'Diogenes discarding his bowl', A Literary English Tapestry, Post Mortlake, from The Story of Diogenes circa 1700

woven with Diogenes holding his drinking bowl, pointing out to fellow philosophers, an exemplary youth who with no bowl drinks directly from his hand (Diogenes Laertius, 6: 37), within an extensive landscape setting, within a distinctive four-sided exuberant floral border, the sides with hollowed-out 'sandstone' pillars, on a brown ground, with a narrow bead-and-reel inner border, the top border with a cabochon with visible Latin inscription, 'Diogenes adolescentem manv bibentem intvitvs scyphvm provcit' (Diogenes threw away his bowl upon seeing a young man drinking from/with his hand)

Probably Sir William Fermor, 2nd Bart (1648-1711) created Baron Leominster (Lempster) in 1692 Thomas Fermor, 2nd Baron Leominster, created Earl of Pomfret in 1721 Lady Arabella Fermor, daughter of the 4th Earl of Pomfret, who married Sir Thomas Hesketh and thence by descent;
Sold Sotheby's, London, 28 April 2016, lot 235

For a weaving of this subject of the same composition and border type, formerly from Weald Hall (Essex), see Guy Delmarcel, Nicole de Reyniès & Wendy Hefford, The Toms Collection Tapestries– 16^th to 19^th centuries, Ed. Giselle Eberhard Cotton, Foundation Toms Pauli, Lausanne, 2010, Chp. IV: The English Tapestries, Wendy Hefford, Tapestries from the series The Story of Diogenes, p.248, fig.77.2.

Measurements: vertically 280cm. left side, 282cm. right side, horizontally 563cm. across the top and 565cm. across the bottom. Reduced in width. The splits in the sky (which are old silk and old areas of weakness) need professional attention. They are horizontal and not vertical. The need consolidating for hanging purposes in the future. The tapestry has an old linen lining on the reverse attached on all edges, and with metal press-studs added to all sides, for attaching to the wall in the past. It is recommended that Velcro is added for hanging purposes in the future. Colours of the images in the catalogue are a too light overall, especially the light highlights, which look a little strident and in reality they are darker tones. Even and balanced colour to the tapestries overall. There is a shaped cut and join down the far right from the top to bottom of the tapestry, which is only noticeable on close inspection. It runs around the edge of the foliage and sky in the far right corner and curves round to the left of the bush in the far foreground. The selvedge in the lower right lower edge has been attached later. It bears a red St George Cross (used by the Mortlake weaver's usually within a shield). There are some repairs in areas, for example to the brown areas in places, where there has been oxidisation in the past to darker brown, this is commensurate with age. There are also weaknesses in the areas of light highlights, which are particularly evident in the sky. There are as a result some horizontal splits in the sky and light areas. The splits in the sky are in areas of historic weakness, and will need attention and consolidating, before hanging. The splits are in the top left corner, the central area of sky and the sky areas in the top right and the area to far right. As the tapestry was photographed flat, and not hanging, they are not immediately obvious in the photograph. There are some repairs in areas, for example to the brown areas in places, where there has been oxidisation in the past to darker brown, this is commensurate with age. This 18th century tapestry has some repairs and needs some attention. Splits in the sky need professional consolidation. They are horizontal splits and need to be brought back together where silk wefts have weakened and been lost. It is recommended that this piece should be seen, to satisfy oneself of the condition and work needed in the sky. If you would like detailed photographs of the tapestry, please contact the department directly on 0207 293 5533 (or Gina.Tammaro@sothebys.com). The charm is in the scale of the figures and the setting, and the dimensions of the tapestry, not being too high. The Diogenes series is also interesting in subject matter, and a series of English manufacture. This tapestry has a particularly interesting provenance.
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The Diogenes series of tapestries which was almost exclusively of English origin was originally designed at the Mortlake workshop in the 1662-1692 and copied later by Soho workshops. This unusual, moralising subject from the life of the philosopher and cynic Diogenes who renounced his possessions, was popular based on the recorded weavings. The full series contained seven subjects and the probable inspiration for the Diogenes tapestries was 'The Lives of the Philosophers' by Diogenes Laertius published in English in 1688. The subjects included 'The meeting of Alexander and Diogenes', `Diogenes meditating', 'Diogenes washing herbs in a stream', 'Diogenes writing on a lintel', 'Diogenes beside his barrel', 'Diogenes discarding his bowl', and  'Academy of Plato'.

In the four Diogenes tapestries of Alexander, Plato, Diogenes meditating and Diogenes discarding his Bowl, all groups of figures and the inscriptions in the upper borders are predominantly copied from four etchings of 1662 by Salvator Rosa, though with the name of Diogenes substituting that of Democritus. Rosa’s etchings of Democritus/Diogenes are based on his paintings of the early 1650's now in the Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen. Figures in other subjects of the series echo postures found in Rosa’s work or imitate his style. As the widest pieces in the series contain fine landscapes, the creator of these designs were possibly Prosper Henricus Lankrink (d. 1692), who came to England in the 1660's and was noted both for having studied Rosa’s work and for landscape. The designer of the tapestries could have been a follower of Rosa working in England, and with Italianate influence used in the landscape design, and the weavers possibly members of the Ro(u)sett family, that were associated with Mortlake and the Great Wardrobe, see Wendy Hefford, 'The Diogenes Tapestries’, CIETA Bulletin, 1984, pp.67-79.

