Name of Object:

Allegory of Autumn

Also known as:

Part of the Four Seasons series

Location:

Zagreb, North-West Croatia, Croatia

Holding Museum:

Museum of Arts and Crafts

 About Museum of Arts and Crafts, Zagreb

Original Owner:

Count Festetić, Priblislavec Manor near Čakovec

Date of Object:

About 1700

Artist(s) / Craftsperson(s):

Unknown master craftsman, made after the cartoons of Ludwig van Schoor

Museum Inventory Number:

MUO 14861

Material(s) / Technique(s):

Warp: wool; weft: wool and silk

Dimensions:

H: 324 cm; w: 548 cm

Workshop / Movement:

Pieter van der Hecke

Type of object:

Tapestry

Place of production:

Brussels

Description:

The figures for Autumn are in an open landscape in the foreground grouped together off the central axis. The allegory of Autumn is characterised by the seated woman in the middle flanked by winged female genii symbolising the two months of September and October, which hold the Zodiac symbols of Libra and Scorpio. November balances the group, shown as a winged female genius riding on a Centaur holding the sign of Sagittarius. On the ground in front of the figures area still-life groups composed of autumn fruits. To one side, in the background, is an open porch within which people are busy harvesting grapes; on the other side, in an open landscape partly closed by hills and mountains, four other figures are busy in autumnal labours.
The Allegory of Autumn tapestry belongs within the Four Seasons series, of which the Museum also owns Winter; of the Four Elements series, the Museum holds Air and Water. It is likely the tapestries' designs are after cartoons by Ludwig van Schoor and are representative of Brussels tapestry production of the period showing a strong Rubens tradition and French influence, especially the painter Le Brun. Weaving took place in Pieter den Hecke's workshop in Brussels. He inherited cartoons from the workshop of his father, Jan Frans, using them repeatedly in tapestry series that were popular on the European market between 1690 and 1720.
The original border on the Museum's tapestry Autumn was cut-off lengthwise and the signature – usually found on the border –probably removed as a result.
The Allegory of Autumn belongs to a series of tapestries depicting Seasons and Elements made after van Schoor's cartoons, kept in the Royal Museum of Arts and History in Brussels, in Würzburg Palace and in a private collection.
Allegory of Autumn and two other tapestries acquired at the end of the 19th century were probably part of the refurbishment of Pribislavac Manor carried out by the heirs of Count Festetić.

Allegory of Autumn belongs to the tapestry series The Four Seasons made in Pieter van der Hecke's workshop probably after cartoons by Ludwig van Schoor. Pieter van der Hecke took over the workshop of his father, Jan Frans, repeatedly using cartoons he had inherited from his father's workshop in a series of tapestries. Today, other tapestries in the series are in the Royal Museum of Arts and History in Brussels, Würzburg Palace and a private collection.
Allegory of Autumn and two other tapestries acquired at the end of the 19th century were probably part of the refurbishment of Pribislavac Manor carried out by the heirs of Count Festetić.

How date and origin were established:

The research of Zdenka Munk, director of the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Zagreb (1953–1978).

How Object was obtained:

The tapestry, from Pribislavec Manor near Čakovec originally owned by the Zrinski family, was moved to the Museum of Arts and Crafts in 1919. In 1791, the manor came into the possession of Count Festetić. At the end of the 19th century, a member of the same family refurbished the old manor house turning it into a fine Neo-Gothic mansion. This tapestry along with two others owned by the museum since 1919, were probably acquired as part of this refurbishment.

Selected bibliography:

Munk, Z., “Tri briselske tapiserije u Muzeju za umjetnost i obrt” (Three Brussels Tapestries in the Museum of Arts and Crafts), Tkalčićev zbornik II, Zagreb, 1958.
Od svagdana do blagdana. Barok u Hrvatskoj. Katalog izložbe (From Everyday to Holidays: Baroque in Croatia), exhibition catalogue, Zagreb, 1993.

Citation of this web page:

Nela Tarbuk  "Allegory of Autumn" in "Discover Baroque Art", Museum With No Frontiers, 2024. https://baroqueart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;BAR;hr;Mus11;31;en

Prepared by: Nela Tarbuk Nela Tarbuk

SURNAME: Tarbuk
NAME: Nela

AFFILIATION: Museum of Arts and Crafts, Zagreb, Croatia

TITLE: Museum Counsellor, Head of the Sacral Sculpture, Ivory and Musical
Instrument Collections

CV:
Nela Tarbuk was awarded her BA in Art History and Comparative Literature from Zagreb University (Faculty of Philosophy). As head of the Museum if Arts and Craft’s Sculpture, Ivory and Musical Instruments collections, she has curated several exhibitions and written many articles. Her special research interests focus on sacral furniture. Exhibition catalogues include Culture of the Paulines in Croatia (1989), Jesuit Heritage in Croatia (1992), Peace and Virtue (2000), Hidden Treasures (2005) and Musical Instruments from the Holdings of the Museum of Arts and Crafts (2007).
Translation by: Nikolina Jovanović
Translation copyedited by: Mandi GomezMandi Gomez

Amanda Gomez is a freelance copy-editor and proofreader working in London. She studied Art History and Literature at Essex University (1986–89) and received her MA (Area Studies Africa: Art, Literature, African Thought) from SOAS in 1990. She worked as an editorial assistant for the independent publisher Bellew Publishing (1991–94) and studied at Bookhouse and the London College of Printing on day release. She was publications officer at the Museum of London until 2000 and then took a role at Art Books International, where she worked on projects for independent publishers and arts institutions that included MWNF’s English-language editions of the books series Islamic Art in the Mediterranean. She was part of the editorial team for further MWNF iterations: Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean Virtual Museum and the illustrated volume Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean.

True to its ethos of connecting people through the arts, MWNF has provided Amanda with valuable opportunities for discovery and learning, increased her editorial experience, and connected her with publishers and institutions all over the world. More recently, the projects she has worked on include MWNF’s Sharing History Virtual Museum and Exhibition series, Vitra Design Museum’s Victor Papanek and Objects of Desire, and Haus der Kulturen der Welt’s online publication 2 or 3 Tigers and its volume Race, Nation, Class.

MWNF Working Number: HR 31