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18th Century Wall Decorations

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Period: 18th Century
18th Century Swedish Gustavian Pair of Gilded Wood Wall Glass Mirrors
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A gold, antique Swedish Gustavian pair of wall mirrors made of hand crafted gilded wood with its original mirrored glass, in good condition. The Scandinavian wall décor...
Category

Swedish Gustavian Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Glass, Mirror, Giltwood

Engraving of a Map of Florida, the Gulf Coast, Caribbean Central America, 1728
Located in Langweer, NL
This exceptional antique map, titled "Nouvelle Carte Marine de Toute les Cotes de l´Amerique" and alternatively known as "Nieuwe groote en seer Curieuse Paskaart van Geheel-WestIndie...
Category

Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th Century Spanish Colonial School, Cuzco, Angel
Located in Bradenton, FL
18th century Spanish Colonial School, Cuzco: Angel, oil on tin. Framed, in good condition. Rich colors of red, blue and white. Inscribed in upp...
Category

Spanish Spanish Colonial Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Tin

Antique Hand-Colored Engraving of The Black Lark by Eleazar Albin, circa 1730
Located in Langweer, NL
Title: Antique Hand-Colored Engraving of The Black Lark by Eleazar Albin, circa 1730 Description: This elegant antique hand-colored engraving depicts The Black Lark, drawn and engra...
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English Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Collection Of Assignats French Revolutionary Currencies, late 18th century
Located in Bilzen, BE
A collection of assignats, the paper currency that the revolutionary government attempted to introduce to compensate for the lack of metallic currency and to meet the war effort agai...
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Louis XVI Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th Century Italian Silk Silver Metallic Thread Lampas Brocade Panel
Located in Rochester, NY
An exceptional and fine hand woven 18th century Italian silk and silver metallic thread lampas brocade panel with beautiful aged original color. Red silk backing w/ attached strip of...
Category

Italian Renaissance Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Metallic Thread

Ancient Egyptian Temple Tomb Ground Plans – Thebes, c.1790 Engravings
Located in Langweer, NL
Ancient Egyptian Temple & Tomb Ground Plans – Thebes, c.1790 Engravings Description: This pair of antique engravings presents meticulously detailed architectural ground plans of an...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Early 18th Century Needlework Picture Depicting Angels
Located in Chelmsford, Essex
Early 18th Century Antique Silkwork Embroidery Picture. The embroidery is worked in silk on linen ground, in tent stitch or petit point. Colours pinks, blues, cream, gold, greens and...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Silk

Religious Ceremony of the Inhabitants of the Island of Hispaniola, 1734
Located in Langweer, NL
Religious Ceremony of the Inhabitants of the Island of Hispaniola, 1734 Description: This vividly hand-colored copperplate engraving, issued in 1734 in Bernard Picart’s monumental w...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Ancient Egyptian Temple Plans – Edfu, Erment, Esna Thebes, c.1776 Engravings
Located in Langweer, NL
Ancient Egyptian Temple Plans – Edfu, Erment, Esna & Thebes, c.1776 Engravings This finely detailed set of three architectural engravings illustrates the floor plans and elevations ...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Italian 18th century Baroque Period Mecca wall decor/mirror
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A wonderful and most unique Italian 18th century Baroque Period Mecca wall decor/mirror. This most decorative and rare carved Giltwood wall panel is set within an elegant mottled fra...
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Italian Baroque Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Mirror, Giltwood

Egyptian Seated Scribe Statue with Hieroglyphs – Front and Profile Views, c.1776
Located in Langweer, NL
Egyptian Seated Scribe Statue with Hieroglyphs – Front and Profile Views This pair of antique engravings depicts a striking Egyptian statue of a seated f...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Antique 18th Square Century Flemish Verdure Green Landscape Tapestry with Birds
Located in New York, NY
This is a gorgeous antique square 18th century flemish verdure landscape tapestry with birds depicting a beautiful and rich summer scene of a countryside with lush trees and vegetati...
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Dutch Baroque Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Tapestry, Wool

