UNKNOWN WEAVER, Italian
(active 1627-1680 in Rome)

The Union of the Duchy of Urbino with the Church

1669-70
Wool and silk tapestry, 400 x 530 cm
Musei Vaticani, Vatican

This tapestry was produced by the Barberini Manufactory in Rome. The workshop for producing tapestries was established in 1627 by Cardinal Francesco Barberini, the nephew of the then-reigning Pope Urban VIII. The task of executing the designs and painting the cartoons was originally assigned to Pietro da Cortona and later to his pupils. The workshop produced series for the Barberini family.

The Union of the Duchy of Urbino with the Church belongs to a series of ten tapestries with borders, all illustrating important episodes in the pope's life. It was commissioned by Cardinal Francesco Barberini as an act of homage and gratitude to his uncle, who died in 1644.