Tapestry; Atelier of François de la Planche, Faubourg Saint-Marceu, Paris, early 17th century.

Tapestry; Atelier of François de la Planche, Faubourg Saint-Marceu, Paris, early 17th century.
"Hunting scene of King François I".
Wool and silk
Measurements: 330 x 500 cm.

Large tapestry woven in wool and silk, from the prestigious workshop of François de la Planche, established in the Faubourg Saint-Marcel in Paris in the early seventeenth century, one of the most important centers of tapestry production in France of the period, heir to the great Flemish tradition and promoter of the royal manufacture that would culminate in the Gobelins.

The composition depicts a scene of courtly riding with richly dressed horsemen advancing in a group through a forest landscape. The equestrian figures occupy the foreground, carrying spears and hunting gear, while in the background there is a forest scene populated by numerous characters. The central field is framed by a border decorated with vegetal motifs and masks.

The piece is part of the tradition of the great hunting tapestries that constituted one of the most demanded genres by the nobility and the European courts during the 16th and 17th centuries, and whose iconographic reference in France refers directly to the figure of King Francis I of France.

In this context, in 1601 King Henry IV of France summoned two Flemish tapestry makers with the aim of forming a royal tapestry manufactory to promote the weaving industry in France. Thus, François de la Planche and Marc de Comans settled in the Faubourg Saint-Marceau, on the banks of the Bièvre River, in the former dyeing workshops of the Gobelin family. Under royal patronage, the masters received substantial subsidies and privileges in exchange for training new apprentices and expanding manufacturing activity within the kingdom.

This organization was the basis on which, under the reign of Louis XIV of France, the "Manufacture royale des meubles et tapisseries de la Couronne" was founded in 1663, an institution that throughout the 18th century would become known as the famous Gobelin Manufacture, the ultimate symbol of the splendor of French tapestry.