Beschreibung:

A RARE FLEMISH WOOL AND SILK HISTORICAL TAPESTRY DEPICTING A SCENE FROM THE LIFE OF HANNIBAL LATE 16TH CENTURY Probably after mid-16th century designs by Francois Geubels (Flemish Fl.1546-1579) for Brussels workshops, with the central field illustrating Hannibal deploying cattle with flaming horns at the Battle of Ager Falernus in 217AD. With Latin inscription to the upper border "HANIBAL IGNE TAURORUM CORNIBUS IMPOSITO NOCTU MONTEM INVADIT " (HANNIBAL INVADES THE MOUNTAIN BY NIGHT, HAVING FIRED THE BULL'S HORNS). The border with mythological figures to the corners Apollo, Artemis the Huntress, a dancing female figure and a military general approximately 340 high, 398cm long The Carthaginian general Hannibal is regarded even today as one of the greatest tacticians and most daring military commanders from antiquity. In the 16th and 17th century series of tapestries were woven commemorating scenes from his life and famous deeds such as the invasion of Italy by crossing the Alps with African war elephants. This tapestry commemorates the Battle of Ager Falernus shortly after his routing of Flaminius and his troops at the battle of Lake Trasimene. Sallying into central and southern Italy he soon found himself in the lowlands of Campania- an area stripped of its natural resources of food and fuel and swiftly surrounded by the troops of the new Roman dictator Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus. Drawing inspiration from Spanish religious festivals- Hannibal ordered that 2000 oxen have torches tied to their horns and driven towards the pass where Fabius had stationed his army. In the ensuing chaos and stampede some of the Roman army believed that they were seeing the Carthaginian army marching to escape along the heights. As they moved off in pursuit of this decoy, the Carthaginian army moved in complete silence through the dark lowlands and up to an unguarded pass. A feat of misdirection and stealth still taught by military tacticians today. The Chrysler Museum of Art holds in its collection a similar tapestry titled "The History of Hannibal: The Spoils of Cannae" (the Gift of the Irene Leache Memorial Foundation, March 2014). With a Brussels town mark and dating from approximately 1650, the Chrysler tapestry shares the overall layout with the central slightly crowded field with central figures representative of the main title- as described in Latin to a cartouche to the centre of the upper border, and the wide borders with their use of richly decorated floral and fruit garlands dividing figures There are also similar panels both in the Royal Trust Collection and in the Cathedral Museum, Zamora, Castilla y Leon, Spain. The Royal Trust Collection's tapestries are titled "Hannibal pointing out the entrancing joys of Italy to his warriors" and "Hannibal bringing the spoils of Cannae to Carthage". Again, these are catalogued as being from a longer series of Brusselstapestries illustrating scenes from the story of Hannibal, each within wide borders of abundant fruit, foliage and flowers, a Latin inscription in scroll at top. The Zamora tapestries are very similar in style and composition to this lot and are catalogued as being circa 1570- "anonymous weaver". Please also see: Sotheby's, London, 26th May 1989, lot 27 for a Brussels tapestry, late 16th century, depicting a similar scene, with an inscribed panel referring to Hannibal Christie's, London , 14th May 2017, lot 137 for a "Flemish Historical Tapestry By Maarten II Reymbouts, Brussels, Late 17th Century" which shares similar main border design