Bayeux Tapestry

Bayeux Tapestry, a pictorial history of the invasion of England by the Normans, beginning with Harold's visit to the Norman court, and ending with his death at the battle of Hastings, is so named because it was found originally in the cathedral of the town of Bayeux, where it is still preserved in the public library. It is supposed to be the work of Matilda, wife of William the Conqueror; though others claim it for the Empress Matilda, daughter of Henry I.; and a third party that it was produced as a decoration for the cathedral of Bayeux by order of Odo, the Conqueror's half-brother. The tapestry is 214 feet long and twenty inches wide; divided into seventy-two scenes, which are mostly described by Latin inscriptions. In it are the figures of 623 persons, 762 horses, dogs, etc., thirty-seven buildings, and forty-one boats. It has been reproduced several times, by drawing and by photography.