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Lot Essay
THE ORIGIN OF THE DESIGN
Nicolas Fouquet, Grand Argentier du Royaume and a remarkable patron of the Arts, commissioned a set of portières in 1659-1660 for his château at Vaux, now called Vaux-le-Vicomte, from his protegé Charles Le Brun. Le Brun's drawing for the cartoons for the Fame portières, now in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, is illustrated in I. Novosselskaya, Le Dessin Français du XVIIIe siècle dans les Collections du Musée de l'Ermitage, 1999, no.62. In 1659, Fouquet established a tapestry manufactory in the village of Maincy, near Vaux to execute the tapestries, and this served the dual purpose of both embellishing his sumptuous house as well as giving much-needed employment to the village.
This portière was one of a set of four: portière de la Renommée (Fame), the Char de Triomphe (triumphal chariot), Mars and Le Lion et la Licorne (the Lion and the Unicorn). The cartoons were painted by Baudrain Yvart le père (1611-1690) and, as the name indicates, portières were hung in front of doors to stop drafts.
THE PORTIÈRE DE LA RENOMMEE
Under the direction of Colbert, the initial model for the portières was adapted to the design we see here today by the original authors of the cartoon, who presented it to be woven at the Gobelins. The portière, a timeless model, remained popular up until the end of the 19th century. It was particularly popular during the reign of Louis XIV, being woven unchanged seventy-two times between 1690 and 1727. Portières were often gifted by the King as presents to his most trusted and high-ranking councilors.
FOUR DIFFERENT WEAVINGS
The first weaving was executed at Maincy, the second commissioned between 1690 and 1691 and consisted of 24 tapestries measuring 279 cm. by 238 cm. high., while the third and fourth sets were woven without gold thread, on the basse lisse loom.
On 15 September 1693, Louis XIV commissioned a set of portières from the Royal Manufactory including twelve Fame portières. They were started in October 1693 in the Souet and De La Fraye workshops. Only one tapestry had been completed in the Souet atelier before the closure of the Gobelins in 1694. Work on the eleven others was continued after the Gobelins reopened in December 1698 and completed in July 1699. At 2 aunes 8 high (297.5 cm.) and between 238 and 260 cm. wide, they were estimated at 120 per aune. They were therefore larger than the preceding portières. These were delivered soon after their completion on 15 April 1701 to the Garde Meuble de la couronne under number 180:
180. Portières de la Renommée - Une tenture de tapisserie de basse lisse, laine et soye, relevées d'or, fabrique de Paris, manufacture des Gobelins, dessin de Le Brun, où sont représentées les armes de la France et de Navarre soustennues par une Renommée et une flore, dans une bordure couleur de bronze, avec des oves et un feston de feuilles de laurier qui règne autour attaché à un cordon jaune et rouge ; contenant ensemble 24 aunes de cours sur 2½ de hauteur.
By the time of the 1789 inventory, only one portière remained in good condition, which was listed in Madame, la comtesse de Provence's bedroom. The others had disappeared, either being in storage or not listed, having possibly been destroyed because they were in poor condition or perhaps given away.
Other known Fame portières with the arms of France and Navarre from the Souet workshop include one from the collection of the Vicomtesse Vigier, sold Palais Galliera, Paris, 2-3 June 1970, lot 158; two portières from the duc de Vendôme's collection, sold Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 3 December 1931, lot 115, one of which sold in these rooms, 2 November 2000, lot 58 ($325,000) and subsequently Sotheby’s, London, 8 July 2008, lot 4 (£409,205); and a further example sold Parke-Bernet, New York, 3-4 November 1950, lot 215.
Fame portières woven on a low warp loom in wool and silk are extremely close to the third weaving and were executed in 1699 and 1700. The height of these portières is the same as on the third set (2 aunes 8 - 297.5 cm.). However, on three of those where the dimensions are known, the width is slightly greater, between 2 aunes 3 and 2 aunes 3½ (260 cm.). Delivered straight away to the garde-meuble, they are listed in the 1714 inventory under number 184. By 1789 eight of them had been divided among the Royal palaces in Paris, Versailles, Marly and Choisy.
An additional wool and silk low warp portière, circa 1690-92 (282 cm. high; 222 cm. wide); sold anonymously at Palais Galliera, Paris, 3 April 1969, lot 94 and now in the Musée National du Château de Versailles (inv. no. V4641), see G. Van Der Kemp, 'Nouvelles Acquisition,' Revue du Louvre, Paris 1970. - 2nd trimester, p. 120.
The 1886 auction through which much of the contents of the château de Langeais were dispersed by the castle’s new owner Jacques Siegfried, a Fame portière of almost identical dimensions (285 cm high and 230 cm wide) as the present tapestry was sold, see Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 13-18 December 1886, lot 765. Knowing how customary it was for wealthy Americans of the Gilded Age to furnish their homes with decorations acquired from grand European collection, coupled with their almost identical sizes, it is possible that our portière made its way to the Vanderbilt collection from the château de Langeais.
