufted Wool Carpet by Tisca France 1980s
Located in Debrecen, HU
Add a piece of art history to your collection with this extraordinary handwoven wool rug, designed by the renowned Jean Rouzaud in the 1980s. Measuring 200 x 245 cm, this stunning pi...
Category
1980s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
'Collage 1966' Rug by Eduardo Chillida for Nanimarquina
By Eduardo Chillida, Nanimarquina
Located in Glendale, CA
'Collage 1966' rug by Eduardo Chillida for Nanimarquina.
Born in 1924, Eduardo Chillida was a celebrated and prolific Spanish sculptor. He began his life work in Paris, but it wa...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Mid-Century Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
pretty vintage French medieval design screen printed tapestry «gallant parties»
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Nice vintage French hand printed tapestry with beautiful medieval design and beautiful colors. Discover a stunning mid-20th-century tapestry, meticulously hand-printed on a cotton fo...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton, Wool
Lilac Giro Rug by Gandia Blasco
Located in Geneve, CH
Lilac Giro Rug by Gandia Blasco
Design by MUT Design
Dimensions: W 132 x H 324 cm.
Materials: 100% wool.
Weight: 18,5 kg
Passion for life outdoors, a dream come true on the edge of...
Category
2010s Spanish Post-Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Bobyrug’s Pretty Vintage French Needlepoint Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful mid century tapestry with beautiful design of a museum tapestry and beautiful colors, entirely hand embroidered with needlepoint method ...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton, Silk
Missoni carpet for T&J Vestor
By Missoni
Located in Milano, IT
Large wool carpet featuring designs by the renowned fashion house Missoni, founded by Ottavio Missoni, for T&J Vestor, a company specializing in manufacturing for prominent fashion b...
Category
1980s Italian Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Pretty Vintage Aubusson Style Jacquard Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful vintage French Aubusson style tapestry with a nice design of the nature with trees, vegetation and river, a water fountain with statues of angels. and further away, a house...
Category
Late 20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
'Scambio' Design Rug by Clara Bona Architects for Alberto Levi Gallery
By Clara Bona
Located in Milan, IT
The esteemed Milanese architect and journalist Clara Bona unfurled a breathtaking dance of colours in her enthralling journey into rug design, partnering with the Alberto Levi Galler...
Category
2010s Nepalese Mid-Century Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Italian modern rectangular rug with brown and orange geometric decorations 1970s
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern rectangular rug with brown and orange geometric decorations 1970s
Rectangular short pile rug. The rug is decorated with regular geometric shapes of different sizes tha...
Category
1970s Italian Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Fabric
Evelina Kroon Berry Rain Wool Rug
Located in Stockholm, SE
In collaboration with renowned Scandinavian artist Evelina Kroon, Layered introduces a collection that explores the boundary between art and interior design. With references to tradi...
Category
2010s Indian Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Højer Eksport Wilton Rug, Denmark 1960s
By Hojer Eksport Wilton
Located in Hellouw, NL
øjer Eksport Wilton was a Danish company known for high-quality, durable carpets with bold mid-century designs. Their wool rugs remain sought after for their craftsmanship and striki...
Category
1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Fabric
Residue Bone White Wool Rug
Located in Stockholm, SE
Residue Bone White Rug is a unique, big rug with one organic stripe that makes a difference in the height. With its structured wool and the high and low cut, Residue can be an art pi...
Category
2010s Indian Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Pretty 18th century French Aubusson silk tapestry
By Royal Manufacture of Aubusson
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
"Discover the timeless elegance of this exquisite antique French tapestry featuring a young woman in a medallion. Floral decoration around and a curtain in the shape of a valance abo...
Category
Late 18th Century French Aubusson Antique Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
17th century Antique Aubusson/Gobelin tapestry, France Architectural land, silk
Located in Berlin, DE
17th century Antique Aubusson/Gobelin tapestry, France Architectural landscape, silk
Antique Museal Aubosson tapestry made of silk and partly wool. Very fine and antique design. Dep...
Category
17th Century French Baroque Antique Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Verner Panton 'Luna' Rug 120cm in Rose by Verpan
By Verner Panton
Located in Tilburg, NL
Verner Panton 'Luna' Rug 120cm by Verpan. Current production.
As well as adding a sculptural feature to a room, rugs also serve to emphasize and/or transform the dimensions of the s...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Nice modern French screen printed Aubusson Tapestry by « Gemmanick »
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Discover the elegance of modern French tapestry with the exquisite design titled Dusk « Crépuscule » by « Gemmanick ». This limited edition masterpiece, screen printed by hand in the...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
Pretty Vintage Aubusson Style Jacquard Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful vintage French Aubusson style tapestry with a nice design of the nature with trees, vegetation inside the wood, and with a river. and with beautiful colours, entirely woven...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
Wonderful early 20th century French Aubusson Tapestry medieval tapestry design
By Royal Manufacture of Aubusson
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful antique Aubusson tapestry with a nice design featuring a medieval and gothic design featuring a garden with animals, with beautiful colours, with blue, green , brown, ...