A set of six Diogenes panels purchased for Charles II, in London in 1683, now in the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh, was woven within the acanthus leaf border, and includes a weaving of 'Diogenes washing herbs in a stream, visited by Plato', which bears a Mortlake mark of the St George Cross in the selvedge, discussed and illustrated in Margaret Swain, Tapestries and Textiles: Palace of Holyroodhouse, HMSO for the Royal Collection, 1988, pp.12-16. A fragment of a border, considered to be from a weaving of 'Diogenes discarding his bowl' has the English shield flanked by initials I (for J) and R, and in addition to the crowned IR for Jacobus Rex, a monogram of the initials I and R, or P or B have been discovered.

Marillier, English Tapestries of the Eighteenth Century, pp.39-40 discusses the series and notes sets of the tapestry series at Easton Neston, Weald Hall, Raby Castle, Belton House, Dyrham Park, Holyrood House and Dunrobin Castle, of which none of the sets comprises more than six tapestries and some only have two or three, of the full series of seven tapestries, which is recorded in the Marillier subject catalogue. Alexander and Diogenes is one of two Diogenes tapestries at Dyrham Park, the other being The School of Plato, and both are in a sandstone border, with a concealed shield mark of late Mortlake (or Soho). The Dryham Park set appears to be the earliest extant documented series. In an inventory of 1703, two pieces of Diogenes hangings were recorded, in the Anteroom (now the Diogenes room).

Of the various border designs, those of the acanthus scroll border and flowers or the alternative design of side borders with hollowed out pillars resembling sandstone and swathed in flowers, all with Latin inscriptions within border cartouches, appear on early and late weavings. The acanthus border is considered to be the earlier border. The conception of the stonework entwined with flowers is akin to those on borders of tapestries of Hero and Leander, from Hardwick Hall and the Lady Lever Art Gallery. There is also evidence of a border, which incorporated birds and porcelain vases, and other floral examples. As well as the sets at Easton Neston (3), Weald Hall (2), Raby Castle (3) and Dyrham Park (6), with the ‘sandstone’ border, there was in addition a set of five with the `sandstone’ border were auctioned in 1926, from the property of Major W.G. Lambarde, Bradbourne Hill, Sevenoaks, Kent, and the occasional panel which has come up for auction in preceeding years. For two examples of weavings within the acanthus border, see a weaving of The Academy of Plato, Sotheby's, London, 30 June 2004, lot 35, and narrow composition of ‘Diogenes and his barrel’, Christie’s, South Kensington, 13 March 2007, lot 429. Other border variants on Diogenes tapestries, were simpler scrolling foliage or acanthus designs and were narrow in format.  

General Bibliography

Wendy Hefford, The Diogenes Tapestries and the Stamford Legend, CIETA Bulletin (Bulletin de Liaison du Centre International des Textiles anciens) No.59-60, 1984 (1985), pp.67-69 

Guy Delmarcel, Nicole de Reyniès & Wendy Hefford, The Toms Collection Tapestries– 16^th to 19^th centuries, Ed. Giselle Eberhard Cotton, Foundation Toms Pauli, Lausanne, Verlag Niggli AG, Zurich, 2010, Chp. IV: The English Tapestries, Wendy Hefford, Tapestries from the series The Story of Diogenes, Cat.75-77, pp.239-248, for three Diogenes tapestries, all from unidentified English workshops, from different series, and within variants of narrow border designs; including 'Diogenes meditating' and 'Diogenes washing plants', circa 1685-1715, and 'Diogenes discarding his bowl', of uncertain date

C. Marillier, English Tapestries of the Eighteenth Century, London, 1930, p.39: `Diogenes’, listing six subjects of this series including no.1 there called `Alexander visiting Diogenes’. Marillier describes this border as the second of two alternatives noting `that what we may call the “sandstone” borders are later - It figures on several well-known sets such as those at Easton Neston’ Margaret Swain, Tapestries and Textiles: Palace of Holyroodhouse, HMSO for the Royal Collection, 1988, pp.12-16; for set of six tapestries, within acanthus leaf border, from the set of six purchased for Charles II, in London in 1683, now in the Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh, one with the St George mark, and lining with initials IR beneath a crown for Jacobus Rex, and during conservation in 1990, a damaged mark was discovered, in the form of a monogram of initials I and R, or P or B, which could stand for tapestry maker or supplier JR (possible member of Ro(u)sset family at Mortlake, or John Ridges, and upholsterer active in 1670-1680Horace Walpole, A description of Easton Neston in Northamptonshire, the seat of the Right Honourable the Earl of Pomfret, etc., published London, 1758, in addition to the Catalogue of the Curious Collection of Pictures of George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, written by Brian Fairfax (d.1711) `and never before published’, pg.60. Drawing Room: The Story of Diogenes and Alexander. Tapestry hangings. Little Bed-chamber first: Hangings tapestry, the Story of Alexander and Diogenes