Lot Essay
The design for this carpet was prepared by Pierre-Josse Perrot; it was first woven in 1735 for King Louis XV's dining room at the Chateau of La Mouette. A second example was woven at the Savonnerie for the Chateau de Choisy in 1740., while further survived to the present day and are now in the Cleveland, Ohio, Museum of Art (Verlet, P.: The Savonnerie - the James A de Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor, Paris 1982, fig.58, p.103), the Chateau de Fontainebleau (Jarry,M.: The carpets of the Manufacture de la Savonnerie, Leigh-on-Sea, 1966, fig.46 and p.35), and in the Salon Huet of the Musee Nissim de Camondo, Paris (Gasc, N., and Mabille, G.: The Nissim de Camondo Museum, Paris 1991, details pp.21, 51, 52 and 88, also Jarry, M.:
op. cit., fig.45 and p.35). A further example was sold at auction
Pierre-Josse Perrot is recorded as a designer for the royal ateliers in the field of interior design, tapestry and in particular, carpets. The earliest mention of his name is at the Gobelins Tapestry workshop in 1715, while the earliest carpet design by him, in conjunction with Blain de Fontenay the Younger is dated 1724. By the time this carpet was designed, he was undoubtedly the leading designer at the Savonnerie, producing cartoons which were re-woven a number of times due to their popularity with the King. The designs for most of the carpets produced at the Savonnerie between 1735 and 1750 can be attributed to him. Typical are the bold but controlled scrolling acanthus leaves executed in bright colours on a dark ground. They succeed similar motifs of the Louis XIV period executed in grisaille. Also typical are the dense floral swags. Whenever Perrot was associated with a design that included figural scenes, these were executed by another artist; his mastery was of the abstract and floral.
Such was the popularity of these designs that many were re-woven well after the death of Louis XV, even until the first year after the revolution. One was woven a total of 23 times, the last being in 1790 (Verlet, P.: op. cit., p.274). Very minor alternations were sometimes made in the minor motifs, such as sustituting a fleur-de-lys for the entwined double L monogram, or slightly truncating the corners for a particular room as the Nissim de Camondo example of the present carpet does. Only rarely is there a major change. One instance of the latter is a version of the present carpet which substitues the central motif by a radiating fan-motif very similar to that of another of Perrot's cartoons.
The central motif which dominates the carpet, the Royal Arms flanked by eagles's wings, sometimes referred to as the Wings of Fame, was extremely popular in a number of Savonnerie carpets. It probably derives from a Roman decorative motif. It was used by Borromini in his decoration of the Gallery of the Palazzo Pamphili in Rome, circa 1650. It was included in carpet designs by Le Brun especially some of the Grand Gallerie du Louvre carpets. It was picked up by Robert de Cotte and Blain de Fontenay and used in particular in designs for carpets for the chapels at Versailles (ibid, figs. 142, 159 and 160, pp.229, 255 and 256). Perrot used the motif extensively, most notably in the series of carpets presently under discussion, and in a magnificent carpet woven for the nave of the Chapel at Fontainebleau in 1737 (ibid, fig 147, p.236).
The quality of weave of the present carpet, with such details as the roundness of the central Arms, the freshness of colour, and the quality of weave, all indicate that this was one of the earlier examples to be woven of this design. Of interest are the black wefts which are used once every 20 wefts, which were used to help the weaver, and which can be seen in the short kilim strip at each end. Its excellent condition and the absence of any alterations to the royal emblems indicate that it had already left the royal collections before the revolution.
op. cit., fig.45 and p.35). A further example was sold at auction
Pierre-Josse Perrot is recorded as a designer for the royal ateliers in the field of interior design, tapestry and in particular, carpets. The earliest mention of his name is at the Gobelins Tapestry workshop in 1715, while the earliest carpet design by him, in conjunction with Blain de Fontenay the Younger is dated 1724. By the time this carpet was designed, he was undoubtedly the leading designer at the Savonnerie, producing cartoons which were re-woven a number of times due to their popularity with the King. The designs for most of the carpets produced at the Savonnerie between 1735 and 1750 can be attributed to him. Typical are the bold but controlled scrolling acanthus leaves executed in bright colours on a dark ground. They succeed similar motifs of the Louis XIV period executed in grisaille. Also typical are the dense floral swags. Whenever Perrot was associated with a design that included figural scenes, these were executed by another artist; his mastery was of the abstract and floral.
Such was the popularity of these designs that many were re-woven well after the death of Louis XV, even until the first year after the revolution. One was woven a total of 23 times, the last being in 1790 (Verlet, P.: op. cit., p.274). Very minor alternations were sometimes made in the minor motifs, such as sustituting a fleur-de-lys for the entwined double L monogram, or slightly truncating the corners for a particular room as the Nissim de Camondo example of the present carpet does. Only rarely is there a major change. One instance of the latter is a version of the present carpet which substitues the central motif by a radiating fan-motif very similar to that of another of Perrot's cartoons.
The central motif which dominates the carpet, the Royal Arms flanked by eagles's wings, sometimes referred to as the Wings of Fame, was extremely popular in a number of Savonnerie carpets. It probably derives from a Roman decorative motif. It was used by Borromini in his decoration of the Gallery of the Palazzo Pamphili in Rome, circa 1650. It was included in carpet designs by Le Brun especially some of the Grand Gallerie du Louvre carpets. It was picked up by Robert de Cotte and Blain de Fontenay and used in particular in designs for carpets for the chapels at Versailles (ibid, figs. 142, 159 and 160, pp.229, 255 and 256). Perrot used the motif extensively, most notably in the series of carpets presently under discussion, and in a magnificent carpet woven for the nave of the Chapel at Fontainebleau in 1737 (ibid, fig 147, p.236).
The quality of weave of the present carpet, with such details as the roundness of the central Arms, the freshness of colour, and the quality of weave, all indicate that this was one of the earlier examples to be woven of this design. Of interest are the black wefts which are used once every 20 wefts, which were used to help the weaver, and which can be seen in the short kilim strip at each end. Its excellent condition and the absence of any alterations to the royal emblems indicate that it had already left the royal collections before the revolution.