A Flemish tapestry depicting 'The Village Fête', after designs by David Teniers the Younger (1610-1690) second quarter 18th century, Brussels

bearing the coat of arms of Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (1676-1745).

Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford (1676-1745)
Frederic Augustus Juilliard (1868-1937), Tuxedo Park, New York
O'Reilly's Plaza Art Galleries, New York, Art properties: the collection of the late Frederic A. Juilliard, part one, December 11, 1937, no. 524

Good colors of the whole palette. Some restoration throughout, mainly in the light colored silk areas. Larger rewoven section in upper right corner on the side of the thatched roof (in a rectangle approximately 20 by 10 inches), and 18 inches of the upper border. Slightly reduced on the right side. Later selvage on upper, lower, and right sides. Fine weaving, overall good condition. Needs velcro and new lining.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The tapestries generally known as 'Teniers' tapestries, depicting pastoral and genre scenes of peasant life after the paintings of the artist David Teniers the Younger (1610-1690), were immensely popular in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.  While the majority of the 'Teniers' tapestries were woven in Brussels, other pieces were woven in Lille, Oudenaarde, Antwerp, Beauvais, Aubusson, Madrid and London.   Although very few compositions relate directly to actual paintings of Teniers, a core group of subjects after his designs were the most popularly woven, and included  `The Fish Quay', `Return from the Harvest', `Gipsy Fortune Teller', `The Vegetable Market', `Sportsmen Resting' and the scene shown in the present tapestry, 'The Village Fête' or `The Kermesse'.

The present tapestry is a particularly extensive variation of 'The Kermesse' design, which is known in versions woven in Brussels both in the workshops of Judocus de Vos (1700-1735) and in those of Pierre (1712-1763) and François (1720-1765) van der Borcht.  See H.C. Marillier, Handbook to the Teniers Tapestries, London, 1932, pp. 13-15, plate 2, and pp. 46-48, plate 6.

In the 1937 sale of the collection of Frederic A. Juilliard, the present tapestry was accompanied by two other Teniers genre tapestries bearing the same arms, which are those of Sir Robert Walpole (1676-1745), (later Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford) who is generally regarded to be the de facto first Prime Minister of Britain due to his influence in the cabinet under George II.