Beauvais Tapestry depicting coffee tasters

A rare late 17th century embroidered tapestry depicting coffee tasters, from the studio of Philippe Behagle in Beauvais.

Expert report from the De Wit Company:

The Coffee Tasters Weaving centre: Beauvais, with a clear connection to Oudenaarde, studio of Philippe Behagle dating to around 1680 – 1700, material wool and silk.270cm x 229cm. Description in the foreground, central to the composition, an unusual scene is taking place: two ‘coffee tasters’ in striking, exotic clothing are being handed a cup of coffee by a lady at the market stall. Behind her, a coffee pot is simmering on a brazier. The base of the round table in front of her rests on legs in the shape of fish. On the table are various cups, a teapot, a coffee pot and an ashtray for using tobacco. In the 16th century, tobacco was still used as medicine, but from the 17th century onwards, smoking was common everywhere. Smoking attributes a status symbol. The market stall is constructed from wooden racks covered with brown canvas. The merchandise is attractively and clearly displayed. On the shelves are coffee pots, teapots, cups and saucers, flasks, liqueur glasses, storage boxes, a pestle and mortar, jars with preserved fruits and small jars. Around 1700 drinking coffee and tea was new and exotic and above all expensive, also because of the exclusive supplies that were needed to brew and serve the drinks. A number of storage boxes on the shelves bear the inscriptions tea, ambre (amber) and banilos (vanilla). Vanilla was added to cocoa for its aroma and the precious amber highly sort for its scent. These inscriptions are neither Spanish nor Portuguese, they are foreign-sounding words that were meant to evoke the atmosphere of far away exotic places. Such inscriptions often appear in tapestry art. On the right in the foreground a peddler with a basket of bread rolls and a wooden fork with bread rings approaches at advertise his merchandise. In the hilly landscape in the background , several houses stand on the banks of a body of water. A couple walks along a country road towards the forest. The rich, varied colour palette used in the production of this tapestry is striking. The colours have been exceptionally well preserved. Location this tapestry is attributed to the production centre of Beauvais because of the motif of the border, which was probably much wider. This motif is linked in the literature to borders of tapestries produced by the studio of Philippe Behagle. The fineness of the weave and the colour palette also support the attribution to Beauvais. The Behagle family managed the ‘manufacture nationale de Beauvais’ from 1684 to 1711. Philippe I Behagle (1641 – 1705) was director from 1684 until his death in 1705. Behagle came from Oudenaarde and was trained at the ‘manufacture des Gobelins’. The ‘manufacture nationale de Beauvais’ was founded, like the ‘manufacture des Gobelins’ by Colbert, minister of Louis XIV. After the death of Philippe Behagle I, his widow Anne Van Heuven took over the business until 1708, when she passed the management on to her son Philippe II Behagle. He remained director until 1711.

Bibliography Coural, Beauvais, Manufacture nationale de Tapisserie, Paris, 1992.