[Sidenote:
_Wool._
H. 13 _ft._ 3 _in._
W. 8 _ft._ 3 _in._
]
[Sidenote: Another rendering in the Vienna Collection, No. 253; another in
the Musée Impériale des Ecuries, Petrograd, No. 118.]
THE INDIAN HUNTER: _This tapestry is one of a set of eight illustrating
the New India after designs by François Desportes. The set was first woven
in 1687._ _This piece has the first type of border used with the series_,
_bearing the arms of the king_, _which means that it was woven before_
1768 _under either Cozette or Neilson_.[32]
The design is typical of the romantic primitivism that Rousseau formulated
in his conception of the Noble Savage. The accuracy of detail in the
Indian basket is interesting and rather unexpected.
[Sidenote: Lent by _Demotte_.]
François Desportes (1661-1743) studied under Bernaert, a pupil of
Snyders. He entered the Academy in 1699 and was made painter to the
king. He is famous for his paintings of animals and hunting scenes.
[Sidenote: 66]