WILLIAM K. VANDERBILT AND IDLE HOUR
Father of the renowned collector Consuleo Vanderbilt Balsan, William Kissam Vanderbilt I (1849-1920) was the son of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt. The eldest son and one of eight siblings, William inherited a staggering fifty-five million dollars upon his father’s death in 1877. Following his father’s footsteps, he invested heavily in the railroad and quickly became the most important entrepreneur in this field. He married twice: first to Alva Erskine Smith in 1875 and then to Anne Harriman Sands Rutherford in 1903. From his first marriage, which ended in divorce on the basis of Vanderbilt’s infidelity, he had two sons and the abovementioned Consuelo, later Duchess of Marlborough. Like many other Vanderbilts, William was known for his lavish lifestyle and magnificent homes, including the Newport 'cottage' Marble House and the extravagant Vanderbilt Mansion at 660 Fifth Avenue.
Vanderbilt's Long Island retreat, aptly named 'Idle Hour', was built over a vast estate of nearly 1000 acres according to the plans of Richard Morris Hunt. The wooden chalet-style residence was completed between 1878 and 1882, though was destroyed by fire on 15 April1899. Soon after, a new building was erected by Richard Howland Hunt at the cost of millions of dollars and was subsequently enlarged in 1902. The interiors of the main house were furnished with 18th century English and French furniture, French Renaissance objects, tapestries and an extensive collection of porcelain. Six years after William’s death, much of Idle Hour’s collection was auctioned by The American Art Association with special mention of the present tapestry as a sale highlight.
EDMUND G. BURKE
Born in Bethel, Ohio, Edmund Glenn Burke (1877-1966) was the president of a number of real estate, mortgage and construction firms in the New York city area. A philanthropist and passionate collector, in 1943 he originated the Denison Art Treasure Collection at Denison University in Granville, Ohio. Burke believed that no liberal arts education was complete without the appreciation and understanding of fine arts. His donations to the university enabled the institution to install the “treasure room” in one of the halls of the school’s main library. Burke encouraged his fellow businessmen and Denison alumni to share their cultural and fine art objects with the school community. Upon his death in 1966, Burke left $1.2 million to the school to expand its art collection and to fund the building of the now-called Burke Hall of Music and Art. His generous bequest also enabled the university to found and expand the Denison Museum.
Nicolas Fouquet, Grand Argentier du Royaume and a remarkable patron of the Arts, commissioned a set of portières in 1659-1660 for his château at Vaux, now called Vaux-le-Vicomte, from his protegé Charles Le Brun. Le Brun's drawing for the cartoons for the Fame portières, now in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, is illustrated in I. Novosselskaya, Le Dessin Français du XVIIIe siècle dans les Collections du Musée de l'Ermitage, 1999, no.62. In 1659, Fouquet established a tapestry manufactory in the village of Maincy, near Vaux to execute the tapestries, and this served the dual purpose of both embellishing his sumptuous house as well as giving much-needed employment to the village.
This portière was one of a set of four: portière de la Renommée (Fame), the Char de Triomphe (triumphal chariot), Mars and Le Lion et la Licorne (the Lion and the Unicorn). The cartoons were painted by Baudrain Yvart le père (1611-1690) and, as the name indicates, portières were hung in front of doors to stop drafts.
THE PORTIÈRE DE LA RENOMMEE
Under the direction of Colbert, the initial model for the portières was adapted to the design we see here today by the original authors of the cartoon, who presented it to be woven at the Gobelins. The portière, a timeless model, remained popular up until the end of the 19th century. It was particularly popular during the reign of Louis XIV, being woven unchanged seventy-two times between 1690 and 1727. Portières were often gifted by the King as presents to his most trusted and high-ranking councilors.
FOUR DIFFERENT WEAVINGS
The first weaving was executed at Maincy, the second commissioned between 1690 and 1691 and consisted of 24 tapestries measuring 279 cm. by 238 cm. high., while the third and fourth sets were woven without gold thread, on the basse lisse loom.
On 15 September 1693, Louis XIV commissioned a set of portières from the Royal Manufactory including twelve Fame portières. They were started in October 1693 in the Souet and De La Fraye workshops. Only one tapestry had been completed in the Souet atelier before the closure of the Gobelins in 1694. Work on the eleven others was continued after the Gobelins reopened in December 1698 and completed in July 1699. At 2 aunes 8 high (297.5 cm.) and between 238 and 260 cm. wide, they were estimated at 120 per aune. They were therefore larger than the preceding portières. These were delivered soon after their completion on 15 April 1701 to the Garde Meuble de la couronne under number 180:
180. Portières de la Renommée - Une tenture de tapisserie de basse lisse, laine et soye, relevées d'or, fabrique de Paris, manufacture des Gobelins, dessin de Le Brun, où sont représentées les armes de la France et de Navarre soustennues par une Renommée et une flore, dans une bordure couleur de bronze, avec des oves et un feston de feuilles de laurier qui règne autour attaché à un cordon jaune et rouge ; contenant ensemble 24 aunes de cours sur 2½ de hauteur.
