Once Upon a Tapestry: Woven Tales of Helen and Dido

Once Upon a Tapestry: Woven Tales of Helen and Dido presents a selection of five rare tapestries from the 16th and 17th centuries presented alongside an even rarer set of six full-scale cartoons, or preparatory drawings, by Italian Baroque artist Giovanni Francesco Romanelli (1610–1662). Seen together, the tapestries and cartoons give viewers an opportunity to better understand the intricate design and production of these splendid objects, made for the wealthiest and most distinguished patrons. They also highlight how artists were inspired by the love stories from both Virgil’s Aeneid and Homer’s The Iliad, featuring heroines Dido of Carthage and Helen of Troy.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.