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George Osborne has revealed the reason that the British Museum is straying from tradition when displaying the Bayeux Tapestry – which won’t be hung on the wall like it is France.
The 230 foot-long work depicts the events leading up to 1066’s Normal Conquest of England and dates back to the 11th century. It has been transported from France’s Bayeux to the British Museum in London and will be open to the public in September.
However, its arrival in the UK hasn’t been without controversy; the late David Hockney wrote in The Independent in January that it was “madness” to transport the Bayeux Tapestry as it’s “too precious”, while many criticised the high £33 ticket price visitors will need to pay.
Those who managed to buy tickets won’t be seeing the tapestry on the walls of the British Museum, with the work being laid flat for the very first time.
Explaining the decision to do so, Osborne – who has been chairman of the British Museum since 2021 – said that it was for conservation reasons and reassured those visiting that they will get a chance to see the whole tapestry within the 40 minute ticket slot.
“Well, the tapestry is 70 metres long and we will have some clever exhibition features to encourage people to keep moving,” he said. “The tapestry was never designed to be a static experience. The beauty of having it flat is that you will be able to get really close and have your own intimate experience with it. But then you can go onto a balcony and see the whole thing from above.”
He also acknowledged the disappointment of those who weren’t able to purchase tickets to see the Bayeux Tapestry – with some queuing online for nine hours.
“When we put the first 100,000 tickets on sale we had five applicants for every ticket,” he said. “So of course some people felt frustrated if they applied unsuccessfully.
“But they will get many more chances as more batches of tickets go on sale.”
The Bayeux Tapestry returned to the UK for the first time is almost 1,000 years earlier this month, with the police transporting it from Folkestone to London on 10 July.
Director of the British Museum Dr Nicholas Cullinan said of the exhibition: “This has been a monumental effort from colleagues at the British Museum and our partners in the UK and France.
“Watching the Tapestry arrive at the Museum is a moment I will never forget and I look forward to seeing the exhibition take shape over the coming weeks and welcoming the first visitors through our doors this September.”
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