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Tapestry
cleaning,
by hand.

Antique tapestry cleaning should be done entirely by hand: museum dusting through a silk screen, dye-fastness testing, a gentle flat wash in demineralised water, then controlled flat drying — never a machine. At the Tapis Boeuf family atelier, founded in 1950, these gestures span four generations.

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Mobile +33 (0)6 17 59 32 54 Workshop +33 (0)9 50 91 88 85
  • ✶ Washed flat, entirely by hand
  • ✶ Natural products · neutral pH
  • ✶ Accredited with national museums
  • ✶ Insured fine-art transport

Washing

By hand · demineralised water

Products

Natural · neutral pH

Accreditation

National museums

Transport

Specialised fine-art carrier

✶

— The dust of centuries

An antique tapestry breathes. Year after year it absorbs fireplace smoke, the pollen of passing seasons, the light of every room it has hung in.

Cleaning a tapestry is not washing it. It is releasing the piece — carefully, patiently — from everything time has left behind, without touching what gives it value: the patina, the hand of the weave, the grain of age.

Our gestures, passed from bench to bench in a family atelier founded in 1950, are designed to respect that fragile line between care and erasure.

— Why it is different

Wall tapestry cleaning:
a craft of its own.

A woven wall hanging is built on a warp (the vertical foundation threads) crossed by a weft (the horizontal threads that carry the design). Both are often more than a century old — and they tolerate neither machines, nor household detergents, nor a conventional wash.

Every gesture of our tapestry cleaning protocol is designed to preserve the weave, the colours and the structure of the work.

  • Point 01

    Fragile fibres

    Wool, silk and linen, often centuries old — any mechanical stress is ruled out from the start.

  • Point 02

    Vegetable dyes

    Madder, indigo, cochineal — magnificent, and sensitive to detergents, heat and friction.

  • Point 03

    Lined backs

    A protective lining (the fabric panel sewn across the back) must be unpicked by hand, then re-stitched after cleaning.

  • Point 04

    Monumental formats

    Pieces of 2 to 30 m² that demand a large flat treatment surface — never folded, never hung wet.

— The essential gesture

After cleaning, your tapestry
recovers its original colours.

Before cleaning · 0 %

Flemish verdure · wool & silk · ca. 1705

Scroll

— Our cleaning techniques

Four techniques,
matched to the condition.

Every tapestry receives the technique that suits it, after diagnosis and dye-fastness testing. Nothing touches the piece until it has been proven safe.

01

Technique 01

Museum dusting

Low-suction vacuuming through a silk screen, front and back. Lifts a century of particles without mechanical stress. Always the first step.

02

Technique 02

Flat washing

A bath of tepid demineralised water and neutral plant-based soaps. The piece lies fully supported, selvedge to selvedge (the woven side edges that seal the weave) — never wrung, never machine-washed.

03

Technique 03

Dry cleaning

For pieces whose dyes will not tolerate water: dry sponges, museum-approved solvents, mineral absorbents. Worked under magnification, zone by zone.

04

Technique 04

Controlled drying

Flat, in a climate-controlled workshop, on ventilated racks. Never hung, never in sunlight. From 48 hours to 10 days, depending on the density of the weave.

Always beforehand

Dye-fastness tests on a hidden corner, before any contact with water.

We never wash a tapestry without first testing how its colorants react on an invisible fragment. If a dye migrates, we switch to dry cleaning. The safety of the work always comes before speed.

— Our process

Tapestry cleaning
in seven steps.

From the first photographs to final delivery — a process built on over 75 years of expertise, and on the time your tapestry deserves.

Step I

Photo diagnosis

Send high-resolution photos — full view, worn areas, the back. A first assessment and a free quote within 48 hours.

Step II

Specialised pickup

A fine-art carrier rolls the piece onto a rigid tube, under climate protection. Free pickup and delivery throughout France.

Step III

Flat examination

The tapestry is unrolled in the workshop: soiling mapped, fibres and dyes identified, a full photographic file opened.

Step IV

Dye-fastness testing

Each colour is tested on a hidden zone. The result decides the method — water or dry — before anything else happens.

Step V

Artisan cleaning

Museum dusting, then flat washing or dry cleaning as the diagnosis dictates. Slow, deliberate handwork under constant control.

Step VI

Flat drying

In a climatised atelier, on ventilated racks, for as long as the weave requires. No hot air, no direct sun.

Step VII

Delivery & certificate

Return by specialised carrier, with a before-and-after photographic report and a heritage cleaning certificate.

— Traditions in our care

Aubusson tapestry cleaning —
and every great weaving tradition.

From French manufactories to nomadic flat-weaves, our gestures adapt to each tradition — because antique tapestry cleaning is never one-size-fits-all.

France · 17th — 19th c.

Aubusson

Low-warp verdures and pastoral scenes. Wool, sometimes highlighted with silk.

