Tapestry With Animated Landscape, Flanders 16th Century

- The work is remarkable: groves in the foreground teeming with details of scenes of country life and in the back a hilly landscape dotted with various constructions. The details are numerous, the eye wanders with delight.

- The play of shadow and light in the foliage is carefully done with a repeated process which contributes to the pleasant harmony emanating from this tapestry; (from right to left) dark green tones juxtaposed with lighter green hues adjoining yellows which introduce, by touch, bursts of light thanks to the use of golden yellow silk. The background is treated with less contrasting colors, thus helping to mark the succession of the different planes for a successful depth effect.

- The fineness of the weaving (7 threads/cm) allowed the weavers, despite restricted dimensions, to weave admirable details of life scenes. The characters are stylized but thanks to effective drawing, they nonetheless remain very expressive with very telling gestures. Thus, we can distinguish (from left to right): a man returning from harvesting, cottages, a couple whose wife carries a basket on her head, a man drawing water from a pendulum well, two hunters accompanied by dogs, a man busy stoking a large fire while another turns the spit to which a wild boar is attached, another man proudly carries the pig's head to the two richly dressed horsemen positioned in front of the stately home. A parakeet in full flight, halfway up to the right, also enlivens the scene. It seems to make the link between us, the spectators, and the scene contemplated.

- This tapestry is a fragment of a larger weaving. Very good state of conservation, restorations should be noted. Ring attachment.