Category
Early 20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Flemish Armorial Tapestry, Late 16th Century, Renaissance
Located in Vienna, AT
A Flemish armorial tapestry.
Late 16th century, possibly Spanish
Woven in wools, depicting the arms of the Abbasid dynasty, combined with those of ...
Category
16th Century Spanish Renaissance Antique Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton
Modern Handwoven Jute Carpet Rug Ivory
By Kilombo Home
Located in Madrid, ES
This jute rug has been ethically hand woven in the finest jute yarns by artisans in Northern India, using a traditional weaving technique of this area.
Each rug is handwoven with irr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Jute
pretty Antique French Aubusson style Jacquard tapestry, chair or cushion cover
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
"Experience the timeless elegance of this exquisite fragment of an French Aubusson style tapestry, capturing the essence of a natural design , Woven on a Jacquard loom with wool. Ori...
Category
Early 20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Large mid century French Cogolin rug
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful mid century French Cogolin rug with a nice decorative and simple design, with a white pile of design on the orange foundation, hand made by wool on wool foundation
Damage...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Art Deco Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Tapestry Royal Manufacture of Aubusson, Louis XVI period 1738 at the Gobelins
By Aubusson Manufacture
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...
Category
Early 18th Century French Baroque Antique Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk, Wool
French Art Deco Handwoven Wool Rug, 1930s
Located in Zagreb, HR
Stunning French Art Deco handwoven rug made of wool
Handcrafted in the 1930s this rug features a geometric design in De Stijl/Bauhaus style, with the colour palette consisting of ...
Category
1930s French Art Deco Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Contemporary Round Rug Geometric Pattern Brown, Dark Red, Black & White
By Hommes Studio
Located in Porto, PT
Contemporary Round Rug Geometric Pattern Brown, Dark Red, Black & White
Designed to evoke a world of smooth elegance and deep intensity, the Tapis Fig Round Rug’s texture mimics the ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Synthetic, Natural Fiber
Nice Vintage Aubusson Style Jaquar Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful Aubusson style tapestry with nice design with a gallant scene and nice colors, mechanical Jaquar manufacturing with wool and cotton.
Size: 100 x 140 cm.
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Pretty Vintage French Aubusson Style hand printed Tapestry by “Roga”
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Pretty vintage tapestry by Roga, with a nice design titled “concert champêtre” (country concert), showing three characters playing music, in the countryside, near a river, behind, we...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton
Custom Hand knotted Rug, after Wassily Kandinsky “Composition VIII”. Wool, silk
By (after) Wassily Kandinsky
Located in Munich, DE
Custom hand knotted rug based on the painting “Composition VIII” by Bauhaus master painter Wassily Kandinsky.
Rug size (listed here): 280 x 200 cm / 9.2 x 6.6 ft
Material: fine wool.
Quality: Tibetan handknotted in 150 knots per square inch.
Very exact translation of the original artwork as a handknotted rug, created by weaving approx. 1.3 million knots per hand or the rug in the listed size.
Approx. 230 000 handmade knots per square meter.
Colors: 26 custom-dyed colors.
Main colors in the rug: warm base in ivory cream and abstract composition in the main colours dark orchid purple, sky blue and steel blue, golden yellow, maroon brown and saddle brown, firebrick red and dark sea green.
Sustainable and certified fair-trade artisanal production. Label Step fair-trade partners.
This elegant, lively rug is made entirely by hand using traditional weaving techniques.
Numbered limited edition of maximum 100 fine handmade rugs with this art piece. Each rug comes with a sewn-on label with an image of the artist’s signature and numbered by hand, per order.
This beautiful rug can also be ordered in even more luxurious materials like pure silk or mohair, and in plant-based materials like Tencel and linen. A combination of materials is possible as well. Production time may increase for these options, depending on material availability.
Production time for this rug is between is approximately 12-14 weeks. For environmental reasons and to provide our full bespoke service, our rugs are always made to order.
-- About the artwork on which this rug is based: “Composition VIII”:
Wassily Kandinsky created “Composition VIII” in 1923. The painting represents the Kandinsky’s transition from his Munich style of Expressionism to abstract geometric form and structure and is considered a peak in his work during that period.
“Composition VIII” is characterized by the use of tools such as compasses and rulers to draw circular and parallel-linear geometric shapes. This technique was influenced by the Russian painter Alexander Mikhailovich Rodchenko...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Bauhaus Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Other
French Art Deco Wool Large Carpet, Wall Hanging Art Deco Rug, 1930
By Bauhaus
Located in Antwerp, BE
Large four meter French Art Deco futurist hand woven wool rug with abstract art. Handcrafted in the 1930s this rug features a geometric design in Bauhaus style, with the color palet...
Category
1930s French Art Deco Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Handwoven Ecru Cotton Portuguese Rug Lagos SAUDADE DESIGN
Located in PARIS, FR
Lagos Rug is a stunning handwoven piece handwoven in Portugal from 100% recycled cotton. Its minimalist design and soft texture are perfect for adding warmth and style to any space. ...
Category
2010s Portuguese Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton
Nice antique distressed European rug oushak design
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful early 20th century large European rug with a design of the antique Turkish oushak rugs and nice colours with a red background and green, purple, brown, yellow and white, en...
