.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
This tapestry belongs to a series of ten panels depicting the Judaic wars (66 - 70 AD) during the reigns of Vespasian (69 - 70 AD) and his son Titus (79 - 81 AD). The series appears to be based on the accounts of Flavius Joseph (37 - 100 AD), a Jewish historian who fought in the wars against Rome and became a prisoner.
Although no drawings or engravings for the two series survive, it is believed that Charles Peorson (d. 1667) was their author on the basis of comparisons to other tapestry designs by him (The Story of Moses). It is believed that he painted the modelli for the tapestries in the early 1660s as there is mention of a Titus and Vespasian series in Brussels in 1663. It appears to have been commissioned by a group of weavers through Jean Valdor, an engraver and art dealer.
This specific tapestry was woven by Willem (Guillaume) van Leefdael, one of the most prominent weavers of tapestry in 17th entury Brussels. Collaborating with Gerard Peemans and Gerard van der Strecken for the execution of the Conquests of Vespasian and Titus, he went to open his workshop in 1656 and remained in activity until 1684.
Although no drawings or engravings for the two series survive, it is believed that Charles Peorson (d. 1667) was their author on the basis of comparisons to other tapestry designs by him (The Story of Moses). It is believed that he painted the modelli for the tapestries in the early 1660s as there is mention of a Titus and Vespasian series in Brussels in 1663. It appears to have been commissioned by a group of weavers through Jean Valdor, an engraver and art dealer.
This specific tapestry was woven by Willem (Guillaume) van Leefdael, one of the most prominent weavers of tapestry in 17th entury Brussels. Collaborating with Gerard Peemans and Gerard van der Strecken for the execution of the Conquests of Vespasian and Titus, he went to open his workshop in 1656 and remained in activity until 1684.