English Tapestries

Permanent exhibition in the Primate's Palace

The Primate's Palace, one of the most beautiful classicist buildings in Bratislava, was built in 1778 by Archbishop Cardinal Jozef Batthyány in accordance with the project of architect Melchior Hefele. The palace and its famous Hall of Mirrors have been the scene of many important historical events: in 1805, the Treaty of Pressburg between the Austrian and French armies was signed there; and the Hungarian Parliament, although it convened in the building of today's University Library, used to be opened there.
In August 1903, the palace building was purchased by the city. During reconstruction of the building in 1903, a series of six unknown tapestries depicting the ancient tale of Héró and Leander were discovered behind the wallpaper in the anteroom of the Hall of Mirrors. According to legend, during festivities Héró, a priestess in Sesto on the coast of today's Hellespont, met Leander, a handsome young man from the opposite shore of Abydos. In order for them to continue meeting, Leander had to swim across the strait each night and return in the morning. Every evening, Héró placed a lamp in the tower to show Leander which way to swim. One stormy night, the wind blew out the lamp, and Leander lost his way in the waves and drowned. His dead body washed ashore at the monastery. When Héró saw him the following morning, she jumped from a window in grief and killed herself. The tapestries were woven in the 1730s at the Royal Weavers' Workshop operated by the Dutchman Phillip de Maecht in Mortlake, near London. The designs are the work of Franz Cleyn, and reflect the influence of Flemish, and to an extent Italian, painting of the Mannerism period. In addition to the English tapestries, several smaller pictorial exhibitions from GMB holdings are installed in the representative rooms of the Primate's Palace, including a set of Dutch and Flemish genre paintings of the 17th century, and a display of Italian paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries.

Selected works

Grieving Eros. Francis Cleyn – author of the template. Around 1630, silk and wool, 295 x 263 cm.
Grieving Eros. Francis Cleyn – author of the template. Around 1630, silk and wool, 295 x 263 cm.
Janthe announces the arrival of Leandro, Francis Cleyn. Around 1630, silk and wool, 310 x 390 cm.
Janthe announces the arrival of Leandro, Francis Cleyn. Around 1630, silk and wool, 310 x 390 cm.

Admission

The Primate's Palace is under the administration of the municipality of Bratislava. For more information on admission and opening hours, please contact:
tel. č. +421 904 099 004
[email protected]