Set of 12 Antique Astronomy Prints by Bell c.1797
Located in Langweer, NL
Set of twelve antique astronomy prints. Published 1787-1797 for 'Encyclopaedia Britannica'. Engraved by A. Bell.
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th Century Antique Indian Medieval Tapestry after the Battle of Karnal in 1739
Located in Dallas, TX
74417 18th Century Antique Indian Medieval Wall Tapestry after the Battle of Karnal in 1739. This beautiful antique Indian painted tapestry is done on a canvas. It features a hunting battle scene with kings, kingsmen and royalty with multiple types of animals ranging from horses, elephants, lions, birds, peacocks and leopards. This tapestry is possibly in relation to The Battle of Karnal in 1739. The Muhammed Shah fought with Nader Shah...
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British Indian Ocean Territory Medieval Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Fabric

Westminster Abbey Interior Prepared for a Royal Coronation – Hand-Coloured, 1720
Located in Langweer, NL
A Prospect of the Inside of St Peter’s in Westminster – Coronation Preparations, c. 1720 – Hand-Coloured Engraving Hand-coloured engraving showing the interior of the Collegiate Chu...
Category

English Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Two Antique English Sepia Engravings By Earlom Lorrain No. 2 No. 5
Located in Bridgeport, CT
Thomas Earlom's impressive and successful series of sepia engravings after the Claude Lorrain drawings depicting figural wharf scenes made during 1774-1776 for a total of 195 images....
Category

English Georgian Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Glass, Wood, Paper

Christ with Mary and Martha Engraving – Luke X Martha Reproved 1735
Located in Langweer, NL
Christ with Mary and Martha Engraving – Luke X Martha Reproved 1735 This antique engraving illustrates the biblical scene of Jesus visiting the house of Mary and Martha, from the Go...
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English Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Antique Allegorical Print – Dutch Victory over France, Hand-Coloured, ca.1750
Located in Langweer, NL
Batavian Victory Allegory – Antique Hand-Coloured Engraving by J. Müller, c.1750 This richly symbolic 18th-century hand-coloured engraving, titled Has Iterum Batavi a Gallis Victori...
Category

German Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Antique Print of Funeral Ceremonies of the Canadian People by B. Picart, 1723
Located in Langweer, NL
Two images on one sheet. The first image shows the festivities of Canadian people while the deceased is carried to a Cabin. The second image shows a funeral procession. This print...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Antique Architectural Print of a New Design for Robert Walpole, England, 1725
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique print titled 'This New Design of my Invention, is most humbly inscrib'd to the Rt. Honble Robert Walpole (..)'. Old print depicting a new de...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Botanical Engraving of the Coffee Plant – Dutch Colonial Period, c.1737
Located in Langweer, NL
Botanical Engraving of the Coffee Plant – Dutch Colonial Period, c.1737 This exquisite botanical engraving depicts the coffee plant in detailed scientific form, as it was studied an...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Antique Bible World Map by R. J. Wetstein, 1743
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique world map titled 'De Werelt Caart'. A scarce and richly detailed double hemisphere world map that was probably based on an earlier work by Cornelis Dankerts. This map has t...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Large historical painting 18th century, Italian school
Located in Cesena, FC
Large historical painting 18th century, Italian school "Darius' mother pleading before Alexander after the battle of Issus." Oil on canvas 210 x 290 cm Painted with great strength...
Category

Italian Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Canvas, Wood, Giltwood

Joseph’s Well in the Citadel of Cairo – Section and Plan Engraving, Egypt 1776
Located in Langweer, NL
Title: Joseph’s Well in the Citadel of Cairo – Section and Plan Engraving, Egypt 1776 Description: This detailed architectural engraving from 1776 presents the ground plan, sectiona...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th Century, Painting Architectural Capriccio, att. to Isaac De Moucheron
Located in IT
18th Century, Painting with Architectural Capriccio with figures, attributed to Isaac De Moucheron Measures: canvas cm H 108 x L 152; with frame cm H 132 x L 176 x 8 The painting i...
Category

