Bayeux Tapestry ‘virtually unchanged’, UK museum says, after France spots broken threads

France’s President Emmanuel Macron (left), Britain’s King Charles III (centre) and Britain’s Queen Camilla (right) views sections of the Bayeux Tapestry during a preview event for the Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition, at the British Museum in London on September 2, 2026. — AFP pic

First Published: Saturday, 05 Sep 2026 9:24 AM MYT

LONDON, Sept 5 — The British Museum yesterday insisted the Bayeux Tapestry’s condition was “virtually unchanged” after France said two broken threads had been noticed following the centuries-old embroidery’s move to London.

The 11th-century work will be displayed at the British Museum from next week until July next year as part of an unprecedented loan from France to Britain.

French and British conservators carried out a full check of the tapestry’s condition when it arrived in London in July.

“A break of two threads over a length of 70 metres of a tapestry was reported,” French Culture Minister Catherine Pegard told the country’s RTL broadcaster.

The tapestry “was examined with particular care. It took a lot of time because the experts went over it centimetre by centimetre,” Pegard said, while stressing any damage was minor.

“So today, if we say it is in the same state after having arrived in London as it was when it left Bayeux, I think we’re not very wrong.”

The British Museum said in a statement sent to AFP that a draft report it received this week on the tapestry’s condition before and after arrival “strongly suggests the Tapestry’s condition is virtually unchanged”.

The London museum said the report on the embroidered work’s condition is not yet final and has yet to be agreed by its conservators and the French team.

‘No visible alteration’

According to the British Museum, thread breaks, measuring a few millimetres at most, are not considered significant damage, and could have happened at any point since “before” photos were taken in September 2025 at the Bayeux Museum.

The tapestry’s full condition check on arrival was the first such examination carried out since 2020, the British Museum noted.

Depicting the 1066 Battle of Hastings and the invasion by William the Conqueror’s Norman army, the tapestry is widely thought to have been made in England before being transferred to Bayeux in France.

It is believed to be the first time the 68m embroidered artwork has left France in more than 900 years, and the first time it has been moved in over 40 years.

During its journey to London, the fragile artefact was kept under tight security in a specially designed double case to limit vibrations and maintain constant temperature and humidity levels.

A French culture ministry official said in July after its arrival there had been “no visible alteration” to the embroidery in transit.

La Croix newspaper earlier this week reported a more thorough check by experts had confirmed “no major damage”.

They only noted “slight tears in two areas” of the linen canvas, the daily said.

King Charles III on Wednesday hailed the loan of the artwork as a “precious symbol of trust at a time when trust seems sadly to be in short supply between nations”.

France’s President Emmanuel Macron said he hoped the two countries could “forge a bond as close as the threads of this thousand-year-old embroidery”. — AFP