Editing Tapestry (section)

==Terms and etymology==
[[File:Loom haute lisse DSC08774.jpg|thumb|High-warp loom at the [[Gobelins factory]] with mirrors, so the weaver behind the web can follow his work ([[:File:Loom basse lisse DSC08828.jpg|photo of low warp loom]]).]]
In English, "tapestry" has two senses, both of which apply to most of the works discussed here. Firstly it means work using the tapestry weaving technique described above and below, and secondly it means a rather large textile wall hanging with a figurative design. Some embroidered works, like the [[Bayeux Tapestry]], meet the second definition but not the first. The situation is complicated by the French equivalent ''tapisserie'' also covering [[needlepoint]] work, which can lead to confusion, especially with pieces such as furniture covers, where both techniques are used.

According to the [[Oxford English Dictionary]], the earliest use in English was in a will of 1434, mentioning a "Lectum meum de tapstriwerke cum leonibus cum pelicano".<ref>OED, "Tapestry: Tapestry-work"</ref> They give a wide definition, covering: "A textile fabric decorated with designs of ornament or pictorial subjects, painted, embroidered, or woven in colours, used for wall hangings, [[curtains]], covers for seats, ..." before mentioning "especially" those woven in a tapestry weave.<ref>OED, "Tapestry"</ref>

The word ''tapestry'' derives from [[Old French]] {{lang|fro|tapisserie}}, from {{lang|fro|tapisser}},<ref>{{OEtymD|tapestry}}</ref> meaning "to cover with heavy fabric, to carpet", in turn from {{lang|fro|tapis}}, "heavy fabric", via [[Latin]] {{lang|la|tapes}} ({{smallcaps|[[genitive|gen]]:}} {{lang|la|tapetis}}),<ref>{{L&S|tapes|ref|lL&S}}</ref> which is the [[Latinisation (literature)|Latinisation]] of the [[Greek language|Greek]] {{lang|grc|τάπης}} ({{lang|grc-Latn|tapēs}}; {{smallcaps|gen:}} {{lang|grc|τάπητος}}, {{lang|grc-Latn|tapētos}}), "carpet, rug".<ref>{{LSJ|ta%2Fphs|τάπης|ref}}.</ref> The earliest attested form of the word is the [[Mycenaean Greek]] {{lang|gmy|𐀲𐀟𐀊}}, {{lang|gmy-Latn|ta-pe-ja}}, written in the [[Linear B]] [[syllabary]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The Linear B word ta-pe-ja|url=http://www.palaeolexicon.com/ShowWord.aspx?Id=16932|website=Palaeolexicon. Word study tool for ancient Languages}}</ref>

"Tapestry" was not the common English term until near the end of the classic period for them. If not just called "hangings" or "cloths", they were known as "arras", from the period when [[Arras]] was the leading production centre.  ''Arazzo'' is still the term for tapestry in Italian, while a number of European languages use variants based on [[Gobelins Manufactory|Gobelins]], after the French factory; for example both Danish and Hungarian use ''gobelin'' (and in Danish ''tapet'' means [[wallpaper]]).  Thomas Campbell argues that in documents relating to the [[Tudor dynasty|Tudor]] royal collection from 1510 onwards "arras" specifically meant tapestries using gold thread.<ref>Campbell (2007), xiv</ref>