ENSEMBLE DE QUATRE IMPORTANTES TAPISSERIES SUR LE THEME DES BACCHANALESIMPORTANT SET OF FOUR TAPESTRIES OF THE SERIES 'BACCHANALIA' PROBABLY WOVEN FOR CARDINAL MAZARIN, OFFERED AS DIPLOMATIC GIFT ON REQUEST OF LOUIS XIV TO DON LUIS DE HARO, MARQUIS DE CARPIO, FIRST MINISTER OF THE KING OF SPAIN, FOR THE CONCLUSION OF THE TREATY OF THE PYRENEES. PROBABLY MANUFACTURE DU LOUVRE, WORKSHOP OF PIERRE AND JEAN LEFEVRE, CIRCA 1648-1659Probably based on designs by Giulio Romano and/or Bartolomeo GuettiWoven in wool, silk, gold and silver thread, later mounted on red velvet panels and framedThe first panel: 'A Concert of Satyrs and Maenads.' To the foreground there are three figures leaning on a balcony, behind them a satyr plays the flute and a woman sings holding a book of music in her hand, they are surrounded by three figures, one of whom is playing classical bagpipes, in the background there are rustic figures in a bucolic landscape including some aqueduct-type ruins, the coffered ceiling and figures leaning on the balcony add to the feeling of three dimensionality, the whole enclosed by a coffered ceiling and two columns.The second panel: 'Council of the Gods and Goddesses.' Including Jupiter with his sceptre, Mercury with his caduceus slung over his right shoulder and distinctive winged helmet, Neptune with his trident, Mars resplendent in his armour and helmet and Selene or Diana with her crescent moon diadem on top of her head, there is also a small winged putto, probably Cupid, and a drunken curly haired semi-nude male to the lower left hand edge, possibly Bacchus, the pillared portico looking out to a bucolic landscape with various outbuildings and a lone tall tree in the middle distance, the scene enclosed by two columns and an elaborate foliate border to the top edge with swags and winged putti, later added.The third panel: 'The Procession of Silenus.' The main figure of Silenus appearing to be supported by two satyrs, his feet resting on the balcony edge, while a Maenad crowns him with a crude wreath, the other satyrs playing 'conch-shell' trumpets to the top and the two to the bottom pouring wine into a libation bowl and eating grapes, the one to the bottom left with a particularly animalistic expressiveness to his face, the landscape to the distance with working villagers and famers, the whole set between two columns and a coffered ceiling.The fourth panel: 'The Companions of Bacchus.' Including two female figures, one squeezing grapes into a cup, the male figure next to her, probably representing Bacchus, one of the loosely robed females holds a bowl of fruit above her head and offers fruit to a child, possibly Cupid, under a coffered ceiling again but with pilaster supports with inset affected marble diamond and triangle additions to the middle and top and bottom corners.This last panel is probably a fragment of a larger composition which is depicted in a later Paris edition of the set. The larger composition also depicts a concert panel to the right of our fragmented section.(the first 140 x 225, the frame 181 x 250cm) (the second 143 x 224cm, the frame 188 x 250cm) (the third 143 x 224cm, the frame 250 x 188cm) (the fourth 133 x 235cm, the frame 179 x 267cm) . (4)Footnotes:Provenance:Probably commissioned by Cardinal Mazarin, as directed by Louis XIV as a diplomatic gift (1648-1659);Don Luis de Haro, Marquis de Carpio, (1598-1661) First Minister of the King of Spain;Private European Collection and thence by descentWe would like to thank Professor Guy Delmarcel, Professeur emerite en Histoire de l'Art, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Membre de l'Academie royale des Sciences de Belgique for his time and help with this important set of tapestry panels. The present lot represents an intriguing and potentially significant discovery. Thought to pre-date the famous Gobelins manufactory these tapestries were most probably woven in the Manufactures du Louvre at the Atelier de Pierre et Jean Lefèvre between 1648 and 1659. The inclusion of metal threads suggests a high-status set. Although the attribution of tapestries is seldom simple, the absence of City 'hallmarks' or weavers' marks on the present lot poses a particular challenge. There is enough documentary evidence in this case, however, not only to attribute them with some certainty to a maker but also to shed light on their important provenance, which demonstrates the importance of art in European diplomacy in the 17th century.THE BACCHANALIA SET OF FRANCOIS I:The composition of these panels is based on a suite of seven 'Bacchanalia' tapestries woven in gold and silver thread in Brussels between 1530-1535. This set was recorded in 1542 in the inventory of King Francois I of France (1494-1547) where they were called 'Histoire à Plaisirs' (the 'Story of the Pleasures'). They were described again in more detail in the inventories of Louis XIV (1638-1715) in 1716:'une tenture de tapisserie toute de soie rehaussée d'or ,dessein de Julles Romain, fabrique de Bruxelles, représentant des Baccanales, dans une bordure d'architecture à pilastres de grisaille sur fonds marbré, la tenture en sept pièces , contenant vingt-une aune de cours sur trois aunes un tiers de hault.....21 aunes sur 3 aunes 1/3'This describes the tapestries all woven in silk and enhanced with gold, designed by Giulio Romano (1499-1546) and made in a factory in Brussels, representing the Bacchanales in an architectural border with pilasters and a marbled background, in seven pieces, measuring 21 aunes by 3 aunes 1/3.Like many others, these tapestries (the set of Francois I) were burned in June 1797 with a view to extracting the precious metal. This method did not work, and countless treasures were lost as a result. The size is remarkable: the tapestries measured 400cm – what would now be referred to as monumental – while the present lot is considerably smaller. THE SET OF CARDINAL MAZARIN:Cardinal Giulio Raimondo Mazzarino was born in 1602 in Pescina, Italy. Over the course of his career, he served as chief minister to Kings Louis XIII and XIV of France. After starting as a Papal diplomat, Mazarin moved to Paris in 1640, where he offered his diplomatic services to Cardinal Richelieu. Upon the death of Richelieu, Mazarin became the first minister of Louis XIII in 1643. After twenty years of devoted service and numerous diplomatic successes, such as the Peace of Westphalia, the Treaty of the Pyrenees, and the marriage of Louis XIV with Maria Theresa of Spain, Mazarin died in 1661. As well as being an accomplished diplomat, Mazarin was an important patron of the arts.Despite their destruction in 1797, it is known that the tapestries of Francois I were copied on a smaller scale (250cm high) in Paris between 1648 and 1659, probably in the Manufactures du Louvre in the workshop of Pierre and Jean Lefevre. This smaller set, of which the present lot is thought to be part, was commissioned by Cardinal Mazarin.At the King's request, the set was offered as a diplomatic gift to Don Luis Méndes de Haro y Guzmán, 6th Marquis de Carpio (1598-1661), the first minister of Spain at the time of the conclusion and signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees on November 7, 1659. The peace treaty, which was signed between Louis XIV and Philip IV and brought an end to the Franco-Spanish War (1648-59), is said to herald the be... This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: TPTP Lot will be moved to an offsite storage location (Cadogan Tate, Auction House Services, 241 Acton Lane, London NW10 7NP, UK) and will only be available for collection from this location at the date stated in the catalogue. Please note transfer and storage charges will apply to any lots not collected after 14 calendar days from the auction date.For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com
