Building    From 1619  To 1703

Mortlake Tapestry Works

Categories: Craft / Design

Barnes History has a nice hand-drawn map with a pin showing the location of these Tapestry Works, and it gives the history of the site. John Dee (1527 -1608) lived in a house on this site (with a large and important library) from 1566 until his death by which time he was very poor. In 1619 the estate was purchased and repurposed as the Mortlake Tapestry Works which employed skilled Flemish weavers to produce highly valued products. This closed in the early 18th century.

Another excellent source is Panorama of the Thames. This has another image of the river front which makes clear that the Lower Dutch House is the pink building, shown in our image, to the left of the steps down to the river. Our image is centred on the adjacent Queen's Head pub. The picture source website has researched the 'J.Firmston' named in the picture and this dates it to 1871-8. So the Lower Dutch House was still standing then.The name suggests there was another, upper, 'Dutch House' possibly standing further back from the river. 'Dutch' presumably came from the language/culture of the people working there.

The tapestries were so successful that Mortlake became famous for this product. The Lady Lever Art Gallery holds a set of the tapestries.

(The pub was rebuilt in 1885, closed in the 1940s and, by 2011 was developed into the residential Tapestry Court.)

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Mortlake Tapestry Works

Commemorated ati

Mortlake Tapestry Works

Site of the Lower Dutch House, part of the Mortlake Tapestry Works, 1619 - 1703.

Read More

Other Subjects

Joanna Rice

Joanna Rice

Mosaic/ceramic artist, active c. 2005.

Person, Craft / Design

1 memorial
David Tootill

David Tootill

Mosaic/ceramic artist, active c. 2005.

Person, Craft / Design

1 memorial
Stuart Freeborn

Stuart Freeborn

Make-up artist. He worked on some of the most notable films of the 20th century, including Alec Guinness as Fagin in David Lean's 'Oliver Twist'. Worked for Kubrick on the three incarnations of Pet...

Person, Cinema, Craft / Design

1 memorial
Martin Travers

Martin Travers

Howard Martin Otho Travers was an English church artist and designer. One of the most influential British stained glass artists of the twentieth century. 1925 - 48 chief instructor in stained glass...

Person, Craft / Design, Sculpture

1 memorial
Peace symbol

Peace symbol

Designed by Gerald Holtom as a nuclear disarmament logo for the first Aldermaston March, which took place Easter, 4–7 April 1958. From the Hackney Gazette: "Gerald had first presented the symbol t...

Media, Craft / Design, Peace

1 memorial

Previously viewed

Limehouse WW1 Cross

Limehouse WW1 Cross

E1, Butcher Row, St James' Gardens

We photographed this section of the cross to show the very unusual carving. At the base this depicts thorny branches entwined around ste...

War dead | WW1
36 subjects commemorated