18th c. Aubusson Tapestry

Sylvie sourced this 18th-century Aubusson tapestry from an 80-year-old dealer in Lyon, just back from clearing out a château in central France. The blues and golds still catch the light like silk, proof of the finesse that made Aubusson ateliers the darlings of kings and nobles. Each tapestry began as a painted “cartoon,” then passed through the hands of spinners, dyers, and teams of weavers who could spend more than a year at the loom translating every nuance of color into wool and silk. The result wasn’t just decoration - in drafty stone châteaux, these vast hangings stopped the chill, softened the acoustics, and transformed bare walls into scenes of grandeur. Nobles often rolled them up and traveled with them, carrying warmth and prestige from one estate to the next.

This example still has the supple wool ground and shimmering silk threads that collectors prize, its natural dyes mellowed into a palette even richer with age. Sylvie sees it hanging in a living room or behind a bed, doing exactly what it was made to do centuries ago: hold the room in thrall.