Flanders · 15th — 17th c.

Flanders

Mille-fleurs and mythological scenes. Fragile fibres, early dyes that demand caution.

Paris · 17th — 19th c.

Gobelins

High-warp weaving, silk & gilt thread. Exacting museum-grade care, systematic testing.

Orient · 19th — 20th c.

Wall-hung kilims

Nomadic flat-weaves from Anatolia and the Caucasus, with strong vegetable dyes.

Also in our care: Beauvais · Brussels · Tournai · religious hangings · contemporary tapestries.

— They entrusted us with their tapestries

Reviews translated from French.

★★★★★   4.9 / 5 · 148 Google reviews

A family Aubusson yellowed by 80 years of dust. They cleaned it without losing a single tone. Work of remarkable patience.
Family château · Burgundy
A Flemish hanging two other workshops had refused as too fragile to wash. Tapis Boeuf chose a dry clean — the result is impeccable.
Antique dealer · Paris 6th
A wall-hung Caucasian kilim in a sorry state. After cleaning, the original reds came back. It is another object entirely.
Private client · Lyon

— Workshop philosophy

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— Going further

Beyond cleaning:
restoration & the atelier.

Some pieces need more than a careful wash. When the foundation (the underlying grid of warp and weft that holds the whole weave) is torn or worn through, cleaning alone cannot save it.

Sister service I

Tapestry restoration

Consolidation of weakened areas, reweaving (rebuilding lost warp and weft thread by thread), new protective linings, missing zones reconstructed — when cleaning is no longer enough.

Discover tapestry restoration →
The atelier II

Tapis Boeuf, since 1950

A family atelier in Sartrouville, 20 minutes from central Paris — cleaning, restoration and lifelong care for woven works of art, handed down across four generations.

Explore the full atelier →

— Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions about
tapestry cleaning.

What does a professional tapestry cleaning involve?
Professional tapestry cleaning is a museum-grade process carried out entirely by hand: progressive dusting through a silk screen, dye-fastness testing, a gentle flat wash in demineralised water (never a machine) and controlled flat drying. The wash also revives the vegetable dyes. This method has been handed down at our family atelier founded in 1950.

Can I clean a wall tapestry myself?
No — the only safe home care is a very light vacuum on low suction, through a fine screen. Any washing, household product or rubbing is strongly discouraged: old dyes are unpredictable and aged fibres weaken under the hand. When in doubt, simply send us photographs — free diagnosis within 48 hours.

How long does tapestry cleaning take?
Tapestry cleaning takes 3 to 6 weeks on average, from pickup to delivery. Timing varies with size, condition and the technique chosen — an 18th-century Aubusson of 4 m² can need up to 10 days of controlled drying on its own. Every quote states the exact lead time before work begins.

Is water safe for antique tapestry cleaning?
No, not always — water is only used after a dye-fastness test on a hidden zone of the piece. If the colorants migrate on contact with water, we switch to museum dry cleaning: dry sponges, adapted solvents, mineral absorbents. The safety of the work always comes before speed.

Do you provide a certificate after cleaning?
Yes — every tapestry cleaning comes with a before-and-after photographic report and a heritage cleaning certificate, delivered with the work. The certificate details the technique used, the products applied and the condition of the piece — a document recognised by specialised heritage insurers.

Another question? Call us:

Mobile +33 (0)6 17 59 32 54 Workshop +33 (0)9 50 91 88 85
✶

— Where we operate

Tapestry cleaning across France,
Monaco, Switzerland & Belgium.

Pickup & delivery

From our workshop in Sartrouville, 20 minutes from central Paris, we serve all of France (Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Strasbourg, Bordeaux, Lille, Nice…) as well as Monaco, Switzerland, Belgium and Luxembourg.

For fragile hangings, a specialised fine-art carrier handles the journey: rigid tube, climate protection, dedicated insurance.

Pickup and delivery
free throughout France.

Specialised carrier · fully insured

Arrange a pickup →
Mobile +33 (0)6 17 59 32 54 Workshop +33 (0)9 50 91 88 85
N S W E

France

Workshop · Sartrouville

Belgium

Luxembourg

Germany

Switzerland

Italy

Monaco

Spain

Saint-Malo

Strasbourg

Lyon

Marseille

Bordeaux

Lille

Dunkirk

Tours

Countries French cities

— Entrust us with your tapestry

Request your free quote
— pickup and delivery included.

From a single photograph to museum-grade tapestry cleaning — reply within 48 hours · free pickup and delivery · heritage certificate.

Get in touch

Specialised fine-art transport,
free throughout France.

Cleaning request

Photos (strongly recommended)

Guaranteed reply within 48 hours

Mobile +33 (0)6 17 59 32 54 Workshop +33 (0)9 50 91 88 85 Free quote →