Gobelins – Historic Tapestries in an Historic Manufactory

Gobelins tapestries first captured my attention when we spent one Christmas holiday in Bruges. I wanted a memorable and useful souvenir of our visit and decided on a crossbody purse with an historic weave design. Every time I carry it the memories of that snowy Christmas holiday return, so it is truly a treasure.

However, one evening before dinner as we were wandering the streets watching with the snow gently falling we discovered a store with a massive tapestry in the window. Its dusty earthy tones and massive bouquet of tulips captured my heart.

Mind you, this was during the years of two checked bags at the airport so giving in to temptation, I purchased this “coverlet” for the top of our bed. It filled half a suitcase but it was worth it! Although machine woven, not hand woven, as the tapestries of the past, I cherish it as much as an antique tapestry.

A Bit of Gobelins History

The history of these tapestries dates back to the 1500s and has its roots in Belgium and France. Gobelins was the chosen tapestry manufactory for the kings of France. I have yet to visit a French château that doesn’t have at least one, if not multiple, tapestries covering the walls.

These massive wall coverings were two-fold in purpose: decoration and insulation against the cold stone walls.  Under the rule of Louis XIV the Gobelins manufactory was established in Paris.

The historic Gobelins Factory is located at 42 avenue des Gobelins in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, not far from the metro stop by the same name. It is now a museum but it was the supplier of royal tapestries since Louis XIV.

The Gobelins tapestries have a varied history that includes upholstery material, furniture  and carpets as well as wall hangings for the royals and bourgeois. This French site provides a good background read on the Manufacture des Gobelins.

Gobelins Architectural Details – Inside and Out

If you get the opportunity to visit this museum, guided afternoon tours are available some days or you can just have a wander on your own through the museum, which is what we did.

If you do visit, don’t overlook the magnificent architectural details found in the building itself. You can see some of the details on the exterior of the building here.

Inside of this old manufactory, the staircase looks like it belongs in a château itself!

It was the view from the window that first captured my attention.

The next window gave a more expansive view and then I realized that the window itself was pretty amazing! The closeup image shows better details of the cornice of this window. This lovely view can be purchased from my photography website.

Enough about the building – let’s look at some of the lovely tapestries!

Gobelins Tapestries

Many times when visiting a château, I’ve noted and enjoyed the tapestries but here we had the chance to read about the tapestries. The information I’ve provided on the individual tapestries comes from the placards in the museum.

L’Illiade: Le Sacrifice d’Iphigénie

This Iliade tapestry represents a painting done by Antoine Coypel. Coypel was a French history painter and his son commissioned this tapestry after  his father’s death.

These blue wool and silk tapestry chairs, couch and tapestry were requisitioned by le fermier général Roslin d’Ivry. My supposition is they might have been for his country estate the Château d’Hénonville. What was  a fermier général ? Under the Ancien Regime (before the revolution of 1789) in France, le fermier général collected farm rent or taxes for the king

Nouveau Testament: La Peche Miraculeuse

In 1697, four paintings were requisitioned to illustrate the life of Christ by the painter Jean Jouvenet. After their exposition in the Salon of 1704, Louix XIV requisitioned a tapestry from Gobelins.

Nouveau Testament: Le lavement des pieds (foot washing)

L’Histoire de Thésée- vainqueur du Taureaux de Marathon

This closeup from the History of Theseus is part group of tapestries. They represented the Greek heroes whose lives were told by Plutarch.

While You’re in the Neighborhood

While you are in the neighborhood, you might enjoy L’Oya which is a board game cafe or have a nice lunch at L’Hydrophobe . It’s just a 12 minute walk from the Paris Catacombs, but I’d starting the day there to avoid long lines and then go to the Gobelins museum afterwards. We did this and as you see, all of the places align along Blvd Arago!