London (AFP) – The medieval Bayeux Tapestry arrived in London in the early hours of Friday after a hugely complicated journey to leave France for the first time in more than 900 years for an exhibition in the British capital.
Issued on: 10/07/2026 - 07:42
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AFP journalists at the British Museum saw a metal case holding the 11th-century work being unloaded from a truck which carried it across the Channel in a hushed-up, high-security operation."It's a unique moment and it's the product of so much hard work," museum director Nicholas Cullinan told AFP after the tapestry arrived around 3:00 am (0200 GMT). It left its home in northern France on Thursday night."It's been very special to have witnessed the arrival of the Bayeux Tapestry, and especially for it to be back on these shores for the first time in probably a thousand years," added Cullinan.While its exact origins are shrouded in mystery, the tapestry depicting the 1066 Battle of Hastings and start of the invasion by William the Conqueror's Norman army is widely thought to have been made in England before being transferred to Bayeux.It is believed to be the first time the fragile, 68-metre (224-foot) embroidered tapestry has left France since then, and the first time it has been moved in over 40 years.It will be displayed at the British Museum from September 10 to July 11, 2027, with 100,000 tickets already sold to the public for the first four months of the exhibition.The date and details of the move were kept secret until the departure of the tapestry, which was led by a police escort as it made its way through the British capital in the dead of night.'Moving moment'