Category
Early 20th Century European Oushak Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
Italian Vintage Rug Mat by G.T. Design
Located in Alessandria, Piemonte
S/28 - One of the first rug mats by G.T. Design, dating back to the late 1980s.
Now in liquidation (its true cost of many years ago) because I'm closing activities.
Category
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
Pretty Vintage French Hand Printed Tapestry Titled "the danse"
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Nice 20th century French tapestry, in style of Aubusson tapestries, with a design of a medieval museum tapestry called « La Danse » ( The Danse) and beautiful colors, hand printed on...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton
French Aubusson Style Jaquar Tapestry Medieval Design
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very beautiful French tapestry with a design of a museum tapestry from 15th century and nice colors, mechanical Jaquar manufacturing woven with wool.
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
1980s Gorgeous Woolen Rug by Ottavio Missoni. Made in Italy
By Ottavio Missoni
Located in Milano, IT
1980s Gorgeous rug by Missoni for T&J Vestor. Pure wool Made in Italy. In excellent condition like new. This rug is a true example of amazing Italian and has Missoni label. It has be...
Category
1980s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Victor Vasarely, Hand Signed Original Tapestry
By Victor Vasarely
Located in Geneve, CH
Victor Vasarely (1906-1997).
Panderlak,
circa 1983
Measures: 120 x 72 cm
Hand signed and numbered on the back, edition of 320.
Victor Vasarely, whose original name was Gyözö ...
Category
1980s French Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
1980s Gorgeous Geometric Italian Woolen Rug by Missoni for T&J Vestor
By Ottavio Missoni
Located in Milano, IT
1980s Gorgeous rug by Missoni for T&J Vestor. Pure wool Made in Italy. In excellent condition like new. Signed at the bottom. This rug is a true example of amazing Italian design.
Di...
Category
1980s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Bobyrug’s Pretty Vintage French Jaquar Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Nice french Aubusson style tapestry with beautiful design of nature and town, and nice colors, woven by mechanical Jaquar manufacturing with wool and cotton.
✨✨✨
"Experience the epi...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
Bobyrug’s Vintage Savonnerie Style Hand Tufted Rug
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful late 20th century handcrafted rug with a Savonnerie or Aubusson design and nice colors with blue, pink, purple, yellow and green, entirely handmade with tufted method with ...
Category
Late 20th Century Chinese Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Cotton, Wool
Bobyrug’s pretty vintage French Aubusson style Jacquard tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
"Experience the timeless elegance of this exquisite French Aubusson style tapestry, capturing the essence of a musical celebration amidst the countryside. Woven on a Jacquard loom wi...
Category
Late 20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
Contemporary Abstract Shape Rug with Surrealist Motifs Black & White in Wool
By Hommes Studio
Located in Porto, PT
Tapis Shaped #029 also known as Ray Rug is an avant-garde piece by HOMMÉS Studio x TAPIS Studio. Part of our Shaped Collection that is perfect for an irreverent interior look, from t...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Synthetic, Natural Fiber
Pretty antique Antique French Needlepoint Panel Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Beautiful late 19th century needlepoint tapestry with nice design of the forest with vegetation and beautiful light colors with the hues of yellow, green, brown and white, entirely h...
Category
Late 19th Century French Aubusson Antique Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Silk, Wool
Alice Crawley Bamboo Forrest Wool Rug Blue
Located in Stockholm, SE
Alice Crawley Bamboo Wool Rug is part of the design collaboration Alice Crawley x LAYERED. The rugs are made of 100% wool with a cut pile for a sharp and clean finish. The colors hav...
Category
2010s Indian Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
21th Century Modern Minimal White Round Rug Organic Black Pattern
By Hommes Studio
Located in Porto, PT
Contemporary Minimal White Round Rug with Organic Black Pattern
The Coffee Round Rug is rich and captivating, exuding a deep, bewitching warmth that envelops your space in a comfort...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Synthetic, Natural Fiber
Pretty Mid Century French Aubusson style Jacquard Tapestry.
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Elevate your space with this exquisite Aubusson-style tapestry featuring a romantic depiction of a loving couple in the countryside, nestled under a tree. Sheep graze nearby, and a g...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Cotton
Bobyrug’s Pretty antique French Aubusson Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Very pretty mid century french Aubusson tapestry with beautiful design of a flowerpot with nice colours in a black background.
Entirely handwoven with wool and silk on cotton foundat...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool, Silk
Bobyrug’s Pretty Mid Century French Needlepoint Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Exquisite French needlepoint tapestry featuring a stunning garden design with birds and vibrant colors. Hand-embroidered using the needlepo...
Category
Mid-20th Century French Aubusson Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool
Mano Chrome Rug by Jean-Charles de Castelbajac
Located in Geneve, CH
Mano chrome rug by Jean-Charles de Castelbajac
Dimensions: W 170 x H 240 cm
Materials: wool
Dimension customization is possible for bigger format only.
Jean-Charles de Castelb...
Category
2010s French Post-Modern Continental Europe - Western European Rugs
Materials
Wool