Cleveland Museum of Art

Spring: Fishing Scene

Gobelins Manufactory

Date

designed c. 1535, woven mid- to late 1600s

Medium

Wool, silk, and gold filé: tapestry weave

Culture

France

Department

Textiles

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

In this springtime scene, two fishermen wade in a river, dragging a net suspended between two poles. A noble couple on a bridge gestures toward other fishermen, who occupy the other side of this scene in other extant examples of this tapestry with a larger picture plane. In the background, townspeople walk on bridges that lead to the gateway of a town with brick walls and portals. In the far distance, farmers till the soil to sow new seeds, another typical activity associated with spring. The trees on the hills are just beginning to sprout new buds. Spring was considered to be a season of courtship and romance; perhaps the gentleman on the bridge in the red cap is trying to catch the attention of the lady next to him.

The authoritative record is held by Cleveland Museum of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.