Bayeux Tapestry to return to Britain after 900 years

The Bayeux Tapestry is set to return to the UK for the first time since it was created more than 900 years ago. The 70-metre-long medieval tapestry, which chronicles the Norman Conquest of 1066, will go on display from September until July next year in The Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery at the British Museum in London,

- TOM WATLING

The exhibition will be announced by culture secretary Lisa Nandy and her French counterpart Rachida Dati as part of French president Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte’s state visit to the UK. Ms Nandy described the tapestry as “iconic”.

The Bayeux Tapestry, one of the world’s most famous pieces of medieval art, will be temporarily swapped for the Anglo-Saxon treasures of the Sutton Hoo ship burial. Museums in Normandy will host the Sutton Hoo treasures. The Lewis chessmen - ivory pieces dating back to the 12th century that were discovered in Scotland in 1831 - will also be loaned to France.

The excavation of Sutton Hoo, in Suffolk, found what is believed to be the 1,400-year-old burial of a king. The find included golden coins, a sword, a shield, and an iron helmet from the Anglo-Saxon period.

The Bayeux Tapestry, which is widely believed to have been crafted by English embroiderers in Kent, has been held in France since it was first created in the years after the 1066 Battle of Hastings.