Tapestry

Tapestry is a specialized workshop where artistic tapestries are created using a special hand-weaving technique. Such manufactories were centers of art since the 16th century, for example, the famous Gobelins Manufactory in France. Here, craftsmen worked under the direction of artists to create complex scenes from wool, silk, and gold.

The working process included the development of a cartoon (working sketch), careful selection of threads, and painstaking weaving over many months on vertical or horizontal looms. Tapestry manufactories not only adorned European palaces, but also played an important role in preserving weaving techniques, training new artists, and popularizing the art of textiles.

Interestingly, in some manufactories, heads of state personally approved sketches, and craftsmen were forbidden to disclose production secrets.