A Flemish Armorial `Millefleurs' tapestry, probably mid 16th century

woven with a bold central oak tree, with a buckled strap tied shield bearing  coat-of-arms, probably of Croismare of Normandy, entwined within the branches, surrounded by various flowering plants against a blue ground

Tapestry has been subject to light over the years and is much lighter on the front than on the back which retains more of the original colours. Colour match tonally in the catalogue and on-line - shows is fair match tonally, and shows that the left of the tapestry is not as light as the right (where the light source came from in recent past) and which is not obvious in reality, but more subtle. The blue of the shield is a lighter blue. The tapestry has been lined partially, with vertical linen panels which are placed to alternate with revealing the back of the tapestry, hence seeing the colour. There are loops attached at the top and bottom, which contained easily removable wooden battens. It is recommended that Velcro be added for future hanging. Colour match tonally in the catalogue and on-line - shows is fair match tonally, and shows that the left of the tapestry is not as light as the right (where the light source came from in recent past) and which is not obvious in reality, but more subtle. There are old repairs to the blue ground and to some of the flowers. For example there is an area - old repair which appears as different colour to the blue ground, top left corner, two flower groups down, and other vertical area 2/5th in from left, again visible as different colour. Later repairs to top right corner, area between two plant groups, again to the ground, and appearing not as blue, but as different colour, see also the speckles of repair to the blue central shield. Some of ground along lower edge is later blue reweaving. Other small repairs in areas, and to highlights of flowers. Repairs to the trunk of tree, as commensurate with browns used. Subdued and not overwhelming panel. Versatile size with charming detailing to flowers.
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Millefleurs panels and grounds are present in compositions from the 15^th through the 16^th century, woven in Flanders, France and South Netherlands, with the grounds being details within complex figural compositions or as bold grounds with superimposed motifs and armorial details. There are various comparable tapestries, with grounds with distinctive and smaller flowering plants on blue grounds, some of which use the bold motif of the isolated tree, or wreath against the millefleurs backgrounds.

Dario Boccara, Les Belles Heures de la Tapisserie, 1971, pg. 93, illustrates a panel with very comparable plant compositions, in a horizontal and more compartmentalised overall appearance, described as Flemish, unknown weavers, circa 1540.  

A small group of dispersed pastoral tapestries depicting shepherds and shepherdesses, which have the millefleurs ground and incorporate tall orange trees on which shields hang on the main trunks, see A. Cavallo, Medieval Tapestries in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1993, pp.483-487, who attributes the designs to or after French artists, woven in the South Netherlands in the first third of the 16th century. The millefleurs grounds have flowers of larger dimensions than those of the Bruges examples.

Guy Delmarcel & Erik Duverger, Bruges et la Tapisserie, 1987, chp.4, pp. 192-196, figs.4/1-4/3 for discussion and illustration of three armorial millefleurs tapestries which are woven with floral wreath medallions and tall palm trees with small fern bushes at the base, on which hang the reverse groupings of military trophies. This group are dated circa 1520 - 1530, and have a border with the distinctive motifs of putti on dragon motifs and masks, and the cornucopia and acanthus, and vertical borders employing military trophies. The millefleurs grounds of the illustrated examples cited above are from the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard, New York French & Co and the Carolino Augusteum Museum, Salzburg, which bears the arms of Salzbourg and Matthäus Lang von Wellenburg, and they do not include small animals or birds, which are more often found in wreath armorial millefleurs panels, but not the very fine small motif millefleurs grounds. For example, a Bruges millefleurs panels, dated circa 1543-1552, with floral wreathed medallion bearing the arms of Paolo Giovio, from the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and the Collection of Prince of Liechenstein, Vaduz, respectively, ibid, chp. 3, pp.197-203, figs.5/1 & 5/2, incorporate small animals.  A more comparable piece is a fragment with larger floral groups, with a central wreath and coat of arms of Margaret of Austria, which is of earlier date than the present piece, and although plants are larger they are placed to naturally work with the surrounding plants and are not so individual in placement as in the present panel.

See also Delmarcel and Duverger, opcit, chp. 3, pp.181-187, for illustrations and discussion of fragments of Bruges millefleurs tapestries, from 1530-1545, with the arms of the Franc de Bruges, for a room setting, and woven within medallions superimposed over a floral ground. Two examples, figs.3/5 & 3/6, have wreaths, shields, larger flowering plants, birds and animals, and are later weavings to compliment the room, woven by the Inglemunster workshop (1859), signed Ch.Laureyns et Braquenié.

See more elaborate compostions on this similar theme see C. Adelson, European Tapestry in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, 1994, pp.105-115, for an `Allegorical Millefleurs Tapestry with Animals', probably Bruges, circa 1530-1545, which in design includes interspersed small fruiting/flowering trees with birds within the branches, and birds and animals, including rabbits, partridges and small deer, lions and hound, all on a millefleurs and blue ground, within a four-sided scrolling acanthus leaf and stylised mask border, with corner compartments with stylised motifs, similar to those on the Bruges examples discussed by Delmarcel & Duverger, opcit, chp.4, pp. 192-196, cited earlier.