Dutch Baroque Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Canvas

Egyptian Dress, Jewelry Camel Transport – Antique Print of Egypt, 18th c.
Located in Langweer, NL
Egyptian Dress, Jewelry & Camel Transport – Antique Print of Egypt, 18th c. This richly detailed 18th-century engraving offers an illuminating visual inventory of Egyptian material culture, combining elements of traditional clothing, jewelry, camel transportation, architecture, and domestic objects. The plate, numbered Pl. LVIII, is captioned “Egyptische Kleedingen, Sieraden, Draagzetels, enz.”, which translates to “Egyptian Clothing...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Carib Priests Instilling Courage: A Ritual Dance of the Caribbean, 1722
Located in Langweer, NL
This hand-colored copperplate engraving titled “Manière dont les Prêtres Caribes soufflent le Courage” (The way Carib Priests blow courage) depicts a ceremonial ritual performed by t...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th-Century Artillery Engraving of the Spanish Captain s Carriage and Mechanism
Located in Langweer, NL
Title: 18th-Century Artillery Engraving of the Spanish Captain's Carriage and Mechanisms Description: This highly detailed 18th-century engraving presents a meticulously rendered...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Old Engraving of Chesterfield House, Westminster in London, Uk, ca.1770
Located in Langweer, NL
Title: Antique print titled 'Elevation of the R. Hoble Earl of Chesterfields House (..)'. Old engraving of Chesterfield House, Westminster. It was a ...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Antique Bird Prints – Finches, Waxbills, Starlings Fieldfare – Cassell’s, 1888
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique Bird Prints – Finches, Waxbills, Starlings & Fieldfare – Cassell’s c.1880 This fine pair of antique chromolithographs originates from Cassell’s Canaries and Cage Birds, publ...
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English Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Pair of Antique Dutch Delft Tile Groupings
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Rare and impressive pair of 18th century Dutch Delft tile grouping displaying their unique architectural subjects and distinctive alluring blue and white palette. Presenting five in ...
Category

Dutch Georgian Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Delft

Pair of Italian Garland Friezes in Gilded Wood
Located in Alessandria, Piemonte
Pair of French (or Italian ?) garland friezes in gilded wood for wall decoration. They used to be thicker, but someone made them thinner to fit something. Very elegant, like the ones...
Category

French Louis XVI Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Fruitwood

Biblical Engravings – Christ’s Resurrection St. Andrew the Apostle (1735)
Located in Langweer, NL
Set of 2 Biblical Engravings – Christ’s Resurrection & St. Andrew the Apostle (1735) This evocative set of two antique engravings, published in 1735,...
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English Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Knight Templar in War Attire: 1791 Hand-Colored Engraving from Historical Series
Located in Langweer, NL
Knight Templar in War Attire: 1791 Hand-Colored Engraving from Historical Series This striking hand-colored engraving, titled "Ein Tempelherr in seiner Kriegskleidung" (A Knight T...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Maltese Knight in Beaked Cloak: 1791 Hand-Colored Engraving of Ceremonial Dress
Located in Langweer, NL
Maltese Knight in Beaked Cloak: 1791 Hand-Colored Engraving of Ceremonial Dress This remarkable hand-colored engraving, titled "Maltheser-Ritter im Schnabelmantel" (Maltese Knight...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Vue du Port de Dieppe – Hand-Colored Optical Print, Paris, circa 1790
Located in Langweer, NL
Vue du Port de Dieppe – Hand-Colored Optical Print, Paris circa 1790 Description: This engaging and finely hand-colored optical print titled 'Vue du Port de Dieppe' offers a vivid 1...
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French Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Old Map of the Eastern Region of the Kingdom of Algiers, Algeria, 1773
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique map titled 'Kaart van het Oostelyke Deel van het Ryk van Algiers'. Old map of the eastern region of the Kingdom of Algiers, Algeria. Originates from the first Dutch edito...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Exotic Wildflower with Butterflies – Rare Botanical Engraving by Meerburgh, 1775
Located in Langweer, NL
Title: Exotic Wildflower with Butterflies – Rare Botanical Engraving by Meerburgh, 1775 Description: This exquisite hand-colored botanical print, marked Tab. X, comes from the 1775 ...
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Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Antique Medical Print Pl. XVI by D. Diderot, circa 1760
Located in Langweer, NL
Pl. XVI: 'Chirurgie.' (Surgery). This plate shows surgical instruments used in surgery of the skull / trepanning. This print originates from ...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

VOC Fort Nassau at Banda of The Spice Islands, Bird’s-eye View Engraving, c.1740
Located in Langweer, NL
Fort Nassau at Banda, bird’s-eye view engraving by Van der Schley, c. 1735–1747 This finely detailed 18th-century engraving presents a bird’s-eye view of Fort Nassau on Banda Neira,...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th Century French Revolution Framed Madame De La Fayette Folding Evantail
Located in Germantown, MD
A 1789 French Revolution Patriotism fighting symbol by the famous french Comtess M De La Fayette. Révolution Française: M. de la Fayette offre ses...
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French Louis XVI Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Other

Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester – Governor-General of the United Netherlands
Located in Langweer, NL
Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester – Governor-General of the United Netherlands, c.1750 This finely executed 18th-century copper engraving portrays Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester (1...
Category

Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Pair of Monumental Sculpted Panels from the Eighteenth Century
Located in Madrid, ES
PAIR OF MONUMENTAL CARVED PANELS FROM THE 18TH CENTURY IMPORTANT SPANISH BAROQUE 18TH CENTURY WOODEN PANELS ATTRIBUTED TO: Luis Bonifás y...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Fruitwood

Tapestry Royal Manufacture of Aubusson, Louis XVI period 1738 at the Gobelins
Located in Madrid, ES
Tapestry from the Royal Manufacture of Aubusson, Louis XVI period , made in 1738 at the Gobelins One panel from a series of Gobelins tapestries depicting the History of Esther, illustrating Esther seated and attended by handmaidens, one washing her feet in golden basin, another fastening a bracelet, another offering a mirror, all observed by Mordecai, woven in the workshop of Michele Audran after a design by J. F. de Troy. The Toilet of Esther c.1778-85.Royal Collection Trust-Queens Audience Chamber Windsor Castle The Sketches for the Esther Cycle by Jean-François de Troy (1736) “and the maid was fair and beautiful; whom Mor’decai, ..., took for his own daughter.” (Est. 2:7) A supple and undulating genius, both a flattering portraitist and a prolix history painter, as well as a brilliant genre painter, in a gallant or worldly vein, Jean-François de Troy (Paris, 1679 – Rome, 1752), solicited, although he had passed the threshold of old age, a new royal commission up to his ambitions. To obtain it, he submitted – successfully - for the approval of the Bâtiments du roi (administration), seven modelli painted in 1736 with his usual alacrity. Inspired by one of the most novelistic texts of the Old Testament, the Book of Esther, these sketches in a rapid and virtuoso manner were transformed by the artist, between 1737 and 1740 into large cartoons intended to serve as models for the weavers of the Gobelins factory. Showing undeniable ease and skill in the composition in perfect harmony with the sensitivities of the times, the tapestry set met with great success. The Story of Esther perfectly corresponded to the plan of the Bâtiments du roi to renew the repertoire of tapestry models used for the weavers of the royal factories while it also conformed to the tastes of Louis XV’s subjects for a fantastical Orient, the set for a dramatic tale in which splendour, love and death were combined. Indeed, no tapestry set was woven in France during the 18th century as often as that of Esther. The series of modelli painted by de Troy during the year 1736 looks to the history of French painting and decoration under Louis XV as much as it does the history of the Gobelins. It probably counts among the most important rococo pictorial groups to have remained in private hands. First the Biblical source illustrated by De Troy which constitutes the base of one of the richest iconographical traditions of Western art will be considered. Then the circumstances and specific character of French civilisation during the reigns of Louis XIV and Louis XV which contributed to making the theme of Esther a relevant subject, both attractive to contemporaries and remarkably in line with the sensitivities of the time will be elucidated. An examination of the exceptional series of sketches united here, the cartoons and the tapestries that they anticipate as well as a study of their reception will close this essay. The Book of Esther: A scriptural source at the source of rich iconography. The origin of the Esther tapestry set by Jean-François de Troy – origin and creation of a masterpiece According to the evidence of one of the artist’s early biographers, the chevalier de Valory, author of a posthumous elegy of the master, read at the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture on 6 February 1762, it was apparently due to early16 rivalry with François Lemoyne (1688-1737), his younger colleague who had precisely just been appointed First Painter to the King in 1736, that had encouraged François de Troy to seek a commission allowing him to show off his ease and his promptitude at the expense of a rival who was notoriously laborious: “M. De Troy, retaining some resentment of the kind of disadvantage which he believed to have suffered compared with his emulator looked to regain some territory by making use of the facility his rival did not possess. Lemoyne was excessively long in the creation of his works,and M. De Troy of a rare celerity: consequently, with this particular talent, the latter offered to the court to make paintings appropriate to be executed at the Gobelins Factory; and it is to this circumstance that we owe the beautiful series of the Story of Esther, which would be sufficient alone to give him a great reputation.”17 Beyond the suspicion inspired by the topos, which still constitutes, more or less, a tale of rivalries between artists in ancient literature, there is probably some truth in what Valory reports although A.