I must admit that I knew nothing about Angers or its priceless treasures when some Parisian friends suggested that we spend a Sunday visiting the city. In a leap of faith I agreed, trusting that Françoise and Alain wouldn't make me catch an early morning train if it wasn't worthwhile!
Today the Château is owned by the City of Angers and it serves as a museum with gardens, a space for temporary art exhibitions, a charming café, an apiary and even a vineyard! But what visitors come from far and wide to see is the world's oldest and largest collection of medieval tapestries and in particular the Apocalypse Tapestry.
I am not a connoisseur of tapestries but I have seen a few very impressive examples like the Unicorn Tapestries at The Cloisters, The Lady and the Unicorn at the Cluny, and The Bayeux Tapestry depicting the Battle of Hastings. Nothing could have prepared me for the impact of entering a darkened gallery with red and blue ground woven tapestries extending from floor to ceiling, as far as the eye could see. And when we reached the end of the long hall, the tapestry continued on around the corner and down another stretch.
Commissioned circa 1375 by Louis I, the Duke of Anjou, the tapestry was designed by Hennequin de Bruges and woven in Paris by Nicolas Bataille and Robert Poincon between 1377 and 1382. Originally comprising 90 different scenes and covering 436 linear feet, the intensely colored woven hangings tell the story of the Book of Revelations, the final chapter of the New Testament of Saint John.
"La femme recoit des ailes"
"Une deuxième ange annonce la chute de Babylone"
"La prostituée sur la bête"
"St. Jean mange le livre"
Although the exact purpose of such an enormous tapestry is not known, it is thought to have been displayed outside of the castle on festival days as an allegory for the ongoing Hundred Years War being waged between France and England. After being held by the Dukes of Anjou for over a century, the tapestry was gifted to the Angers Cathedral where it remained until the French Revolution when it was taken and cut up for use as floor mats, horse blankets and to protect the orange trees from frost. Remarkably, all but sixteen of the original panels have been located and most of these have been returned to the City of Anger.
"Le sommeil des justes"
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