This auction has ended. View lot details
You may also be interested in
Lot 1293
An Aubusson historical tapestry from: The Story of Godefroy de Bouillon
late 17th/early 18th century
late 17th/early 18th century
26 October 2015, 10:00 EDT
New YorkSold for US$10,000 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our European Furniture and Works of Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
Client Services (San Francisco)
Client Services (Los Angeles)
An Aubusson historical tapestry from: The Story of Godefroy de Bouillon
late 17th/early 18th century
late 17th/early 18th century
Depicting the Siege of Jerusalem.
size approximately 9ft 6in x 15ft 10in (482.5 x 289.5cm)
size approximately 9ft 6in x 15ft 10in (482.5 x 289.5cm)
Footnotes
Literature
Dominique and Pierre Chevalier, Pascal-François Bertrand, Les Tapisseries d'Aubusson et de Felletin, La Bibliothèque des Arts, 1988, pp. 49-51
For additional information and an extensive catalog essay, see the online catalog for this lot at www.bonhams.com/22466
The story of Godefroy de Bouillon was popularized by Torquato Tasso in his late 16th-century work, Jerusalem Delivered. In this largely fictionalized account of the siege and conquest of Jerusalem, de Bouillon is depicted as an epic hero, against the backdrop of a love story based on Ariosto's Orlando Furioso. Jerusalem Delivered was enormously popular, especially as it coincided with the real-life encroachment of the Ottoman Empire upon Europe. The engravings made for its multiple editions – by Antonio Tempesta (1555-1630), Michel Lasne (1590-1667) and François Chauveau (1613-1676) – inspired not only several series of The Story of Godefroy de Bouillon, but others such as The Loves of Rinaldo and Armida, and Tancredi and Clorinda.
A six-piece suite of Godefroy tapestries was listed in the 1736 inventory of artist Jean-Baptiste Pater's possessions, and another is found in the inventory of the Château d'Herbault of the same year. A six-piece suite of a different design and later date (circa 1740), also made at Aubusson, is conserved in the Château-Mairie in Vallon Pont d'Arc (France). A very similar tapestry to the one offered here is illustrated in Chevalier/Bertrand (op.cit., p. 51), in the collection of Baron Benoît de Bonvoisin.
Godefroy de Bouillon was an actual historical figure, whose fame derives from the First Crusade (1096-1099). A duke from lower Lorraine, de Bouillon raised an army upon Pope Urban II's call to arms but played a relatively minor role in the crusade until the siege of Jerusalem. His troops were the first to enter the city, and de Bouillon's conquest was heralded throughout Christendom as a major victory of the forces of Christ over the Infidels. De Bouillon was named ruler of Jerusalem, but refused the title of king because, as he reportedly said, he "would never wear a crown of gold where our Savior wore a crown of thorns" – which only served to increase his fame. He is shown in the present tapestry on the far left, with his golden beard and astride his horse, directing the siege of the Holy City.