Allegory of Fire (Venus Visiting Vulcan)

François Boucher|Jacques Neilson|Jacques Germain Soufflot|Manufacture Nationale des Gobelins|George William Coventry, 6th earl of Coventry|Maurice Jacques

designed 1758–67, woven 1764–71 · Wool, silk (22-24 warps per inch, 9–10 per cm.) · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

The Tapestry Room from Croome Court, Worcestershire, the seat of the Earls of Coventry, was begun in 1763 and finished in 1771. The sixth Earl of Coventry (1722–1809) commissioned these tapestries for Croome Court from Jacques Neilson's workshop at the Royal Gobelins Manufactory in Paris in August 1763. Portraying scenes from classical myths symbolizing the elements, the medallions are based on designs by François Boucher. The set was delivered and in place by June 1771. The group was the first using this design to be woven with a crimson background and it may have been the first made specifically to extend around four walls of a room without architectural frames.

Artist

François Boucher|Jacques Neilson|Jacques Germain Soufflot|Manufacture Nationale des Gobelins|George William Coventry, 6th earl of Coventry|Maurice Jacques

Date

designed 1758–67, woven 1764–71

Medium

Wool, silk (22-24 warps per inch, 9–10 per cm.)

Culture

French, Paris

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

Gift of Samuel H. Kress Foundation, 1958