For the first time, the exhibition Iconography of Evil. Tapestries of “The Seven Deadly Sins” brings together two exceptional tapestry series from the collection of Patrimonio Nacional. Commissioned in the sixteenthth century, they reflect both the mastery of Pieter Coecke van Aelst (1502-1550) and the importance of textile art for the Spanish monarchy. Coecke van Aelst was a Flemish painter, draftsman and printmaker, known for his work as a designer of tapestry cartoons and for his role in the dissemination of the Renaissance style in northern Europe. These two sets of tapestries, formerly in the collections of Mary of Hungary (1505-1558) and the Count of Egmont (1522-1568), were acquired by Philip II (1527-1598) and have been witnesses to centuries of history and to different uses and interpretations.

The exhibition has two principal sections. The six surviving tapestries from the series that belonged to the Count of Egmont are presented in the traditional order of the Sins: Avarice, Sloth, Anger, Lust, Gluttony and Envy. In contrast, the four that remain from the set of Mary of Hungary, governor of the Low Countries, follow the sequence which she used for their display in the great hall of her palace of Binche, Belgium, during the visit of the Emperor Charles V and his son Philip II in 1549: Pride, Gluttony, Lust and Sloth. Through this paired arrangement visitors can compare the different visual narratives and also understand the evolution of moral thought in the Renaissance.

Complementing the presentation of the tapestries, five displays focus on the symbology of these sins, the production of the tapestries in Flanders, their arrival in Spain, their function at court and their status in the modern age. The exhibition encourages a reflection on art as a vehicle for moral teaching and an expression of power while also highlighting the exceptional survival and the study of these tapestries, which are fundamental for an understanding of the history of Spain’s textile heritage.