LATE 17TH/EARLY 18TH CENTURY

Details

A Louis XIV Aubusson Historical Tapestry
Late 17th/early 18th Century
Woven in wool and silk, after designs by Charles Le Brun, depicting Alexander and the Family of Darius from the Story of Alexander the Great, with the mother of Darius at the feet of Alexander, a soldier stands behind Alexander, and a fortune teller is seated to his right, in the distance tents and soldiers, all within a border of flowers and arms and armor, some localised areas of re-weaving
280cm. high x 420cm. wide

Special notice

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Lot Essay

This tapestry is from a series depicting The Battles and The Triumphs of Alexander the Great. Charles Le Brun (1619-1690) submitted the desings for this set to the newly united Gobelins Manufactory in 1660-1662 and it was first woven in 1664. The set basically consisted of five panels but the three battle scenes were of such proportions that the designs of each of these was divided into three separate panels, making a total of eleven subjects.

The set was extensively copied in Brussels and Aubusson from engravings made before 1679 by Gérard Edelinck. Tapestry editions of this set are recorded as having been woven as late as 1757 when the Aubusson workshop of Goubert supplied the Polish Franciszeck Potocki with a set.
See illustration

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