-J. Dezalier d’Argenville (who indicates rather spitefully that de Troy did not hesitate to “cut prices” to impose himself, benefitting from the productivity assured by the unlikely rapidity of his brush)18 proves to be more evasive: “As he looked to busy himself, he had offered to make the paintings that serve as models for the King’s tapestries cheaply: which did not please his colleagues. He was given a choice of two tapestry series to be made and he took the Story of Esther and that of Jason”.19 Whether or not the choice was actually left to de Troy (which would appear rather casual on the royal administration’s part all the same), it seems likely that the artist, whose contemporaries extol his “fire”, as the faculty of invention was then called, must have ardently aspired to the possibility of using on a very large scale the “creative genius” with which Dezallier d’Argenville credits him. The decoration of the private apartments, the fashion for which Louis XV had promoted at Versailles and Fontainebleau, offered little opportunity to excel in this area. Other than painting for altarpieces, only tapestries could allow comparison with Lemoyne who had been granted – unfortunately for him – a major decoration: the enormous ceiling of the Hercules Room at Versailles. Favoured by the recent improvement in France’s financial situation, the revival of patronage offered de Troy a commission fitting for him, in a field in which, however, he had hardly any experience. Anxious to renew the repertoire of models available to the Gobelins factory, the Duc d’Antin, surintendant des Bâtiments du roi from 1708 to 1736 followed by his successor, Philibert Orry comte de Vignory, gave him the task of producing seven large cartoons inspired by the Book of Esther corresponding to the brilliant sketches or modelli which de Troy had produced in one go, or almost (very few preparatory drawings can in fact be linked to the Esther cycle and all seem to be at the execution stage of the cartoons).20 Subjected to the approval of the Administration des Bâtiments according to the procedure in use for projects being planned for the Gobelins, sketches made rapidly during 1736 were approved and the project launched immediately. Thereupon came the news of François Lemoyne’s death, who, ground down by work and a victim of his private torment, committed suicide on 4 June 1737. Against all expectations, de Troy did not replace his rival in the position of First Painter (which remained vacant until the appointment of Charles Coypel in January 1747), which would perhaps have made him too obviously the beneficiary of the drama. The awarding of the position of Director of the French Academy in Rome came to console him while he had already produced (or he was in the process of finishing), in Paris, three of the seven cartoons of the cycle (The Fainting of Esther finished in 1737 and the Toilet and Coronation of Esther, both finished in 1738). De Troy, we can see, did not follow the order of the narrative but began with the subjects which apparently offered the least difficulty because he had already depicted them, or because they fall into a strong pictorial tradition (such is the case especially for the Fainting of Esther). He had hardly settled at the Palazzo Mancini in August 1738, when his first task which awaited the new director of the French Academy naturally consisted of honouring the royal commission and finishing without delay the final cartoons of the Story of Esther after the sketches he must have taken with him. As prompt as ever, de Troy discharged himself of the execution of the four remaining cartoons in only two years, by beginning with the largest format which allowed him to strike the imagination and to impose himself as soon as he arrived on the Roman stage: the Triumph of Mor’decai which was finished in 1739 (like Esther’s Banquet). The following year, the Mor’decai's Disdain and The Sentencing of Haman were brought to an end in the same Neo-Venetian style, obviously tributary to Veronese with its choice of “open” monumental architecture which is characteristic of the entire cycle.21 The series, it should be noted, was almost augmented with some