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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1953.101
People
François Ton, Flemish (1576 - 1633)
Previously attributed to Unidentified Artist
Title
Presentation of the Keys to a City
Other Titles
Former Title: Giving the Keys of Jerusalem to Titus
Classification
Textile Arts
Work Type
tapestry
Date
1615-1622
Places
Creation Place: Europe, Belgium, Brussels
Culture
Flemish
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/215040

Physical Descriptions

Dimensions
350.5 x 393.7 cm (138 x 155 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Duc d'Avaray, Paris; his collection sale, American Art Association, January 22-23, 1915; private collection, California; Parke-Bernet, New York, January 28-29, 1949, lot 237. Label on the back records that it was lent by: George von L. Meyer, Alice Meyer Coffin, Julia Meyer Brombilla.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Mrs. Philip Coffin, Madame Julia Brambilla, Mrs. E. Calbert Cheston and Mr. Charles A. Meyer
Accession Year
1953
Object Number
1953.101
Division
European and American Art
Contact
am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Description
This tapestry was woven and possibly designed by Francois Tons whose weaver's mark consisting of an F, S, T and a 4 appears on the selvage. This is one of the four known works that survive from Tons' Brussels period. The tapestry shows a surrender scene. On the left side, a victorious army general, holding a baton and wearing a laurel crown, is seated on a throne placed on a platform. He is surrounded by Roman soldiers holding spears. His opponent kneels in front of him and offers him a set of keys. This suggests that the kneeling army general is giving up the keys of his city in defeat. The background offers a view of a battlefield set in a landscape. Documents show that Tons produced several series dedicated to stories from ancient history, including a history of Scipio and a history of Troy. The original borders consist of flower arrangements and female virtues.

Publication History

  • Jean-Paul Asselberghs, Les tapisseries flamandes aux états-unis d'amérique, Musées royaux d'Art et d'Histoire (Brussels, 1974), p. 16
  • Guy Delmarcel and Margarita Garcia Calvo, "Un tapissier bruxellois actif en Espagne: François Tons", Bulletin des Musées Royaux d'Art et d'Histoire, Bruxelles (1985), Tome 56, Fascicule 2, pp. 89-121, esp. p. 102, fig. 1
  • Alan Darr, Woven Splendor: Five Centuries of European Tapestries in the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, 1996), pp. 48-49, cat. #11

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of European and American Art at am_europeanamerican@harvard.edu