This tapestry, woven by the workshop of Michel Audran (1701-1771) after a design by Charles-Antoine Coypel (1694-1752) and Clément-Louis-Marie-Anne Belle (1722-1806), is titled Alceste and draws inspiration from the ancient Greek myths of Alcestis. According to the ancient tales, she was the beautiful daughter of King Pelias of Iolcos, and she married the king of Pherae, Admetos by name. Admetos’ courtship of Alcestis was unorthodox, as the king of Pherae won his future wife’s hand in marriage by completing a difficult public challenge issued by Alcestis’ father, Pelias. The challenge was to leash a lion and a boar to a chariot, and Admetos succeeded in this quest with the help of the gods. With the challenge completed, Admetos received permission from Pelias to marry Alcestis. Competition and political arrangements aside, Alcestis ultimately embraced the role of the selfless, devoted wife. Admetos, unfortunately, did not always reciprocate his wife’s sacrificial love.
After the wedding of Alcestis and Admetos, the gods Apollo and Artemis decided to pay a visit to the couple’s kingdom. Artemis, the huntress goddess, stalked around the local shrines and temples during her stay, and she angrily concluded that her due sacrifices and offerings in Pherae were not up to her standards. In her fury over the deficient offerings, Artemis began to plot a deadly punishment against the king of the city. She was not subtle about her intentions, leading to Admetos discovering he was in peril. The king of Pherae rushed to Apollo, who was his friend, and begged for assistance. Apollo, willing to help, concluded that Artemis’ curse could not be outright stopped, but he theorized that the wrath of the goddess could potentially be delayed or transferred if the Fates consented.
Following Apollo’s direction, Admetos was able to postpone Artemis’ vengeance, and the Fates were persuaded to allow for a willing volunteer to take Admetos’ place the next time the king faced death. Yet, who would willingly sacrifice their own life so that Admetos could live? Cue Admetos’ selfless and devoted wife, Alcestis. She volunteered to make the ultimate sacrifice. This myth and its conclusion was described by a scholar known as Pseudo-Apollodorus (c. 1st-2nd century):
“Apollo advised him to propitiate the goddess, and demanded of the Fates that when Admetos was about to die, he should be released from death if somebody would freely choose to die in his place. When the day came for him to die, neither his father nor his mother was willing to die for him, so Alcestis died in his place. But Kore [or Persephone] sent her back to earth again, or, according to some accounts, Heracles fought with Hades for her [and returned her to Admetos]” (Apollodorus, Library, I.9.15).
Such is the myth that is re-created in the tapestry. The artwork likely depicts the ending of the myth, with Alcestis returning home to Admetos after her adventure in the land of the dead. Michel Audran and the designers seemed to have opted for the tale of Heracles being Alcestis’ rescuer. This can be discerned due to the prominent Herculean figure in the center of the tapestry, seen wielding Heracles’ signature club. Interestingly, Apollo, as a god associated with prophecy and oracles, could likely foresee that Alcestis would be rescued from the realm of Hades. Admetos, on the other hand, was not privy to that knowledge when he allowed his wife to offer herself as sacrifice.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Sources:
- Apollodorus, The Library of Greek Mythology, translated by Robin Hard. New York, Oxford University Press, 1997.
- The Oxford Dictionary of Classical Myth and Religion, edited by Simon Price and Emily Kearns. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
- http://hdl.handle.net/10020/97p7_309049
- https://primo.getty.edu/primo-explore/fulldisplay?vid=GRI-OCP&docid=GETTY_OCPFL637658&context=L&tab=all_gri&lang=en_US
