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Grande Galerie carpet no. 38 (Fame and Fortitude)

Workshop director Woven in the workshop of Philippe Lourdet French
Designer After designs by Charles Le Brun French
Delivered between 1668 and 1677
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 526
This is the first of the Grande Galerie carpets ever brought to the United States. After passing through the hands of both Louis XVI’s chief minister, the baron de Breteuil, and the king’s aunt Madame Adélaïde, it crossed the Atlantic three times. The formidable collector Alva Vanderbilt acquired it in the 1880s for her ballroom at Marble House in Newport, Rhode Island. When Alva Vanderbilt gave up Marble House in the early 1920s, she sent the carpet to her daughter, Consuelo Balsan, who had recently divorced the Duke of Marlborough and moved to Paris. The American business magnate Samuel H. Kress bought the carpet in 1949 and had it shipped back to New York; it was presented to The Met after his death.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Grande Galerie carpet no. 38 (Fame and Fortitude)
  • Manufactory: Savonnerie Manufactory (Manufactory, established 1626; Manufacture Royale, established 1663)
  • Workshop director: Woven in the workshop of Philippe Lourdet (French, died 1671)
  • Designer: After designs by Charles Le Brun (French, Paris 1619–1690 Paris) , and studio
  • Date: Delivered between 1668 and 1677
  • Culture: French, Paris
  • Medium: Wool, knotted and cut pile (symmetrical knot, 90 knots per square inch)
  • Dimensions: Confirmed: 358 x 181 in. (909.3 x 459.7 cm) [confirmed 5/19/2006]
  • Classification: Textiles-Rugs
  • Credit Line: Gift of Samuel H. Kress Foundation, 1958
  • Object Number: 58.75.129
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Audio

Cover Image for 2272. Carpet

2272. Carpet

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NARRATOR: This glorious carpet antedates the Paar Room by almost one hundred years. It’s from a series of over ninety carpets, ordered by King Louis XIV. They were to be placed not lengthwise, but across to cover the entire floor of the grand gallery in the royal palace of the Louvre. The gallery measures almost five football fields in length. Each carpet had a different design, probably to reflect the varied decoration of the vaulted ceiling. They were made after designs by the powerful royal painter Charles le Brun. Curator Danïelle Kisluk-Grosheide.

DANIËLLE KISLUK-GROSHEIDE: And they have many, many references to Louis XIV himself. In this instance, we see a sunflower right at the center of the carpet, we find the fleur-de-lis, we find the crossed-L symbols. We find fame and various other royal symbols.

NARRATOR: The royal Savonnerie Manufactory faced the daunting challenge of producing the carpets. It had to expand its space and build stout new looms.

DANIËLLE KISLUK-GROSHEIDE: Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, the carpets were never used as was intended by Louis XIV because the king lost interest in the Louvre after he moved his court out to Versailles in 1682.

NARRATOR: That’s why this carpet is in such fine condition. The Metropolitan is fortunate to have three in its collection—another one is in the room next door.

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Grande Galerie carpet no. 11 (Music, reweave), Savonnerie Manufactory, Wool, knotted and cut pile (symmetrical knot, 90 knots per square inch), French, Paris
Grande Galerie carpet no. 11 (Music, reweave)
Manufactory Savonnerie Manufactory
Workshop director Woven in the workshop of Jeanne Haffrey (Veuve Lourdet)
Designer After designs by Charles Le Brun
Delivered August 26, 1688
Carpet, Savonnerie Manufactory, Knotted and cut wool pile (Ghiordes knot), French, Paris
Carpet
Manufactory Savonnerie Manufactory
1729–55
Costume Armor in the Classical Style, Hallé French, Helmet: linen, papier-mâché, bole, gold leaf, graphite; tunic: silk, cotton, metal coils and spangles, metallic yarn, French, Paris
Costume Armor in the Classical Style
Helmet includes original paper label of Hallé
ca. 1788–90
'Lotto' Carpet, Wool (warp, weft and pile); symmetrically knotted pile
'Lotto' Carpet
16th century
Set of four three-light sconces (bras de lumière), Gilt bronze, French, Paris
Set of four three-light sconces (bras de lumière)
French, Paris
ca. 1750

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