additional scenes in the mid 1740s. Indeed, the first tapestry set finished at the Gobelins in 1744 proved to be unsuitable for the arrangement of the Dauphine’s apartments at Versailles for which it had been intended to decorate the walls the following year (cf infra). Informed of this, de Troy, considering that the story of Esther offered “several good subjects,” immediately offered to illustrate one or new subject among those “which could appear to be the most interesting”. The directeur des Bâtiments Orry, who managed the State’s accounts, obviously judged it less costly to have one of the tapestries widened to fill in the end of the Dauphine’s bedroom,22 which has probably deprived us of very original compositions, because de Troy had already illustrated the most famous themes, those that benefitted from a strongly established iconographical tradition and from which it was not easy to deviate The Tapestry Set of the Story of Esther Placed on the tapestry looms of the Gobelins at the end of the 1730s in Michel Audran’s workshop, the cycle created by de Troy aroused true infatuation. The few hundred tapestries made between 1738 and 1797 – all in high-warp tapestry and woven in wool and silk except for four in low-warp made in Neilson’s workshop – show the impressive success of a tapestry set that was without any doubt the most frequently woven of the 18th century in France. 29 Only three cartoons had been delivered by de Troy in 1738 when the first tapestry set was begun by Audran under the expert eye of Jean-Baptiste Oudry to whom the Directeur général des bâtiments, Philibert Orry had assigned the (weekly) supervision of the weaving. During the summer of 1738, the piece of the Fainting of Esther, which Oudry judged to be admirable, was finished. During the winter of 1742, Oudry informed Orry that about two ells of the Triumph of Mor’decai had been made “with no faults”,that the Coronation of Esther was finished and that the Esther at her Toilet “a very gracious tapestry” was “a little over half” finished. Exhibited at Versailles in 1743, these two last pieces were admired by Louis XV and the Court. On 3 December 1744, the set of seven tapestries was finally delivered to the Garde Meuble. It was intended, the honour was not slight, to decorate the apartments of the Infanta Maria Teresa Rafaela of Spain whose marriage to the young Dauphin Louis-Ferdinand had been fixed for the following year (it took place on 23 February 1745). Apparently it was thought that the theme of Esther the biblical heroine and wife of a foreign sovereign was appropriate for the apartments of the Spanish Dauphine. As early as the month of March, the architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel informed de Troy that her grand cabinet was decorated with the “Esther tapestry set” specifying however that “for lack of two small or one large piece, we have not been able to decorate the end of the room”. This difficulty led immediately to the Banquet episode being woven a second time in two parts (they were delivered to the Garde-Meuble on 30 December 1746) to garnish the panels on each side of the bed of the Dauphine who would hardly enjoy them (she died on 22 July 1746 and the decoration was installed for the new Dauphine Maria Josepha of Saxony). The appearance of the set’s remarkable border, which imitated a richly sculpted wooden frame, should be mentioned. Conceived in 1738 by the ornamentalist Pierre Josse-Perrot and used in the later weavings until 1768, it tended to reinforce the resolutely painterly appearance of the tapestry set which, in this regard, pushed the art of tapestry as far as its ultimate mimetic possibilities. With the exception of Mor’decai's Disdain which had been removed earlier, the “editio princeps” of the story of Esther (from then on in nine pieces) remained at Versailles until the Revolution. Of the eight surviving tapestries, four are at the chateau of Compiègne and four belong today to the Mobilier National. No less than seven tapestry sets reputed to be complete (one of them in fact only had six tapestries) would be produced officially at the Gobelins up to 1772. Literature: 1- The Œuvres mêlées of an emulator of Racine, the Abbé Augustin NADAL thus include an Esther. Divertissement spiritual which is exactly contemporary with Jean François de Troy’s cycle since it was performed in 1735 and published in Paris three years later. 2-Le Siècle de Louis XIV, 1751, 1785 ed., p. 96-97 for French ed. 3- Lemoyne and de Troy had been obliged to share the First Prize in the competition organised in 1727 between the most prominent history painters of the Académie Royale. 4- Mémoires…, pub. L. DUSSIEUX et al., 1854, II, p.265. 