Oath

This medieval tapestry “Oath” shows the work called the Oath of Pontida by Mose Bianchi (1840 – 1904). The Oath tapestry shows the alliance of Pontida formed in 1167 between the cities of Northern Italy including Cremona, Mantua, Bergamo, Genoa, Bologna, Padua, Modena Venice, Verona, Parma among others, to counter the Holy Roman Empire’s Frederick I, who was about to assert Roman influence over Italy. Pontida is a province of Italy in the region of Lombardy. Bianchi was an Italian painter who studied in Venice and Paris, and painted genre scenes. Here we see the swearing of the oath by the city’s representatives in a church in front of the cross. This medieval wall tapestry “Oath” is backed with a lining and has a tunnel for easy hanging.