Invitation to the press conference | Napoleon and "The Fainting of Esther". An imperial gift for the first King of Saxony

MI

After 80 years, a masterpiece of Parisian court art that was thought to have been lost is returning to Dresden’s Residenzschloss – the 16-square-metre tapestry entitled “The Fainting of Esther”. This precious work of art was among a lavish array of gifts presented by Napoleon Bonaparte to the first King of Saxony, Friedrich August I, and in spring 1810 it was brought to Dresden, where it was given a prominent place in the dining room of the royal palace.

The tapestry was woven in 1791 under the superintendence of Michel Henri Cozette in the state tapestry factory, the Manufacture nationale des Gobelins. The tapestries produced there were available to Napoleon for giving as gifts to his allies. The Dresden tapestry depicts an episode from the Old Testament story of Esther. In 1943, it was moved, along with other tapestries, to Schleinitz Castle near Meissen for safekeeping, but after 1945 its whereabouts were unknown. It resurfaced unexpectedly at Christie's auction house in September 2020, and the Free State of Saxony succeeded in acquiring it back.

After thorough cleaning and restoration work commissioned by the Public Enterprise Saxon Property and Construction Management, the tapestry is now on display again, this time as the centrepiece of a special exhibition in the Sponsel Room of the Neues Grünes Gewölbe. Supplemented by a selection of more than 60 objects from nearly all the collections of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (SKD), the exhibition focuses on the brief but intense period of close Saxon-French relations and the historically and culturally significant effects this had in the early nineteenth century.

On display are porcelains from among the gifts given by Napoleon in 1809, including a bust of Napoleon, large vases, as well as parts of a dinner and coffee service from Sèvres. There are also precious commemorative medals created to mark various events of the time, portraits of the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and King Friedrich August I of Saxony, which are now held in the Albertinum, the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, and the Rüstkammer, as well as unique memorabilia relating to both monarchs from the various collections of the SKD, particularly from the Rüstkammer.

The exhibition has been created in cooperation with the Public Enterprise Saxon Property and Construction Management. Once work on the Dresden Residenzschloss has been completed and it is fully in use as a museum building, which is planned for 2025, the tapestry will have its permanent home in the west wing.

A free, richly illustrated booklet covering the key topics of the exhibition is available for visitors in German and English language.

You are cordially invited to attend the press conference. Please register your intention to participate at presse@skd.museum.