This piece is part of a set of twelve armchairs and two settees ordered in Paris in 1753 by Baron Johann Ernst Bernstorff, Danish ambassador to the court of Versailles between 1744 and 1751. After returning to Denmark, Bernstorff commissioned this seat furniture for the tapestry room of his new residence in Copenhagen that was hung with four wall tapestries of the Amours des Dieux series woven at the Beauvais Manufactory. This chair illustrates how French furniture and furnishings were imported all over Europe for the enrichment of palaces and mansions far from Paris. The tapestry covers are woven with animal and bird subjects after designs by the painter Jean-Baptiste Oudry (1686–1755).

Pageants in pseudoclassical dress were popular in Europe from the sixteenth through the eighteenth century. An elaborate costume of the kind displayed here may have been worn for a theatrical performance or a court festivity, such as a ball or carousel in which the theme was taken from classical mythology or history. The embroidered tunic represents an embossed bronze cuirass of the type worn by high-ranking Roman officers. The stylized Greek helmet is richly decorated with mythological and allegorical figures. Inside the helmet is the original paper label that identifies the Parisian maker as Halle dit Mercier and advertises his ability to provide helmets, shields, masks, costumes, and scenery for any occasion.

This tapestry depicts the goddess Diana bathing with her nymphs after the hunt (in classical legend, Diana was the goddess of the hunt). The scene takes place before the ruins of a classical temple, beyond which an idealized landscape stretches into the distance. The elaborate borders feature a frieze populated by classical deities between cartouches depicting the signs of the zodiac. The floral cartouches in the corners surround images of a phoenix, a bird of paradise, a dolphin, and a lion. The tapestry was one of at least six depicting scenes from classical mythology, after paintings by Laurent de la Hyre (the original painting for this scene is now in the J. Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, California). A similar set of tapestries, with variant borders, is recorded in the collection of Louis XIV.

From a set illustrating Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso. The fight between Zerbino, a Christian knight, and Manricardo, King of Tartary, is about to be stopped by the latter’s lady love, Doralice. On the right, Fiordiligi holds Orlando’s horse, Brigliadoro.

Designed in 1763, the plaster ceiling of this room, with its ornamental wheel molding and garlanded trophies, is an example of Robert Adam's vigorous early style. The same year, the sixth earl of Coventry commissioned the tapestry hangings from Jacques Neilson's workshop at the Royal Gobelins Manufactory in Paris. Portraying scenes from classical myths symbolizing the elements, the medallions are based on designs by François Boucher. The gilded frames of the seat furniture were made in London by the cabinetmakers John Mayhew and William Ince in 1769, while the tapestry covers were executed at the Gobelins factory.

1754~ / 1756~, Paris

1754~ / 1756~, Paris

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