In the late 15th century, Brussels began to supplant Tournai as a centre of tapestry-making in both skill and artistry. The increase in quality was due to finer fabric, more luxurious materials and superior modelling created by an interplay of colours. Borders framing the central picture also appeared. The most important series of tapestries at the museum is the biblical narrative of the patriarch Jacob (Genesis 25-50).

The ten tapestries were made in the workshop of the Brussels weaver Willem de Kempeneer: the mark of the city and the workshop are woven into the borders of some of the tapestries, a practice required of Brussels workshops starting in 1528. The series was designed by Bernard van Orley, one of the most important Italianizing painters of the region.