17th Century Flemish Verdure Fruit Lumbar Pillow

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Description

This exceptional 17th-century Flemish tapestry pillow is created from a historic woven tapestry fragment dating to the 1600s. Presented in … Read more This exceptional 17th-century Flemish tapestry pillow is created from a historic woven tapestry fragment dating to the 1600s. Presented in an elongated lumbar format, the textile features a richly layered composition of fruit, broad leaves, scrolling foliage, stems, and botanical forms, reflecting the elaborate nature-inspired decoration associated with Flemish tapestry weaving of the period.

One of the most distinctive elements is the prominent cut-open fruit motif, revealing a deep crimson-red interior that resembles a stylized pomegranate. It is surrounded by large overlapping leaves and additional rounded fruit forms woven throughout the composition. The vegetation extends across nearly the entire surface, creating a dense, abundant design. A decorative red scrolling element along the left side provides additional structure and suggests that this fragment may originally have formed part of a considerably larger and more elaborate tapestry composition.

The palette is particularly rich and atmospheric, combining deep forest green, dark teal, navy blue, olive green, sage, antique gold, ochre, camel, tan, tobacco brown, beige, burgundy, crimson red, and muted rust. The dark blue-green passages provide dramatic depth, while the warm gold and brown tones create an earthy foundation. Burgundy and crimson details punctuate the composition and draw attention to the fruit and scrolling botanical elements.

Repurposed from a much larger historic textile into a long decorative pillow, this piece allows a surviving section of early Flemish weaving to be appreciated independently. The combination of 17th-century origin, botanical subject matter, fruit imagery, unusually long proportions, and deeply saturated antique colors gives the pillow a strong decorative presence suitable for a sofa, bench, bed, daybed, or collection of early European textiles. See less