Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 April 2011
Wolsey's significance as a patron of the arts has received considerable attention in recent years, but although modern studies have recognized that displays of plate and valuable materials played an important role in the demonstration of his wealth and power, his tapestry collection has never received detailed analysis. In fact, contemporary descriptions indicate that Wolsey's tapestries were one of the most striking aspects of his notoriously ostentatious lifestyle and an inventory of his possessions taken in the early 1520s shows that by this date he had amassed a collection of more than six hundred pieces. It is the purpose of this article to re-assess the evidence relating to the history, content and use of this vast collection.