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European Tapestry

Type Object Region Europe Time c. 1000–1700

Large wall-hanging textiles woven with warp and weft or pile techniques, flourishing from the medieval period for castle and church decoration and di…

Timeline

  1. c. 1000–1150Rhineland · Holy Roman EmpireFrom the 11th century, monasteries and noble residences used tapestries for warmth and to display biblical narratives, mainly in plain-weave figured techniques, laying the groundwork for large-scale workshop production in the Gothic period.
  2. c. 1250–1350Paris · FranceIn the mid-13th century, the weavers' guild of Paris, under royal patronage, produced giant tapestries on themes such as the Apocalypse; workshops in Arras and elsewhere gave the name 'Arras' as a generic term for European tapestry.
  3. c. 1400–1500Brussels · Burgundian NetherlandsThe Dukes of Burgundy strongly commissioned tapestries such as the Unicorn series; Brussels workshops introduced finer pile and perspectival composition, and tapestry became a diplomatic gift and symbol of wealth.
  4. c. 1500–1700Versailles · FranceFrance established royal tapestry workshops at Versailles and elsewhere (predecessors of the Gobelins); Raphael's cartoons and Rubens's designs circulated widely, and tapestry stood alongside oil painting and sculpture as a pillar of court art.

Sources