A late 17th century Aubusson tapestry

From the series ‘Les Jeux d’Enfants’

Circa 1680-1700

Woven in wool and silk, with four boys in plumed hats playing in a woodland glade, within a border of flowers and acanthus leaves. With restorations.

The set of tapestries entitled ‘Les Jeux d’Enfants’ was first woven at the pre-Gobelins Parisian workshops of Raphael de la Planche and was based on cartoons designed by the painter Michel Corneille the Elder (1602-1664), with some elements of the designs having been adapted from the works of Jacques Stella (1596-1657). The subject proved popular, and the art collector Evrard Jabach, who was appointed director of the Royal Tapestry Factory of Aubusson in 1670, prompted the weavers of Aubusson and Felletin to adapt the designs for their own looms with great resulting success.

202cm (79½”) high and 337cm (132¾”) wide.