The nearly 1,000-year-old Bayeux Tapestry will be insured for 800 million pounds (about 917 million euros) during its temporary move from France to the UK. The UK Treasury will guarantee any damage or theft, reports Sky News.
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The 70-metre-long tapestry, made around 1068, depicts the Battle of Hastings in 1066, in which William the Conqueror defeated Anglo-Saxon King Harold. Normally, the embroidery is on display at the Bayeux Museum, which is being renovated over the next two years. Therefore, the tapestry is on loan to the British Museum in London, where it will be displayed behind a protective screen.
The insurance will be arranged through a UK guarantee scheme, which has existed for decades to allow valuable works to be loaned to British museums without the high costs of commercial insurers. The Treasury argues that some loans would otherwise not be feasible.
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The temporary relocation of the tapestry follows a period when British museums repeatedly faced protests, such as activists pouring soup over a Van Gogh painting or gluing themselves to a picture frame.
The Bayeux Tapestry will be on display at the British Museum from September 2026 to July 2027. The Bayeux museum will reopen its doors in October 2027. During the move, the tapestry will still be restored in France to present it in optimal condition in London.
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Source: AD
