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Winter, from The Seasons

Large tapestry, god and goddess on cloud in forest, surrounded by numerous objects.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • Large tapestry, god and goddess on cloud in forest, surrounded by numerous objects.

Date:

1700/20

Artist:

After a design by Charles Le Brun (French, 1619–1690)
Woven at the workshop of Étienne Le Blond (French, 1652–1727) and Jean de La Croix (French, 1628–1712) at the Manufacture Royale des Gobelins
France, Paris

About this artwork

Winter presents Saturn (the god of agriculture and time) and Juventas (the cupbearer to the gods on Mount Olympus) on a large cloud. The musical instruments and the mask at Juventas’s feet allude to ballet performances and masked balls—the favored pastimes of the French court—while Saturn holds a floral wreath that features a ballet scene. In the foreground, a variety of winter vegetables are visible, along with a cage, nets, a gun, and game of various kinds: the results of a successful hunt. The buildings in the background on the right of the tapestry are identifiable as the Palais du Louvre in Paris. The border imitates a gilt wood frame and contains shell garlands above and below cartouches that feature interlocking Ls surmounted by a crown, a cipher of French king Louis XIV (r. 1643–1715). The tapestry is from a series based on the Four Seasons (Autumn is also in the Art Institute’s collection), after a design by Charles Le Brun, who was appointed director of the Gobelins Manufactory in 1663.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Textiles

Artist

Charles Le Brun (Designer)

Title

Winter, from The Seasons

Place

Paris (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Made 1700–1720

Medium

Wool and silk, slit and double interlocking tapestry weave

Dimensions

540.1 × 384.9 cm (212 5/8 × 151 1/2 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of the Hearst Foundation in memory of William Randolph Hearst

Reference Number

1954.261

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/80479/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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