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The Abduction of Helen from a set of The Story of Troy

Probably based on a woodcut by Bernard Salomon French
Patron Probably commissioned by Francisco Mascarenhas Governor of Macau, 1623–26 Portuguese
ca. 1625
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 550
From 1557, the Portuguese contracted with the Ming rulers of China to buy control of Macau, a coastal peninsula near Hong Kong. Sailing between Asia and Iberia, trade enabled an abundance of spices, but also of textiles, to enter Europe. This heady moment of mutual discovery provides the context for Francisco Mascarenhas, governor of Macau, to commission this unusual hanging. The scale and conventions of Flemish tapestry are translated into Chinese embroidery. Familiar European subject matter, loosely based on Homer’s Iliad and informed by printed sources, is marvelously charged with Asian decorative details– such as the shields hanging from the Trojan galley– and a Portuguese border articulated by snake-battling sirens and (slightly erroneous) renditions of the Mascarenhas family arms. At some point in the hanging's history, the embroidered silk in all the flesh areas was cut away and replaced with paint for reasons that remain unclear.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Abduction of Helen from a set of The Story of Troy
  • Artist: Probably based on a woodcut by Bernard Salomon (French, ca. 1508–ca. 1561)
  • Patron: Probably commissioned by Francisco Mascarenhas Governor of Macau, 1623–26 (Portuguese)
  • Date: ca. 1625
  • Culture: Chinese, Macao
  • Medium: Cotton, embroidered with silk and gilt-paper-wrapped thread, pigment
  • Dimensions: 11 ft. 10 3/4 in. × 16 ft. (362.6 × 487.7 cm)
  • Classification: Textiles-Embroidered
  • Credit Line: Gift of Louis E. Seley, 1979
  • Object Number: 1979.282
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

More Artwork

More Artwork
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The Sacrifice of Polyxena from a set of The Story of Troy, Bernard Salomon French, Cotton, embroidered with silk and gilt-paper-wrapped thread, pigment, Chinese, Macao
The Sacrifice of Polyxena from a set of The Story of Troy
Bernard Salomon
Francisco Mascarenhas Governor of Macau, 1623–26
ca. 1625
The Prophecy of Calchas from a set of The Story of Troy, Bernard Salomon French, Cotton, embroidered with silk and gilt-paper-wrapped thread, pigment, Chinese, Macao
The Prophecy of Calchas from a set of The Story of Troy
Bernard Salomon
Francisco Mascarenhas Governor of Macau, 1623–26
ca. 1625
Les Figures du Nouveau Testament
Bernard Salomon
Jean de Tournes
1554
Icones historicae Veteris et Novi Testament, Bernard Salomon French, Woodcuts
Icones historicae Veteris et Novi Testament
Bernard Salomon
Samuel de Tournes
1681
Embroidered panel with Grotesque decoration, Bernard Salomon French, Silk thread on silk, French
Embroidered panel with Grotesque decoration
Bernard Salomon
1560–70

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