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148
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An exceptional, large and finely woven tapestry in wool and …
See original version (French)
148
-
An exceptional, large and finely woven tapestry in wool and …
See original version (French)
Estimate €6,000 - €8,000
Voluntary lot
Description
An exceptional, large and finely woven tapestry in wool and silk from the Royal Manufactory at Mortlake (England), second half of the 17th century, circa 1650–1670. Title: Children’s Bacchanal with a Goat or The Triumph of Bacchus as a Child. Design by the painter Francis Cleyn (Clein), official draughtsman of the Royal Manufactory at Mortlake appointed by King Charles I of England (1638), inspired by an Italian model (Jules Romain, a pupil of Raphael, 1530) and Flemish compositions. Part of the ‘Children’s Games’ series (comprising six to eight different panels: The Triumph of Bacchus as a Child, The Children’s Dance (the round dance), The Grape Harvest (or Fruit Picking), The Wine Press, and Water Games). The scene depicts a joyful procession of children, little imps surrounding the child Bacchus, crowned with vine branches, sitting astride the back of a large goat with curved horns. On the right, two young boys wearing laurel wreaths can be seen in profile, one playing cymbals and the other the trumpet, near a drunken figure reclining on the ground beside two upturned, gilded Renaissance-style ewers symbolising the wine flowing freely during Bacchus’s triumph (all these attributes—the goat, the cymbals, the thyrsus, the wine cup and the wine jars are a superb example of the English Baroque). In the background, rendered in Baroque perspective, one can see a large fortified residence or castle surrounded by lush woodland. Bead-and-reel border featuring motifs of beads and small scrolls (with alternating gadroons, beads and ovals). The centre of the border: decorated with rows of large, stylised, curling gilded acanthus leaves, surrounded by small bouquets of white flowers and red fruits against a midnight blue background. Four spandrels with gilded shells, creating the effect of picture frame mouldings. Dimensions: 283 cm high x 531 cm wide (restorations, fresh colours, oxidation and natural wear and tear).
See original version (French)
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Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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