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<\/p>\nIt’s the only remaining pictorial account of these events<\/p>\n
This might not seem like extraordinary news, but as the only sources from the time are written, it’s something worth noting. The majority of people during the Middle Ages won\u2019t have been able to read, and so the tapestry would have been commissioned so that it could be understood en masse. It\u2019s the same today: the majority of Brits today won\u2019t have access to these written documents, and so, the exhibition of the Bayeux tapestry has made it accessible for all.<\/p>\n
It captures what women lived through during that time period<\/p>\n
While the chances are high that the tapestry was made by women, there are very few depicted in the artefact. However, those that are give an insight into the women’s lives during that period.<\/p>\n
In one scene, a male cleric appears to touch a startled women’s space. In another, a woman presumed to be Queen Edith \u2013 wife of King Edward \u2018the Confessor\u2019 and sister of Harold \u2018Godwinson\u2019 \u2013 weeps at her husband’s deathbed, while a third woman flees a burning building set alight by Norman soldiers with a child in tow. From this, you can understand that a women\u2019s plight during the Norman conquest would have likely experienced sexual assault, displacement and grave loss.<\/p>\n
One of the tapestry\u2019s biggest mysteries is the identity of \u00c6lfgyva, who\u2019s shown within an arched frame, apparently being assaulted by a priest. This is confirmed by a naked figure in the lower border mimicking the priest’s pose. While her identity has been speculated as several possibilities, a recent article co-authored by Michael Lewis, lead curator of the British Museum The Bayeux Tapestry experience, suggests that \u00c6lfgyva may be Emma of Normandy<\/p>\n
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Bayeux Tapestry, detail (Photo by: Universal History Archive\/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)Universal History Archive\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
How to get tickets<\/p>\n
As mentioned, tickets from the exhibitions opening date (September 10th) until the end December 31st have sold out \u2013 but fear not! Tickets for January to July 2027 will be on sale later this year. Simply sign up to The British Museum newsletter<\/a> to stay up to date as to when they\u2019ll be available.<\/p>\n