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Save the Mortlake tapestry and put our earliest image of a female gardener on display

We need your help to raise £20,000 to conserve a rare 17th century Mortlake tapestry and display our earliest depiction of a woman gardening: support the campaign

Last year with the help of the Art Fund and other supporters we were able to acquire this Mortlake tapestry dating from the 1630s. This rare example of gardening history shows a head gardener and his wife hard at work, greeting the wealthy homeowner and his wife amongst an array of plants, beds and trellises. The tapestry shows us what gardening was like at the time of the Tradescants, who in the 1600s became Britain’s first great gardeners, and are now buried at the Garden Museum. The tapestry is the Garden Museum’s earliest depiction of a woman gardening, and we need your support to undertake the conservation needed to put this unique piece of gardening history on display.  

The Garden Museum is the country’s only museum dedicated to the history of gardening and this tapestry depicting a gardening scene from the17th century has become one of the most important items in our collection. The Mortlake tapestry is extremely popular with our audiences and has captured the imagination of everyone who has seen it. The piece is currently too delicate to be on permanent display, but with your help, we will conserve the tapestry and display it to visitors for the first time in the Garden Museum’s Ark Gallery, alongside the displays exploring the life and collection of John Tradescant (c.1580 -1638).  

The Mortlake tapestry was made in around 1630 when the weaving workshop at Mortlake on the river Thames was producing the best tapestries in Europe. The tapestry depicts the month of March and is from a set celebrating different agricultural occupations across 12 months of the year, with the March scene celebrating gardening. The tapestry captures the essence of spring through blooming narcissus and buds on the fruit trees. The head gardener is shown doffing his cap to the landowners and introducing them to the delights of the garden whilst his wife is kneeling and planting seedlings. A number of undergardeners are depicted carrying out tasks around the garden such as digging new beds and tying plants into trellises. Very little is known of female gardeners in the 17th century, so the tapestry is an incredibly rich and significant record, teaching us about gardening at the time, and the important role that women played.  

Due to the tapestry’s age and delicate wool and silk composition, it is too fragile to display in its current condition. Sections of threads have moved and what is known as slits between the areas of weaving have opened, folds from having been previously hung have caused tension within the surface, and old repairs are failing. If we attempt to display the tapestry in its current condition more deterioration will occur.  During a conservation project that will take several months, the slits will be closed, and a new lining will be added giving the tapestry more support. A gentle surface clean will remove dirt and dust and the previous folds will be gently relaxed, so the overall image becomes more vibrant. We need your help to undertake this urgent conservation work on the tapestry and make it ready for display.  

Please help us raise £20,000 to undertake the urgent conservation needed to put the Mortlake tapestry on display: support the campaign

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