A biblical tapestry depicting the Building of Babylon Antwerp, mid to late 17th century, from the Wauters workshop, after cartoons by Abraham van Diepenbeeck
£8,000 - £12,000
Looking for a similar item?
Our Home and Interiors specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistA biblical tapestry depicting the Building of Babylon
Woven in wools and silks, the central field depicting the story of the building of Babylon, to the left a figure with mathematical implements and compass, to the centre and right of the main field a small group of robed figures including one elaborately dressed female, presumably Queen Semiramis, the architectural border with Solomonic columns, later reduced, 400cm x 305cm
Footnotes
Provenance
Private Collection.
Lyon & Turnbull, Edinburgh, 9.12.2005, sale 134, lot 203.
Formerly part of the collection of The Dukes of Hamilton, The Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh.
The present lot, woven in wool and silk, is woven after the cartoons by Abraham van Diepenbeeck (1596-1675) from the set depicting the 'History of Semiramis' -Queen of the Assyrians.
Semiramis was reputedly the builder of Babylon three thousand years ago. She was said to be the daughter of a sea goddess and a mortal. She married Memones, an officer of the Assyrian King Ninus but attracted the King's attention and he later married her. After his death she became Queen.
There are ten known panels from this set, including the present lot. However, only eight cartoons are recorded in the inventory of the Wauters workshop taken in 1679. Michael Wauters was arguably one of the most important 17th century tapestry weavers and his collaboration with Abraham van Diepenbeeck proved a popular combination.
These tapestries were housed in the apartments of the Dukes of Hamilton, Keepers of the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the principal Scottish palace of the Crown since its rebuilding after the Restoration. Following a dispute of ownership of objects at Holyrood in 1906 two panels from this set were allocated to the Crown as part of the settlement. The two panels, The Triumph of Semiramis and Semiramis Levelling the Roads, are still housed in the royal apartments at Holyrood. These other tapestries from the set depict the same Solomonic columns flanking the frame of the central field.
Literature
Margaret Swain, Tapestries and Textiles at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, HMSO, 1988, pp.'s 28-29.
