Shepherd and Shepherdess Making Music
This tapestry fragment depicts a shepherd couple entertaining themselves with music, while three sheep from their flock graze behind them in the flower-covered background. The shepherdess, seen at the left, holds up a sheet of music as she sings:
Chantons sur lerbette Let's sing, on the grass,
Avec ta musette with your bagpipe,
Quelque note double a tune for two.
The shepherd plays a bagpipe, responding with a verse of his own:
Cuant est de georgette When she sings
Elle a lavoix nette her voice is fair:
Mes ie faiz le trouble but I do the work.
It is one of three surviving fragments woven after the same series of cartoons, the other pieces of which are in the Detroit Institute of Arts and in Mobilier National in Paris. The shield that hangs between two branches of the orange tree has not yet been identified.
Chantons sur lerbette Let's sing, on the grass,
Avec ta musette with your bagpipe,
Quelque note double a tune for two.
The shepherd plays a bagpipe, responding with a verse of his own:
Cuant est de georgette When she sings
Elle a lavoix nette her voice is fair:
Mes ie faiz le trouble but I do the work.
It is one of three surviving fragments woven after the same series of cartoons, the other pieces of which are in the Detroit Institute of Arts and in Mobilier National in Paris. The shield that hangs between two branches of the orange tree has not yet been identified.
Artwork Details
- Title: Shepherd and Shepherdess Making Music
- Date: ca. 1500–1530
- Culture: South Netherlandish
- Medium: Wool warp; wool and silk wefts
- Dimensions: Overall: 92 1/2 x 115in. (234.9 x 292.1cm)
- Classification: Textiles-Tapestries
- Credit Line: Bequest of Susan Vanderpoel Clark, 1967
- Object Number: 67.155.8
- Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters
More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
South Netherlandish
ca. 1400–1410
South Netherlandish
ca. 1440–50
South Netherlandish
ca. 1410–20
South Netherlandish
ca. 1515–35
South Netherlandish
ca. 1515–35
Related Content
Publications
Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.