A Flemish large leaf (Feuilles-des-Choux) verdure tapestry, probably Grammont (Geraardsbergen), third quarter 16th century, and later

finely woven with large leaves supporting birds and foreground flowering plant, within a four sided integral border with vases of flowers in each lower corner against a saffron ground

This tapestry has a linen lining and hessian band. It is recommended that Velcro should be added across the top edge for hanging purposes in the future. The outer selvedge across the top and bottom edges, is modern. There is tinting, for example visible to the side selvedges, which are not original. There are areas of reweaving and scattered repairs overall. For example see the rewoven areas of foliage in the top right corner, above the small bird and to the right of the flower above. For example others are in the corners and edges. There are no obvious cut and joins in the corners. There are areas of light coloured silk highlights which are repairs, for example to the foliage of the flowering bush in the centre of the lower foreground. It is likely that this was originally part of a larger tapestry originally. This is a decorative tapestry of a versatile size.
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This style of verdure with the main field being the large leaves with a plant and fine foliage dominating the foreground plane, with a distinctive border overlapping evolved between 1540 and 1560. A few tapestries of this group retain their city marks of either Enghien, Oudenaarde or Geraardsbergen (Grammont). The two towns are close to each other and it is therefore not surprising that there are similarities in the tapestries woven in the separate cities.

See Edith Appleton Standen, European Post-Medieval Tapestries in the Metropolitan Museum, 1985, Vol. I, pp.177-179, figs.24a-24b., for discussion and illustrations of two fragments of Verdures with giant leaves, dated to 1550-1600, which are very similar to the offered fragment, in having the upper and lower borders visible and the same use of small and large birds on the feuilles-de-choux ground, and one bears the Grammont mark in the selvedge. Candace Adelson, European Tapestry in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, 1994, pp.116-121, illustrates and discusses a large leaf fragment with birds and an example from the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, which unlike the Minneapolis example has a full four-sided border, both of which are dated 1540-1550, and considered to be Oudenaarde or Geraardsbergen (Grammont). Guy Delmarcel, Flemish Tapestries, London, 1999, pg.191, illustrates a similar example, though complete with four-sided border, second half 16^th century (Art Institute, Chicago), which has very similar border details and use of motifs such as the corner urns and long leaved plants. This particular piece has an Oudenaarde town mark in the selvedge. For two similar Flemish feuilles de choux fragments of this type, possibly Enghien, see Sotheby's London, 11th June 2003, lots 1 & 18., and 10^th December 2003, lot 15. See also Sotheby's London, David Sylvester Collection, 26th February 2002, lot 65 for a fragment from a central section without any borders.