Endorsements

This book aims to make sense of the Bayeux Tapestry by bringing together answers to a number of questions. How did the embroiderers go about organising the stitching of the Bayeux Tapestry? Is its limited colour palette used with greater sophistication than viewers have hitherto recognised? What do we know of the Bayeux Tapestry's supporting cast: the naked figures in the margins and the clerics present atevents in the main register? What of the context in which the Tapestry was produced? Can we learn anything about the original purpose of the Tapestry from detailed examination of Bayeux Cathedral's Inventory of 1476, the first known reference to the Tapestry's existence? In addition to considering the Tapestry in the context of its medieval reception, the book examines its continuing cultural significance. What do the numerous facsimiles generated from the time of its discovery to the present day, and the 20th century emergence of new histories embroidered in the style of the Bayeux Tapestry, tell us about its changing relevance? The book combines up-to-the-minute research with an introduction that draws on the contributors' personal observations in order to interrogate the Tapestry's enduring value. Bringing together contributions from leading specialists Gale Owen-Crocker, Shirley Ann Brown, Elizabeth Pastan, and the Tapestry's curator, Sylvette Lemagnen, and newer voices in the field, the book is essential reading for students and scholars of the Bayeux Tapestry, and medieval art and culture. -