The Bayeux Tapestry is familiar to the general public in Europe and America, but why is it important? This lecture explains its significance as a narrative embroidery – the largest textile artefact surviving from the Middle Ages – discusses the mysteries of its origin, and shows how it was composed and constructed. It considers the historical narrative of the Norman Conquest of England which it depicts; it explains what the Latin inscription tells us and shows how much it leaves out; and explains why the Bayeux Tapestry is the subject of heated argument nearly 1,000 years after its manufacture.
Bio: GALE R. OWEN-CROCKER is an Anglo-Saxon specialist who enjoys interdisciplinary research, which uses, for example, archaeological evidence to illuminate Old English literature; and art, archaeology, glosses and text (both Latin and English) to explore the issue of Anglo-Saxon dress. She is the co-founder and co-editor of the international journal Medieval Clothing and Textiles. Her recent books include King Harold II and the Bayeux Tapestry (2005); Dress in Anglo-Saxon England: revised and enlarged edition (2004), The Four Funerals in Beowulf: and the structure of the poem (2000), Medieval Art: recent perspectives (1998) and Anglo-Saxon Texts and Contexts (1998).
