Entombment of Christ
Designer: attributed to Jean Fierret (Flemish, active from 1496)
Date: about 1500-1525
Dimensions:
W. 94 1/2 in. (240 cm).
Medium: Wool and silk
Place of Origin: Flanders
Classification: Textiles and Fiber
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1934.91
Label Text:Richly woven, this tapestry shows the Entombment of Christ. The body of Jesus lies on a tomb inscribed in Latin, Humani Generis Redemptori (To the Redeemer of Mankind). He is surrounded, from left to right, by Joseph of Arimathea, holding the crown of thorns, Saint John, the Virgin Mary, Mary Magdalene, and Nicodemus.
Tapestries were significant artistic productions in the later Middle Ages in Europe. From the second half of the 14th century, they increasingly became part of the elaborate decorative schemes of both ecclesiastical and elite secular spaces. The size and subject of this tapestry suggest that it was an altar frontal. The lush vegetal design backing the figures is called millefleurs (meaning “a thousand flowers” in French), referring to the many species of plants scattered over the dark blue background. This type of tapestry was fashionable from about 1400 to 1550 and was a specialty of the tapestry weavers in the Southern Netherlands. The monograms “JS” and “MS” written above scrolls with the name “de Mailly” allude to the tapestry’s original owners, who unfortunately remain unknown.
Tapestries were significant artistic productions in the later Middle Ages in Europe. From the second half of the 14th century, they increasingly became part of the elaborate decorative schemes of both ecclesiastical and elite secular spaces. The size and subject of this tapestry suggest that it was an altar frontal. The lush vegetal design backing the figures is called millefleurs (meaning “a thousand flowers” in French), referring to the many species of plants scattered over the dark blue background. This type of tapestry was fashionable from about 1400 to 1550 and was a specialty of the tapestry weavers in the Southern Netherlands. The monograms “JS” and “MS” written above scrolls with the name “de Mailly” allude to the tapestry’s original owners, who unfortunately remain unknown.
On view
In Collection(s)