Reading's replica tapestry
Reading Museum contains a full-size recreation of the Bayeux Tapestry that was made by skilled embroiderers during the 1880s
Located a short walk from the town’s major railway station, Reading Museum is situated within Reading Town Hall. Containing galleries describing the history of Reading and the surrounding area, the museum has been open since 1883.
One of the museum’s most famous exhibits is an accurate replica of the Bayeux Tapestry. It was made in Staffordshire in the 1880s by 35 women of the Leek Embroidery Society and is the only known full-size woven copy of the original tapestry in existence.
Measuring 230ft (70m) long, the tapestry depicts the events of the Norman Conquest of England by William, Duke of Normandy in 1066. Told from the Norman perspective, the tapestry’s details include the preparations for war and William’s decisive victory against King Harold II of England at the Battle of Hastings. The original tapestry was probably made in England a few years after 1066, although it was sent to Normandy shortly afterwards. It now resides in a special museum in Bayeux.
The replica resides in Reading Museum because the area has direct links with the Norman Conquest. William’s youngest son King Henry I of England founded Reading Abbey in 1121 for (in his words) “the salvation of my soul, and the souls of King William, my father, and of King William [II], my brother… and all my ancestors and successors”. The abbey became one of Europe’s largest royal monasteries, with Henry I being buried there in 1135. Henry I was a successful military commander himself and ruled England for much longer than his father and elder brother.
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