U.K. reveals details of arrangement with France for Bayeux Tapestry loan

The United Kingdom has published its loan arrangement with France for the Bayeux Tapestry, which will go on view at the British Museum next year as the French museum where it is normally housed undergoes a major renovation through 2027.

The Bayeux Tapestry, perhaps the most famous surviving work of medieval art, is a 70-meter-long embroidered linen recounting the Norman Conquest of England, culminating in the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It is housed in its own dedicated museum in Normandy and has never left France for an exhibition.

The loan of the 1,000-year-old tapestry was arranged in July during a state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron to London. The tapestry, the British government noted, is listed as a historic monument and inscribed on UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.

In exchange, the British Museum is loaning France several major items from its collection, including the Sutton Hoo Treasure — a trove of seventh-century burial goods uncovered in 1939 that fundamentally reshaped understanding of early medieval England.

The agreement published by the British government revealed that the tapestry needs restoration “in the near future,” while authorities also had high-level legal and financial concerns for safety of the historic artifact that require “exceptional measures and precautions” for its loan.

France planned a “dry run” of the tapestry’s journey to London this fall using a crate fitted with a dummy replica and a vibration-analysis device. Based on those readings, officials would aim to reduce vibrations on the actual tapestry to below 2 millimeters per second and develop a transport crate that meets isothermal preservation and security standards, according to the agreement.

That test shipment appears to have been expected before October 15, when the tapestry was to be packed into its official crate and moved to a secure storage site until its transfer to the British Museum.

The British government agreed that the British Museum would meet strict preservation, security and transport standards set with France.

The museum would then commission a purpose-built display table required to support the tapestry, pay for any building work or environmental adjustments needed to meet conservation rules, and cover the cost of condition reports when the artifact arrives and departs, all under the supervision of the French Ministry of Culture.

Similar terms will apply to the British Museum items being loaned to France, which will be displayed at museums in Normandy.

“The parties agree that the loans of the tapestry to the United Kingdom and the loan of the [British Museum] works to the French party, shall be undertaken in the spirit of a balanced partnership and mutual scholarly interest,” the agreement reads.

The British Museum exhibition of the Bayeux Tapestry will run from September 2026 to July 2027. The tapestry is to return to France no later than September 1, 2027.

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