Images(2)

Needlework Panel

Dateca. 1590

OriginEngland

MediumSilk and wool embroidery threads on a linen ground (fiber identification by eye)

DimensionsOH 17" x OW 79"

Credit LineBequest of The Honorable Irwin Untermyer.

Object number1974-107,A

DescriptionThis is along rectangular valance worked in shades of gold, green, blue, gray, and white embroidery threads on a linen ground. The scene depicts a meeting between a king and a queen. Four female attendants are arranged in a line behind the queen; each holds at least one gift. The queen extends her (anatomical) left hand towards the king. The king grasps her hand in his, leaning towards her as he does so. Both the king and the queen wear golden crowns and garments decorated with fleurs de lis. The king's attendants, a soldier wearing armor and a holy man wearing a long robe, stand behind him. The scene takes place in a walled garden that contains an abundance of plant and animal life; an assortment of birds and bugs are joined by two turtles and a rabbit and a lion stands between the king's feet. A number of buildings stand beyond the garden wall. The garden also contains several architectural features including two domed towers and an archway.
Stitches: tent
Label TextThis valance was most likely made by professional embroiderers towards the end of the sixteenth century. The style of dress, from the silhouette to the geometric embroidery, can be traced to sixteenth-century European costume. Bed furniture of this type would have been the perfect complement to chambers hung with tapestries, which were common among nobility in Europe.
ProvenanceThis valance was previously in the collection of Irwin Untermyer of New York, New York.