By the time of the 1789 inventory, only one portière remained in good condition, which was listed in Madame, la comtesse de Provence's bedroom. The others had disappeared, either being in storage or not listed, having possibly been destroyed because they were in poor condition or perhaps given away.
Other known Fame portières with the arms of France and Navarre from the Souet workshop include one from the collection of the Vicomtesse Vigier, sold Palais Galliera, Paris, 2-3 June 1970, lot 158; two portières from the duc de Vendôme's collection, sold Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 3 December 1931, lot 115, one of which sold in these rooms, 2 November 2000, lot 58 ($325,000) and subsequently Sotheby’s, London, 8 July 2008, lot 4 (£409,205); and a further example sold Parke-Bernet, New York, 3-4 November 1950, lot 215.
Fame portières woven on a low warp loom in wool and silk are extremely close to the third weaving and were executed in 1699 and 1700. The height of these portières is the same as on the third set (2 aunes 8 - 297.5 cm.). However, on three of those where the dimensions are known, the width is slightly greater, between 2 aunes 3 and 2 aunes 3½ (260 cm.). Delivered straight away to the garde-meuble, they are listed in the 1714 inventory under number 184. By 1789 eight of them had been divided among the Royal palaces in Paris, Versailles, Marly and Choisy.
An additional wool and silk low warp portière, circa 1690-92 (282 cm. high; 222 cm. wide); sold anonymously at Palais Galliera, Paris, 3 April 1969, lot 94 and now in the Musée National du Château de Versailles (inv. no. V4641), see G. Van Der Kemp, 'Nouvelles Acquisition,' Revue du Louvre, Paris 1970. - 2nd trimester, p. 120.
The 1886 auction through which much of the contents of the château de Langeais were dispersed by the castle’s new owner Jacques Siegfried, a Fame portière of almost identical dimensions (285 cm high and 230 cm wide) as the present tapestry was sold, see Galerie Georges Petit, Paris, 13-18 December 1886, lot 765. Knowing how customary it was for wealthy Americans of the Gilded Age to furnish their homes with decorations acquired from grand European collection, coupled with their almost identical sizes, it is possible that our portière made its way to the Vanderbilt collection from the château de Langeais.
WILLIAM K. VANDERBILT AND IDLE HOUR
Father of the renowned collector Consuleo Vanderbilt Balsan, William Kissam Vanderbilt I (1849-1920) was the son of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt. The eldest son and one of eight siblings, William inherited a staggering fifty-five million dollars upon his father’s death in 1877. Following his father’s footsteps, he invested heavily in the railroad and quickly became the most important entrepreneur in this field. He married twice: first to Alva Erskine Smith in 1875 and then to Anne Harriman Sands Rutherford in 1903. From his first marriage, which ended in divorce on the basis of Vanderbilt’s infidelity, he had two sons and the abovementioned Consuelo, later Duchess of Marlborough. Like many other Vanderbilts, William was known for his lavish lifestyle and magnificent homes, including the Newport 'cottage' Marble House and the extravagant Vanderbilt Mansion at 660 Fifth Avenue.
Vanderbilt's Long Island retreat, aptly named 'Idle Hour', was built over a vast estate of nearly 1000 acres according to the plans of Richard Morris Hunt. The wooden chalet-style residence was completed between 1878 and 1882, though was destroyed by fire on 15 April1899. Soon after, a new building was erected by Richard Howland Hunt at the cost of millions of dollars and was subsequently enlarged in 1902. The interiors of the main house were furnished with 18th century English and French furniture, French Renaissance objects, tapestries and an extensive collection of porcelain. Six years after William’s death, much of Idle Hour’s collection was auctioned by The American Art Association with special mention of the present tapestry as a sale highlight.
EDMUND G. BURKE
Born in Bethel, Ohio, Edmund Glenn Burke (1877-1966) was the president of a number of real estate, mortgage and construction firms in the New York city area. A philanthropist and passionate collector, in 1943 he originated the Denison Art Treasure Collection at Denison University in Granville, Ohio. Burke believed that no liberal arts education was complete without the appreciation and understanding of fine arts. His donations to the university enabled the institution to install the “treasure room” in one of the halls of the school’s main library. Burke encouraged his fellow businessmen and Denison alumni to share their cultural and fine art objects with the school community. Upon his death in 1966, Burke left $1.2 million to the school to expand its art collection and to fund the building of the now-called Burke Hall of Music and Art. His generous bequest also enabled the university to found and expand the Denison Museum.