Published: 20250530
The museum’s latest success story – a restored tapestry believed to have been created in the mid-18th century at the Royal Manufacture of Aubusson in France – The Abduction of the Sabine Women – will be presented to the public as part of the permanent exhibition. This beautiful work has undergone a lengthy restoration process, and its restoration story has become an important part of the exhibit. Visitors to the Palace of the Grand Dukes Museum are now given the opportunity to closely explore the tapestry’s history, its restoration stages, and the intricacies of the restorer’s profession.
The tapestry The Abduction of the Sabine Women was donated to the Palace of the Grand Dukes Museum in 2021 by collector Nathan Levi from Florence. The historical textile depicts a fierce battle between the Romans and the Sabines. According to the myth, Rome’s founder Romulus invited the neighboring Sabines to a festival held in honor of the god Consus, along with their wives and daughters. Once the celebration began, the Romans abducted the women.
The composition reflects the influence of Italian Baroque painting – the figures’ movements are expressive, depicted from various angles and in complex poses. The dynamic feel is enhanced by the fluid folds of the clothing and their vivid colors – various shades of red, blue, green, and brown. However, over time, the valuable tapestry became damaged, which prompted detailed research to determine how it could be restored and once again admired in the museum. Thorough visual and chemical studies enabled an accurate assessment of the textile’s condition and previous interventions: areas with lost weft and warp threads, crude and inaccurate stitching, an incompatible sewn-in ribbon at the bottom border, as well as recorded dirt, dust, and faded colors. Once the lining was removed, it was revealed that the tapestry had been repaired at least five times using different materials and methods.
For many years, Bernadeta Rudytė, a restorer at the Palace of the Grand Dukes Museum, worked meticulously on the tapestry – in some places, only the warp threads remained, and the weft was completely gone. In these delicate areas, she used a couching technique (restorative stitching), carefully matching the thread colors and subtly reinforcing the fabric’s structure. Missing fragments were reconstructed through embroidery, imitating the weaving technique of the tapestry. She used pre-washed woolen threads dyed with synthetic dyes, twisted from three to five different shades. Inappropriate layers added during previous repairs and restorations were removed, fragile original textiles were stabilized, and missing parts were recreated. The restorer notes that it was important to her to restore the visual rhythm while clearly distinguishing the restored areas from the original.
In the exhibition, next to the newly radiant tapestry, visitors will also be able to explore the complex and painstaking process of tapestry restoration. It will also be possible to compare how the textile and its individual fragments looked before and after restoration.
Exhibition curator – Dr. Živilė Mikailienė, head of restoration – Audronė Petroševičiūtė, lecturer at the Vilnius Academy of Arts and textile restorer at the Pranas Gudynas Restoration Center.
The exhibition will be open from June 3 to September 21.
