A section of the Bayeux Tapestry, an embroidered cloth 231 feet long depicting the Norman Conquest of England and the Battle of Hastings.
Credit: Spencer Arnold Collection/Hulton Archive
When President Emmanuel Macron of France pledged to loan the Bayeux Tapestry to the UK in 2018, it was hailed as a gesture of “extraordinary generosity” and a first in 950 years.
Gushing reports suggested that the hallowed yarn, which unspools the story of the 1066 Battle of Hastings during the Norman Conquest, would be on display in the British Museum as early as 2022.
However, it now appears Mr Macron spoke too soon.
On Wednesday, the mayor of Bayeux ruled out sending the delicate 70 metre-long embroidery before autumn 2024 and even then, he said, only if the UK restores it.
It had been assumed that the tapestry would be on display for an extensive period in the UK to allow thousands of Britons to see it on home soil.
But speaking to the Telegraph, Bayeux’s centre-Right mayor Patrick Gomont said he would only agree to it leaving his town for around two years, while the museum currently housing it shuts for a €30m makeover starting Autumn 2024.
The tapestry requires significant repair and restoration
Credit: GETTY IMAGES
Bayeux has the power to veto any loan to the UK as part of a Memorandum of Understanding between the British government, the French state and the town.
“I’ll only agree to it being moved when our museum is shut for works,” he said.
“It has to be moved because we can’t restore the tapestry in situ in the museum, as it’s too small. Given that, whether it moves one kilometre, 100km or 500km changes little.”
“So I’d be open to a British team restoring it. In that case, it could go to the UK.”
Mr Gomont said it would have to be returned in time for the re-opening of the Bayeux museum in 2026, however.
French experts have concluded that the tapestry, which many historians believe was woven by nuns in Canterbury, requires major repair and restoration work that will take at least 18 months to complete at an estimated cost of €2m (£1.7m).
In a report last month, eight experts said they had found 24,200 stains and 10,000 holes that require urgent attention.
A scene from the tapestry in which William's fleet is depicted crossing the English Channel
Credit: GETTY IMAGES
That would only leave about six months for it to go on display in the UK.
Explaining the tight time limit, Mr Gomont said: “We are a small town that is economically dependent on the museum, which brings in 400,000 visitors per year."
“Can you imagine that I opened our new Bayeux museum and the tapestry wasn’t in it? I’d get lynched.”
Britain has unsuccessfully attempted to secure a loan of the tapestry, which recounts William the Conqueror’s victory over King Harold II of England, several times already, including for the Queen’s coronation in 1953 and for the 900-year anniversary of the Battle of Hastings in 1966.
Prof Michael Lewis of the British Museum, a member of the Bayeux Tapestry scientific committee and co-author of a forthcoming book, The Story of the Bayeux Tapestry, said he remains hopeful that the treasure will be displayed in Britain eventually.
About the Bayeux Tapestry
“The timetable has been knocked back, that’s for certain. But after it has been conserved, there is a possibility that it could still be loaned for display.
“I know there are a lot of people out there who are not so sure that will happen. But, as I understand it, the agreement is still standing between the British and the French governments and there is still a desire from many people for that to happen.
“It would be the most amazing thing to be able to display the Bayeux Tapestry in this country,” he said.
Mr Macron’s surprise promise to loan the tapestry in 2018 at the height of Brexit fever was hailed as arguably the grandest Gallic diplomatic gesture towards Britain in modern times — despite the symbolism of the work in which England’s king gets a Norman arrow in the eye.
At the time, he said: “It hasn’t left French soil in almost 1,000 years and symbolises the links between our two countries.”
Read more: Is the world’s most famous embroidery actually British?
It sparked calls for the UK to lend France the Rosetta Stone, discovered by a Frenchman.
However, Mr Macron did say it would only be sent if experts agreed it was feasible given its fragility.
Antoine Verney, lead curator of the Bayeux museum, said: “The tapestry is an old lady who is nearly 1,000 years old, a very, very fine linen canvas embroidered with wool which now shows multiple signs of damage.”
"Any handling of the work in its current state can lead to new alterations. This is the main reason for this intervention,” he told AFP.
The Bayeux Tapestry is technically an embroidery
Credit: GETTY IMAGES
Just to inspect the tapestry on-site was hair-raising and required 50 people “perfectly-coordinated and used to this move”, said the curator.
When asked how this affected the plan to send it to Britain, the regional Normandy cultural affairs department, DRAC, said: “No decision has been made yet concerning a possible loan.”
The Bayeux loan was officially sealed in a Memorandum of Understanding signed by former UK Culture Secretary Matt Hancock and his French counterpart.
At the time, Mr Hancock said: “The Bayeux Tapestry is a world treasure and a symbol of the deep ties between Britain and France.”
Regarding restoration, experts say there is no intention of cleaning all the stains on the cloth as this could further damage it, but rather to “stabilise” the work. Indeed some imperfections, such as wax from candles when it hang in the Bayeux cathedral in the 15th century, are of historical value.
Of more concern are the holes from nails or wear-and-tear.
Indeed, the “old lady”, which weighs slightly less than 15kg, is so tired that once restored it will be no longer be exhibited vertically but inclined and not in a horseshoe but a straight line.
Read more: Mystery of why Bayeux Tapestry is so long and thin finally solved
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