TAP 



T A ]' 



tlu-ri'. Tin- hangings of tin- fourteenth century nl'icii ic- 

 iiril Imuts. fantastical animals, or tin- Occupations 



peculiar to the differ* i : ami romantic 



ami i-liivalrii- poems att'oidcd a rich store of subji . 

 illuslialion. .lubinul quotes inventories of tnji. 



i In- fourteenth century, in which tapestries 

 of tin- above anil if seveial other varieties arc men' 

 Tlii- account given of those belonging to Charles \ . ..i 

 France is particularly curious. It i- ta\en from an in- 

 ventory picservcd ill the Hibliothcque ilu Hoi, which, 

 jiestries ornamented with figures. mentions he- 

 raldic tapestries (tapitserite furinnirio, anil t<i/,]>iz r,ln\. 

 or hairy or shaggv tapestry. The fifteenth century ait'oul- 

 inaiiy similar documents, though .lubinal does not give 

 them so fully. IL J gives however very long extracts from 

 a MS. in the Hihliothiquc ilu Koi respecting Mime old 

 lie-, from w Inch it is evident that the names //// 

 &irrti:iiini\ anil tnjiix di- Tun/uir* were often applied to 

 hangings fabricated in the West, they being probably 

 made in imitation of Oriental work. In this epoch tapes- 

 try was often alluded to by poets, and to it is attributed 

 the fabrication of most of the tapestries to which the tenn 

 ' tapisseries historiccs' has been applied. 



The sixteenth century, which was an age of general im- 

 provement in Fiance, pave a new impulse to the produc- 

 tion of tapestry. Francis I. founded the manufactures 

 of Fontainebleau, in which threads of gold and siKcr were 

 skilfully introduced into the work. It was, we are in- 

 formed, with 'this now impulse that the practice was 

 commenced of weaving tapestry in a single piece, instead 

 of composing it, as before, of several smaller pieces 

 joined together. This prince brought Primal iccio from 

 Italy [PuiMATiccio, FRAM-KSHI. \ol. xix., p. 1], and, 

 among other works of art, commissioned him to make 

 18 for several tapestries, which were woven at Fon- 

 tainebleau. Francis spared no pains in the encourage- 

 ment of this department of the fine arts. He engaged 

 Flemish workmen, whom he supplied with silk, wool, 

 and other materials, anil paid liberally for their labour : 

 and documents exist to prove that he also patronized 

 the tapestry-makers of Paris. Henry II., the son and 

 successor of Francis, continued to cncourairc the manu- 

 factory at Fontainebleau, and established a manufacture 

 nf tapestry on the premises of the Hopital de la Trinitc, 

 which attained its highest celebrity in the reign of Henry 

 IV., and produced many tine tapestries. In l.~>!)4 Du 

 Bourg, the most eminent artist connected with this esta- 

 blishment, made there the celebrated tapestries of St. 

 Mni. which were in existence until a recent period: and 

 these pleased Henry IV. so much, that he determined to 

 re-establish the manufacture of tapestry at Paris, where 

 it had been interrupted by the disorders of the preceding 

 reigns. This he did in 15!)7, bringing Italian workers in 

 gold and silk to assist in the work. 



The narrative of M. .lubinal, from which most of the 

 preceding facts ;ue taken, does not extend later than the 

 close of the sixteenth century : but, to continue the history 

 of the tapestry manufacture in France without interrup- 

 tion, we may turn to the volume- recently published by 

 the Countess of Wilton. A few years after the e\cnts last 

 mentioned, as appears from his Memoirs," the Due de 

 Sully. Menu's minister, was, act i\ eh engaged in promoting 

 this branch of industry. In K;o"> -,,,., laid the founda- 

 tions of new edifices for the tapes! ry -wcavcis, in the hurse- 

 market at Paris; and at that time, or a little later, 

 Flemish workmen were engaged to superintend the manu- 

 facture. The establishment languished, if it did not 

 iiic quite extinct, after the death of Henry IV. ; but 

 when the royal palaces, especially the Louvre and the 

 Tuileries, were receiving their rich decorations, in the 

 ri-ign of Louis XIV.. his minister Colbert revived it. and 



that time the celebrated royal tapcstrv-manui 

 of the Gobelins dates its origin. This was established 111 

 premises which had been erected by celebrated d\n-. 