5-The fact that de Troy, at the risk of falling out with his colleagues, did not hesitate to make use of prices in order to convince the new directeur des Bâtiments Philibert Orry, is confirmed by Mariette who adds tersely “it caused much shouting” (pub. 1851-1860, II, p. 103). 6- Abrégé de la vie des plus fameux peintres…, ed. 1762, IV, p. 368-369 20 Early comments on the painter are inclined to present him as a kind of “pure painter”, doing without the medium of drawing, a few intermediary studies between the Esther sketches and the large cartoons at the Louvre nevertheless show that de Troy used red chalk (see in the catalogue, the notice for the Meal of Esther and Ahasuerus under the entry drawing) to change one or other figure. 7-C. GASTINEL-COURAL (cat. exp. PARIS, 1985, p. 9-13) as well as the article by J. VITTET, exh. cat. LA ROCHE-GUYON, 2001, p. 51-55. 8-The Hermitage in St. Petersburg conserves five tapestries of these two royal gifts whose provenance still awaits elucidation (as far as we are aware). In 1766, the Grand Marshal of Russia, Count Razumovski (or Razamowski), acquired the Fainting and the Banquet extracted from the sixth weaving (J. VITTET, 2001, p. 53). 9- Lettres écrites de Suisse, d’Italie…,quoted by J. VITTET, op. cit., p. 54. 10-The tapestry set remained in the hands of a branch of the Hapsburg-Lorraine family until 1933 (ibid. P. 54). 11-Quoted by Chr. LERIBAULT, 2002, p. 97, note 269. 12-Y. CANTAREL-BESSON, 1992, p. 241. Catalogue The Esther at her Toilet Oil on canvas, 57 x 51 cm Provenance: Painted in 1736 at the same time as the six other modelli of the Story of Esther intended to be presented, for approval, to the direction des Bâtiments du Roi; perhaps identifiable among a lot of sketches by Jean-François de Troy in the post mortem inventory of the amateur, historian and critic Claude-Henri Watelet (1718-1786) drawn up on 13 January 1786 and following days (A.N. T 978, n° 30) then in the sale of the property of the deceased, Paris, 12 June 1786, n° 33; Paris, François Marcille Collection (who owned a series of six sketches from which the Triumph of Mor’decai was missing, see infra); Paris, Marcille Sale, Hôtel Drouot, 12-13 January 1857, n° 36; Asnières, Mme de Chavanne de Palmassy ( ?) collection; Paris, Galerie Cailleux; Paris, Humbert de Wendel collection (acquired from the Galerie Cailleux in 1928); by inheritance in the same family; Paris, Sotheby’s, 23 June 2011, n° 61. In order not to add unnecessarily to the technical commentary on each work, the catalogue raisonné by Chr. Leribault which contains a substantial bibliography on the series should be referred to. The other bibliographical references only concern the publications and exhibitions to have appeared and been presented more recently. Bibliography and Exhibitions: Chr. LERIBAULT, 2002, n° P. 247 (repr.); E. LIMARDO DATURI, 2004, p. 28; Exh. cat. NANTES, 2011, p. 138, n° 34, referred to in note 1; Sotheby’s catalogue, Tableaux anciens et du XIXe siècle, 23 June 2011, n° 61 (repr.). Related Works: Tapestry cartoon: The cartoon (oil on canvas, 329 x 320 cm), the third made by the artist in Paris after the sketches had been approved by the direction des Bâtiments, is in the Louvre (Inv. 8315). It previously bore the painter’s signature and the date 1738 (inscriptions which are found on the tapestries). The royal administration paid 1600 livres for it on 21 June 1738 and it was exhibited at the Salon in the year of its creation. Summary Biography 1679 (27 January): Baptism in Paris (Parish of St. Nicolas du Chardonnet) of Jean-François de Troy, son of the painter François de Troy and Jeanne Cotelle, sister of the painter Jean II Cotelle. 1696-1698: Studies (apparently rather turbulent) at the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. 1698-1708: First trip to Italy. Is obliged to leave Rome in January 1711 after a tempestuous affair (a duel?), de Troy extends the traditional Roman experience as a pensionnaire at the Académie de France by also visiting Tuscany where he stays for a long time, Venice (his art in face has a strongly Venetian character) and Genoa. 1708: De Troy (whose father had been elected Director of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture on 7 July) is agréé and immediately received at the Académie with Apollo and Diana Piercing with their Arrows the Children of Niobe (Montpellier, Musée Fabre) on 28 July. 1710: First royal commission, paid for on 10 May (a sketch representing “the Promotion of the Order of the Holy Spirit” for the tapestry series of the History of the King). 1716: Jean-François de Troy is elected Assistant Professor at the Academy. 1720: He is appointed Professor. 1723: The artist creates the double portrait of Louis XV...
Category

