The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of February 6, 2023

Dido and Aeneas seek shelter from a storm

1679

designed by

Giovanni Francesco Romanelli

(Italian, 1610–1662)

woven by

Michael Wauters

(Flemish, 1679)

Belgium, 17th century

Tapestry weave: silk and wool

Overall: 416.4 x 418.8 cm (163 15/16 x 164 7/8 in.)

Gift of Mrs. Francis F. Prentiss, in memory of Dr. Dudley P. Allen 1915.79.5

Location

210A Armor Court

Fun Fact

This tapestry is one from a series of eight that depicts the tragic love story of Dido and Aeneas. They were gifted to the museum for display in the armor court.

Description

During a hunting party, Dido and Aeneas are caught in a storm and flee to shelter. Cupid and Hymen, the god of marriage, bless them from above. Servants are working to attend to the frightened horses while on a branch, the owl of evil beats his wings ominously.

Inscriptions

Inscription

signed lower right: M. Wavters.

Provenance
before 1695-1899
Barberini Family, Rome, Italy
1899-1915
Charles M. Ffoulke (1849-1909), Washington, D.C.
1909-before 1915
Mitchell Samuels of French & Company (1880-1959), New York, NY, sold to Mrs. Francis F. Prentiss
before 1915-1915
Mrs. Francis F. Prentiss (1865-1944), Cleveland, OH, gifted to the Cleveland Museum of Art
1915
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
W. M. M. "Gothic Art." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 6, no. 4 (1919): 67-70. Mentioned: p. 70 www.jstor.org
BREMER-DAVID, CHARISSA. "French & Company and American Collections of Tapestries, 1907-1959." Studies in the Decorative Arts 11, no. 1 (2003): 38-68. www.jstor.org
Exhibition history

Tapestry Restoration 2. Gaspard De Wit/Koninklijke Manufactuur van Wandtapijten n.v (January 21, 1999-September 7, 2000).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1915.79.5