This tapestry comes from the celebrated <i>Portières des Dieux</i> series, designed by Claude Audran III (1658-1734) for the French royal tapestry manufactory, the Gobelins. The series depicts the four seasons and four elements and enjoyed such widespread popularity that it was re-woven continuously between 1700 and 1789.
Neptune was the God of the sea, and as such, ably personifies the element that forms the subject of this tapestry: water. He is shown seated astride a cloud, beneath a garland of coral, with his trident in one hand. The motifs in the surrounding arabesques evoke the oceanic world: pearls, fish, fishing nets, seaweed and the prow of a ship cresting a wave.