During the early part of the 16th century, the Italian Renaissance began to have a significant influence on the arts. Artist Bernaert van Orley was one of the first to merge elements of the Netherlands tapestry tradition with elements taken from Italian design cartoons. The result was the realistic and highly decorative landscape detail of the Netherlands schools combined with scenes that represented physical or emotional drama as seen in the Italian Schools.
One of the first is a biblical tapestries that was design by Bernard van Orley and more than likely woven by Pieter de Pannemaker ca. 1525–28, probably for the duke of Alba, in a magnificent tapestry which is currently housed at Metropolitan Museum Of Art and titled – “The Last Supper”.