French Baroque Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Wool, Silk

Large Scale Original Antique Grand Tour Prints-Relief Carvings. Rome, 1776
Located in St Annes, Lancashire
Wonderful images of Relief Carvings Copper-plate engravings Published by Monaldini, Rome, 1776 Good quality wove paper Free shipping  
Category

Italian Classical Roman Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Plaster

Spanish Colonial Screen
Located in Mexico, DF
Fantastic Spanish Colonial school screen. Probably from Peru. This screen, with a kind of European landscape, give us an idea of the influence ...
Category

Peruvian Spanish Colonial Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

The Courtyard of the Caravansery in Kashan Isphahan Province in Iran , 1732
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique print titled 'De Caravansera van Cachan'. View of the courtyard of the caravansery in Kashan (Isphahan province in Iran). A caravansery is an inn for merchants in the Eas...
Category

Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Large Antique Engraving of a Pastoral Scene with Cows and Sheep, c.1770
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique print titled 'Wie manchen hört von Kunst und den Antiquitaeten - Man als ein groses Kind und dümes Schafe reden'. Mezzotint of a pastoral scene showing sheep and cattle. Ar...
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Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th Century German Pair of Similar Antique Baroque Sandstone Wall Reliefs
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A rectangular, antique pair of similar German Baroque wall reliefs with centered cartouche, made of hand carved sandstone in good condition. The large detailed panels are particulari...
Category

German Baroque Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Sandstone

1784 Engraved Portrait of Henry VIII - Tudor Power and Prestige
Located in Langweer, NL
An engraved portrait of Henry VIII, King of England, famous for his role in the separation of the Church of England from the Roman Catholic Church. His reign saw the Dissolution of...
Category

Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Pair of 18th Century Italian Baroque Cherub Corner Carvings, c. 1750–1780
Located in Antwerp, BE
An exceptional pair of 18th century Italian Baroque cherub corner carvings. Hand carved in solid wood and retaining their original polychrome and gilded surfaces. Each cherub present...
Category

Italian Baroque Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Wood

18th Century Oil on Canvas Mythological Painting Medea, 1770
Located in Vicoforte, Piedmont
Great 18th-century mythological painting. Signed lower left by the great Austrian artist Joseph Hickel (1736-1807) and dated 1770. Court painter of the Habsburgs and a favorite of Em...
Category

Austrian Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Canvas

Hall of Joseph’s Granaries in Egypt – Floor Plan and Elevation Engraving, 1776
Located in Langweer, NL
Hall of Joseph’s Granaries in Egypt – Floor Plan and Elevation Engraving, 1776 Description: This antique architectural engraving from 1776 shows the floor plan and structural elevat...
Category

Dutch Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Set of 4 Architecture Prints by Johann Martin Will circa 1780
Located in Langweer, NL
Set of four untitled prints depicting various building ornaments. Signed by Johann Martin Will. Source unknown, to be determined.
Category

Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

18th Century Oil on Canvas Italian Antique Still Life Painting Vase with Flowers
Located in Vicoforte, Piedmont
Great Italian painting from the first half of the 18th century. Oil artwork on canvas depicting a large still life with flowers of excellent pictorial quality. Painting that develops...
Category

Italian Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Canvas

Der Blaue Reiher - Hand-Colored Engraving of the Blue Heron by Seligman, ca.1770
Located in Langweer, NL
Title: Der Blaue Reiher - Hand-Colored Engraving of the Blue Heron by Johann Michael Seligmann, 18th Century This beautiful hand-colored engraving, titled 'Der Blaue Reiher', illust...
Category

German Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Java, Sumatra Borneo Map – Bellin van Schley Decorative Chart, 1750s
Located in Langweer, NL
Carte des Isles de Java, Sumatra, Borneo – Decorative Map by Bellin & van Schley, 1750s This richly detailed and decorative map titled Carte des Isles de Java Sumatra Borneo & les d...
Category

French Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

Bobyrug’s Beautiful Little 18th Century French Needlepoint Fragment Tapestry
Located in Saint Ouen, FR
Nice little French needlepoint tapestry with beautiful floral design and nice natural colors, entirely hand embroidered with needlepoint method with wool. ✨✨✨ "Experience the epitom...
Category

French Aubusson Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Wool

Antique Print of Horseheath Hall in Cambridgeshire, England, 1725
Located in Langweer, NL
Antique print titled 'General front of Horse heath Hall in Cambridgeshire (..)'. Old engraving of Horseheath Hall, Cambridgeshire. The original Hall was the home of the Alington family and was visited by Queen Elizabeth 1...
Category

Antique 18th Century Wall Decorations

Materials

Paper

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