The Hunts of Maximilian: October, the Curée at Boendael
Bernard van Orley (cartoons), Dermoyen workshop (weaving) (c. 1488-1541) · c. 1531
On the steep site of Boendael, recognisable by the church tower of Watermael, the hunt comes to its end. At the back one stag, stopped by strips of canvas, stands at bay while another is set upon by dogs and a hunter. In front of the so-called House of the Palisades, noble ladies protected by stout stakes follow the hunt in safety as spectators. In the right foreground, while hunters sound their horns, a huntsman armed with two sticks holds back the dogs as they prepare for the curée, the ritual reward of the pack. In the middle distance another huntsman waves the stag's paunch on the end of a pole, the part of the animal the dogs prize most. Autumn reddens the leaves and the wind stirs the branches. The scorpion of the zodiac appears in the medallion at the top.
The tapestry is one of the twelve Hunts of Maximilian, woven in Brussels around fifteen thirty-one after cartoons by Bernard van Orley in wool, silk and silver and gilt thread. It carries the Brussels city mark and the mark of the weaver Guillaume Dermoyen. From the French royal collections, the set entered the museum in seventeen ninety-seven.
Did You Know? The ladies watch from behind a fence of stakes, and a huntsman waves the stag's paunch on a pole to excite the dogs.
Unlock the Full Guide
Read every room and listen to every work in all museums with premium.