InilncrlMni;. in a niuK-nurnt page, romarknlOo 1Yn!nn Lii'try of tin- 

 riitnath o-ntury, rml-lliabi-d with onhtanatlr . !. I, mm- in the 



reunion of the Man|iii<* de Lagoy, at Alx, Juhioal obai n that the uniM 

 Peniu tanmtrin art the pr.lm-e of KhoraiMn. mpreull; at the toon of 

 Yead. Tnw, W add*, al* what i 

 taauuF (toy cone from Iht Ottoman nnptn, lit bream- 

 of the puuM round thr C.- M 

 communication with Prnla The nlahli. 

 tadM In Prano put an pn<l tn the Importation of : 



at workin j It u itahrf to be cgotiniuj nnn>fUlly In the Kul, lo our OK n 

 d*T 



named (inbelin [GonKi.iv, \ol. \i.. p. >ii;|. but which 



purchased b\ I.onis \1\ . in ,,,- M,,uil the Mar 

 ami adaiited to the tapesti y-inainilaclure. under the name 

 of Hotel Uoxal ties (iobelins. Porvgo artuts and work- 

 men were eiiguired. lawswcre drawn up for the protection 

 and gin eminent of the manufactory, and evei \thini; was 

 ' lender it. what it has ever since remained, the 

 iislmient of the kind in the world. 'Theijuiin- 

 tit\ of the finest and noblest works that hau- li,i 11 pn>- 

 duced by it,' ol*erves the work above referred to, ' and 

 the number of the best workmen bred np tl 

 incredible: and the present flourishing condition of the 

 a:N and mainifactui .e is. in i_'reat me. 



owing thereto.' The production of tapestry at the (Julie- 



said to have attained the hiu'hest perfection in the 

 time of the minister Colbeit and his successor M. lie 

 Louvois. J.e lirun, when chief director of the establish- 

 ment. made many designs for working after: and M. de 

 Louvois caused tapestry to be made I om some of the 

 finest designs of Raphael, Julio Romano, and 

 Italian painters. A further account of this celebrated 

 manufacture is ;ri\ci> in the elegant volume wine! 

 just appeared under the title of 'The Hand-book of 

 Needlework.' the authoress of which writes under her 

 maiden name. Miss Lambert. She states that the manu- 

 facture declined greatly at the Revolution, but was revived 

 under the KOVernmetU of Napoleon, and has 

 been carried on successfully, tlioiiL'h by no means to tin- 

 same extent as formerly. About IsilJ ninety persons 

 were employed in it. chiefly in preparing tapesiry for the 

 palace of St. Cloud. 'Tile pieces executed. ' according to 

 the wink last named. ' are generally historical sill. 

 and it occasionally requires the labour of from two to si\ 

 years to finish a single piece of tapestry.' 'The produc- 

 tions of this manufactory .'say-; the same authority. ' which 

 is entirely supported by' the "government, are ch'ielh 

 lined for the royal palaces, or for presents made by tin- 

 kin;;: but some few pieces, not designed as siicli 

 allowed to In- sold.' Wool is the only material now used. 

 it being found to retain ils colonis better than any other: 

 and in connection with the weaving establishment is one 

 for dyeimr wools, under the direction of able chemists, in 

 which many colours are dyed for this purpose exclusively. 

 From a passage ill Fv ely n's -Uiary' Oct. 4. |I!KJ .in which 

 be speaks with admiration of some new French t:i| 

 he had seen in the apartments of the duchess of i 

 mouth.it appears that the product ions of this manufactory 

 were Known in England at that time. 



The preceding historical notices respectiii"; ta,< 

 refer almost exclusiv ely to France, but we must retrace ou'i 

 steps to take a brief review of the use and manufacture of 

 ihis kind of fabric in Knirland. Ues|ii'etin^ the Aiiirlo- 

 Saxon period, it i.- obscru-d in the 'Pictorial Hist.Viy of 

 Kngiand" (,\ol i., p. :t23 ; : 'The dwel]in<rs of the hisl'her 

 ap]>ear to have been completely and MPiietimcs 

 sjjlendidly furnished : their walls were hung with silk 

 richly embroidered with irold or colours. The needle-work 

 for which the Kn^lish ladies were so famous was herein 

 displayed to great advantage. Inirulphus mentions some 

 hainiinirs oniainentcd with golden birds in needle-work, 

 and a veil or curtain on which was represented in einbroi- 

 dciv the destruction of Troy. In the An-;lo-Saxon poem 

 of lieowiilfwe read that, in 'the great wine-chamber' 



' 'I'ln- 



uiih LM!.I 



llfcadi of HIP w.ktrion 



Tluit would gout on It hrramp vlriblu.' 



'Tlie Saxon term for a curtain or han-rins was imnri/t : 

 and. in the will of Wynflu'da. we find the bequest of a 

 Ion;,' /im// irnhrijl and' a short one. The same lady also 

 beipieaths three coverings for benches or Mt) 



.' The llvvn \ Tvi'i-:srin \ ol. i\ .. p. (is is per- 

 hajis the most anlielit piece of needlework in existence. 

 It was probably owint: to the expi-n.se of such hanirinifs, 

 when of larire si/.e. and the very lonir time required for 

 their production, that the less comfuilable device of 

 painting the walls of chambers was extensively adopted 

 ill the early Norman period. Of this time the work before 

 quoted obs. '. i.. p. (i.'C) : 'The hamriiiL's of 



needle-work and embroidery which adorned the walls of 

 the Anirlo-Saxon palace*, seem to have been partially su- 

 perseded in the course of this period by the fashion of 



