The embroidery, a masterpiece of Romanesque art dating from the year 1070, is almost 70 meters long and 50 centimeters high, is made of wool on linen and represents the capture of England by William the Conqueror in 1066. Noted for its extraordinary state of conservation, the tapestry was included in 2007 among UNESCO's 'Memories of the World' to guarantee its protection and highlight its universal interest. From next week and for a year, it will be exhibited in London, on an unprecedented loan.

First modification: 08/28/2026 - 23:08 Last modification: 09/02/2026 - 20:25

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It is a national treasure of France's vast artistic heritage and is considered a masterpiece of medieval art.

Almost 1,000 years after its creation – which is presumed to have occurred in England – the Bayeux Tapestry is today the protagonist of an unprecedented loan, which will lead it to be on display at the British Museum from September 10, 2026 to July 11, 2027.

French President Emmanuel Macron, facilitator of the unprecedented transfer despite questions from some conservatives over possible damage to the fragile monument, will participate next week in its inauguration in London, in a new gesture of diplomacy through art that seeks to underline the rapprochement between France and the United Kingdom after 'Brexit'.

Read alsoFor the first time in almost 1,000 years, France lends the Bayeux Tapestry

What is the Bayeux Tapestry like?

Although it is known as a tapestry, the work is technically an embroidery with wool thread on linen fabric, 68.58 meters long and 50 centimeters high.

Its threads depict the events leading up to the Battle of Hastings in October 1066, when William, Duke of Normandy, defeated King Harold's Anglo-Saxon army.

That invasion, considered England's last successful conquest, ended Saxon rule, made William the Conqueror England's first Norman king, and further strengthened ties between Britain and France.

Its origin dates back to the year 1070 and the version most accepted by historians considers that it was commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux, William's half-brother, probably to decorate his new cathedral in 1077.

It is estimated that it would have been sewn by women from England – possibly nuns – before being transported to the other side of the English Channel.

Another hypothesis - discredited by archaeological diagnoses but promoted in popular belief - is that the piece could have been created by Queen Matilda, William's wife, and her artisans, which has earned it the name "Queen Matilda Tapestry."

The work consists of 58 scenes, 25 of them set in France and 33 in England. In it, ten colors of wool yarn are used to represent, through perspective effects, 626 figures, 737 animals – including 202 horses and mules –, 37 structures – including Mont Saint-Michel – and 41 ships.

What is narrated in the Tapestry?

According to the Bayeux Mayor's website, the story begins in 1064, when the king of England, Edward the Confessor, sends his brother-in-law Harold to Normandy to offer the English throne to his young cousin, William.

The numerous adventures of Harold's ship crossing the English Channel are also recorded in the embroidery, as is the delivery of the message and Harold's oath of loyalty to William over the relics in Bayeux Cathedral, a promise that Harold breaks after Edward's death.

On 6 January 1066, Harold accepts the coronation as King of England in place of the Duke of Normandy, leading William to decide to reclaim his throne and cross the Channel with his fleet on the night of 28 September.

The decisive Battle of Hastings begins on the morning of October 14, 1066 as, at the end of the day, Harold dies from an arrow to the eye. Thus, in December, William is finally crowned king of England, in Westminster Abbey.

Why is it such a valuable work for the art world?

The Bayeux Tapestry is considered a masterpiece of 11th-century Romanesque art and is judged by academics and art historians to be essential to understanding British history.

Experts highlight the complexity of the embroidery and the vivid and sometimes horrifying details depicted, with scenes of face-to-face combat, mutilated bodies or Harold's death by the arrow that pierces his eye.

Millie Horton-Insch, curator of the British Museum exhibition, told the AP agency that the piece "has an emotional richness that is very difficult to capture through written sources."

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"It brings the public closer to this story like no other object. It is not the same as reading a text. It is something that was manipulated by those who lived it and felt the need to record these events in this way," he stressed.

Another aspect that the expert highlights is that this document has survived ten centuries despite innumerable dangers such as "moths, mice, mold, humidity, fire", something that could be due in part to being made with simple materials.

"It's not actually made of any ostentatious fabric. It's not gold, it's not silver. There wasn't the same temptation to cut it up and turn it into clothing or give it another use," he noted.

What does it mean that UNESCO declared it 'Memory of the World'?

On November 12, 2007, after accepting the request of the Mayor of Bayeux, UNESCO made official the inclusion of the Bayeux Tapestry in the 'Memories of the World' register, thus joining the more than 150 documents of universal importance contemplated by the UN organization dedicated to education, culture and heritage.

Under this recognition, UNESCO seeks to guarantee the preservation of the world's documentary heritage, to allow universal access to these elements and to raise awareness in public opinion about their importance.

In the registration document, UNESCO highlights that the piece "is a historical chronicle, but also a source of essential information on the way of life of the Middle Ages in general, and the 11th century in particular."

"It is, therefore, a documentary testimony that uses specific narrative techniques and symbolism, like many literary and artistic creations of the Romanesque period," the entity emphasizes.

The United Nations body also recalls that "it is one of the first manuscripts that are part of the collections of the municipal library of Bayeux", in the French region of Normandy, and that since its discovery and presentation in the 1720s, it has been the subject of study in more than 500 publications.

"A unique work, without similar documents that allow genuine comparisons, it retains an aura of mystery to this day and several questions remain unanswered," highlights UNESCO, while warning that "the exceptional nature of this textile work" also requires "a very specific museographic presentation."

Why is the transfer of the Tapestry unprecedented and controversial?

This complexity referred to by UNESCO has been one of the reasons why the tapestry has spent most of the last millennium in the city of Bayeux, with the exception of two brief periods in which it was exhibited in the Louvre Museum in Paris.

Between 1803 and 1804, the piece was sent to the French capital by order of Napoleon Bonaparte, while in 1944 it returned to Paris to pay tribute to the English and American troops who liberated France.

Those who support the temporary loan to the United Kingdom of this work, belonging to the French State, point to these two transfers as proof that the tapestry is transportable.

However, the decision of President Emmanuel Macron – who began discussions on the possible transfer in 2018 and took advantage of the temporary closure for works of the Bayeux Tapestry Museum until October to carry it out – was questioned by art conservators, due to the extreme fragility of the almost 1,000-year-old embroidery.

In 2020, textile restorers inspected the tapestry and identified nearly 24,200 stains and 10,000 holes. That same year, the international scientific committee for this historic piece had noted that "only the restoration of the Bayeux Tapestry justifies its relocation."

For this reason, those in charge of the transfer carried out an extensive and delicate process to bring the tapestry to London in July, with a high-tech operation and strict security measures, the details of which were kept secret until its arrival.

According to reports, the tapestry was folded accordion-shaped inside a temperature-controlled display case, which in turn was placed inside a shock-absorbing structure. The package was transported in a truck that crossed the border from France on a shuttle train through the Channel Tunnel.

After a trip of 11 hours and 560 kilometers under police escort, the truck backed very slowly to a museum loading dock, where operators carefully lowered the container, the size of a small car.

After spending several days acclimatising and being carefully unpacked and displayed, the exhibition, which opens in September, is expected to be one of the most popular in the British museum's 267-year history.

Read alsoThe historic loan of the Bayeux tapestry reopens the debate on heritage conservation

In July, some 100,000 tickets were purchased on the first day of sale, a sign of the interest aroused by the British public in what they consider a 'return home' for this treasure of France and humanity.

With AP, AFP and sources

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