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Other events 2008 - 2009:
Visit to the Flemish Tapestries Exhibition in Ghent
February 27th
ABIW joined forces with our sister group in Ghent to visit a collection of the best Flemish
tapestries from the 15th and 16th centuries in Sint-Pieters Abbey in Ghent.
The tapestries were the product of famous painters and tapestry designers
and skilful weavers in the Flanders region.
Brussels, Mechelen and Antwerp were important tapestry-making centres in the
15th and 16th centuries, and many tapestries were commissioned and paid for by the
Dukes of Burgundy, Emperor Charles V and King Phillip II of Spain. Philip owned
more than 700 tapestries by the time of his death, many of these from Flemish
workshops.
The tapestries gave some protection from
draughts but they were also status symbols as only the wealthy could afford them. Expensive
materials such as gold and silver thread were used. Tapestries were an excellent
investment and could be exchanged for cash in time of need. Tapestries were also
easily transportable from castle to castle or even onto the battlefield.
The sheer size and colour of the tapestries in this exhibition was amazing, but the
intricate designs were also fascinating.
One room depicted the theft of a statue of Mary from the cathedral in
Antwerp and its transportation to Brussels – with all the shameless culprits
clearly illustrated!
We finished the morning with a visit to a local Italian
restaurant.
