When you walk into the Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace, there's a moment where your brain has to recalibrate.

The room is big, yes.

The hammer beam roof is doing its dramatic tutor thing.

But what really hits you are the walls.

Or rather, the fact that you can barely even see them.

Because instead, you're surrounded by fabric,

enormous wall-devouring tapestries, rich reds, deep blues, golden thread catching the light.

Six of them line the north and south walls of the hall, and together they dominate the space

in a way that feels very deliberate.

This is not decoration, this is a statement.

These are Henry VIII's Abraham Tapestries,

and they are some of the most extraordinary surviving artworks of the Tudor Court.

And that's what we're going to talk about today.

So get comfy, grab a beverage, settle in,

and let's talk about the

Abraham Tapestries and Tapestries in general. Hey friend, welcome back to the YouTube channel for

the Renaissance English History Podcast. I am, as always, your host, Heather, and I am delighted

that you are here with me today to talk about Tudor Tapestries. What you're looking at today is part of the

complete set of ten tapestries woven in Brussels in the early 1540s. They tell the story of Abraham

from the Old Testament, scene by scene, in what art historians call continuous narrative.

That means multiple moments from the story appear within a single tapestry

unfolding across the background like a visual timeline. But here's the important thing. These

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