Show TAPESTRY A Feast for Historians and Lovers ofthe Antique i Prcclons Pieces at tire Homos of Wealthy and Distinguished People at the National Capital If all the tapestries scattered about in the private residences in this city cold begotten I be-gotten together it would tako a pretty goodsized room to hold them to say nothing j noth-ing of showing them to advantage The largest and most valuable collection in Washington and I believe in this country is that of Mr Charles M Ffoulke of Pennsylvania who spends his winters bore with his family He has lately added a large gallery to his handsome house on Massachusetts avenue to accommodate his treasures The house was fairly lined with I them before he secured the famous Bar I berini collection some two years ago Several pieces of this collection were hung last winter on the walls of the new gallery They were made at the pontiticial manufactory founded by Car mal Francois Barberini The cartoons were painted by Nicopolas Pous I sin and the weaving was superintended I Riviero In the lower border of each is a medallion supported by two youthful satyrs In the medallion three bees the emblem of the Barberinis are encircled by a wreath The wide bcrders have caryatides carya-tides holding upon their heads vases filled with flowers The colors are very tine and w ell preserved She subjects are Leto metamorphosing the peasants into frogs Daphne changed into a laurel tree when fleeing from Apollo who plucks some of the leaves to bind upon his brow Apoll uarding cattle in the valley of Mount Ida by command of Zeno Apollo as the god of music with his lyre delighting the Muses and Apollo flaying the satyr Marsyas for daring to challenge nim to a trial of musical I i musi-cal skill i i i L v I < I H1 v o 1 l c < r1 11II 11 II ffb o k zJ ran RENCOUNTER OWNED ir sties HEARST Among several Flemish tapestries of the sixteenth century is one from the Buonsig nod palace Sienna It is about twelve feet square and represents says tradition Charlemagne Crowning One of His Feudatories Feu-datories Companion pieces rqpresent Danas in the brazen tower In one Jupiter visits her as a shower of gold in the other she is seen caressing her infant son Per seus held in the arms of a female attendant attend-ant These tapestries urn of silk and wool i in i a fine state of preservation and fine I colors Another arse piece of the same period represrnts Cleopatra gorgeously gor-geously attired and attended by her maids appearing before the Emperor i 2 filWieTt MR GEORGE HEARST Augustus Another shows the rescue of Andromeda by Perseus In Italian renaissance renais-sance tapestry aro three especially lino I pieces Ono represents tho King and Queen of Lombardy at an elaborately I spread table in the open air waited upon by several servants One shovs in gorgeous gor-geous colorings amour other things the coat of arms of the Colonnas The third quite large depicts the reconciliation of the Emperor Constantine with his enemies Apiece A-piece of French tapestry made Sin S-in tho latter half of tho sixteenth century is of silk about thirteen feet wide by ten feet high and shows an autumnal scene in i rich coloring Ceres the principal ficure bears wheat nnd flower and is accompanied accom-panied by other goddesses laden with various var-ious fruits c Two Gobelm pieces made almost entirely of silk threads are nearly ten feet high by eight feet wide They were presented to I the roignine sovereign of ono of tho German states and bear tho arms of his family The centr of each has a magnificent medallion of flowers In one a Cupid rides the sea on an Amphora and in the other the trod of love ails in a tiny boat The borders are of intetwinintr branches of oak with wreaths of ivy tied with rfbbons In the spaces everywhere appear the emblem of the princely family for whom they were made Mr Ffoulko and his family are now abroad and will l spend some months in Italy Mrs Ffoulke a lovely woman was presented at ona of the late drawing rooms in London A very interesting piece of Gobelin tnpeR try which once nuns in the mInce of Louis Philippe has for years adorned the wall of the dinincr room at Edgowood the former home of ChiefJustice Chase and now that of HIS GIFTED DAUGHTER HATE and her children It is quite large and finely presorved Mrs Chase told mo one duy that it was much admired by the distinguished dis-tinguished men who used to gather about her fathers table and each one guessed at the storv it was sunposed to toll The Hon Charles Sumners guess was j I Iii 4 i 1 1i ji1 1Li r AN OLD TAPESTRY REPRESENTING A GROUP or CUPIDS I fancy about right Ho thought it represented repre-sented Ulysses in the disguise of a woman i being entertained at a feast by the barbaric queen of some isle There is a very uneasy expression on bis face and the disguise is illsustained His helmet lies at his feet and a vessel is anchored in tho background The table is piled high with luscious C fruits and the hostess and several servants are very attentive The dresses ore very rich and the colors very fine I Mrs Hearst has a number of rare tapestries tapes-tries and valuable old prayer rugs in her beautiful new house which was so sadly closed almost before it was finished I by the long illness and death of Senator HeRe arst One of the largest pieces is Tree He-Re ncounter a superb battle piece of rich coloring and fine work It is very old but I do not know the exact date The border is composed of implements of war drums eta A smaller and very lovely piece shows a group of cupids at play In the new winter residence of Mr Albert Al-bert Clifford Barney is a large piece of Its lian renaissance tapestry allegorical as are most tapestries in the scene depicted Here a triumphal car bears Peace and Plenty through a land teeming with evidences evi-dences of prosperity Mrs John W Foster has among many curious and interesting things picked up while her husband was minister to Mexico Mex-ico Spain and Russia some small but fine old bits of tapestry which would fall to pieces if not framed The colors are still woof good They came from some wo-of the old Mexican convents or churches and it is hard to tell just how old they are Mr Samuel Ward whose pretty granddaughter grand-daughter Miss Thoron married Mr William Will-iam C Endicott jr two years ago has age lar a-ge and very valuable piece of tapestry I in the parlor of his winter homo on K street The subject is I think Scriptural I Not far away on tho same street in the I home of R R Bitt of Illinois aro valuable valu-able pieces picked up abroad Mrs I I Senator Stanford has a number of rare tapestries among the art treasures in her winter home in this city JULIETT M BAUBITE |