In a move that has ignited fierce debate on both sides of the English Channel, France’s decision to loan the nearly 1,000-year-old Bayeux Tapestry to the British Museum has been met with both jubilation and alarm, as conservationists, politicians, and the public weigh the risks and rewards of transporting one of Western Europe’s most treasured relics.
The tapestry, a 70-meter-long embroidered masterpiece that vividly chronicles William the Conqueror’s triumph at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, is set to cross the Channel for the first time in its storied existence. According to The Guardian, French President Emmanuel Macron announced in July 2025 that the tapestry would be loaned to the British Museum, with the exhibition scheduled from September 2026 to July 2027. This unprecedented loan is part of a broader cultural exchange, with the British Museum reciprocating by sending the famed Sutton Hoo collection and the Lewis Chessmen to France.
But not everyone is celebrating. An online petition opposing the move has rapidly gained traction, amassing more than 65,000 signatures as of August 31, 2025. The petition, spearheaded by Didier Rykner, editorial director of La Tribune de l’Art and a well-known art historian, calls the loan a “heritage crime.” Rykner, whose voice has become a rallying cry for those fearing for the tapestry’s future, wrote in the petition: “Its preservation, despite the many vicissitudes it went through, is nothing short of a miracle. We have inherited it. It is one of the major works of humanity’s history, which we must preserve at all costs for future generations. But this embroidery is extremely fragile. Conservation professionals specialised in textile say so. Their conclusion is final: any kind of transportation, even minimal, presents a risk.”
Rykner’s concerns are echoed by a chorus of experts who have worked closely with the tapestry. As reported by The Guardian, expert reports from 2020 and 2021 painted a sobering picture: the tapestry is riddled with around 24,200 stains and 10,000 holes, making it perilously fragile. The tapestry, which has never been housed in the UK despite being crafted by English embroiderers, has only been moved twice in modern history—once by Napoleon and once during the Nazi occupation. “The last two times it was moved were first by Napoleon and then by the Germans,” Rykner told The Guardian. “I cannot think of why you would want to be the third to move it.”
The stakes are high, and the opposition is not limited to the public. Museum professionals and conservators have voiced their apprehensions as well. In 2018, Antoine Verney, the Bayeux Museum’s chief curator, stated that he “could not conceive” of the tapestry being transported given its delicate state. The Bayeux Museum itself, which has displayed the tapestry in a vertical position since 1842, will be closing its doors from September 2025 to begin long-planned restoration work, with a reopening slated for October 2027. In a statement, the museum emphasized: “Together, we have developed engineering solutions for its delicate handling, particularly for moving it from the vertical position in which it has been displayed since its first public exhibition in 1842 to a horizontal position for its reinstallation in the new setting.”
Despite these reassurances, the petitioners remain unconvinced. Rykner’s petition argues that President Macron’s decision to loan the tapestry is “purely political,” taken “against the advice of conservators and restorers who know the Bayeux tapestry.” He continued, “This disregard for the facts and this arbitrary decision pose serious threats to the artwork.” The tapestry’s preservation, he insists, must take precedence over diplomatic gestures or cultural exchanges.
Yet the French government maintains that the loan can be executed safely. Philippe Belaval, appointed by Macron as his envoy for the project, rejected claims that the tapestry is untransportable. Speaking to the AFP news agency, Belaval said, “This study absolutely does not state that this tapestry is untransportable.” He emphasized that a detailed study conducted in early 2025 provided recommendations for handling and transport. “We have not yet determined 100% how to transport the tapestry – the main assumption involves road transport by lorry. The ministry of culture is conducting a further study on the tapestry’s resistance to vibrations and the possibility of eliminating them during transport to ensure safe transportation.”
The British Museum, for its part, is preparing to welcome the tapestry with open arms. Nicholas Cullinan, director of the British Museum, highlighted the extraordinary significance of the opportunity: “The Bayeux Tapestry is one of the most important and unique cultural artefacts in the world, which illustrates the deep ties between Britain and France and has fascinated people across geographies and generations. It is hard to overstate the significance of this extraordinary opportunity of displaying it at the British Museum, and we are profoundly grateful to everyone involved.” The museum’s conservation and collections management team, Cullinan assured, has extensive experience handling delicate materials of this kind.
The tapestry will be displayed in the Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery of the British Museum, with further details of the exhibition expected to be announced in due course. The timing is no accident: the loan will form the centerpiece of a 2027 season of culture in the UK, celebrating the 1,000th anniversary of William the Conqueror’s birth and coinciding with the Grand Depart of the 2027 Tour de France from the UK.
For many in Britain, the tapestry’s arrival is a long-awaited homecoming of sorts. The embroidery, despite its name, was crafted by English artisans and tells a story that is as much a part of England’s history as France’s. Previous requests to loan the tapestry to the UK—including for Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953 and the 900th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings in 1966—were both rebuffed by France. Now, after centuries of longing and decades of negotiation, the tapestry is finally set to cross the Channel—if all goes to plan.
Still, the controversy is unlikely to abate anytime soon. As the Bayeux Museum prepares to close for renovations and both nations gear up for a season of cultural exchange, the fate of the tapestry remains a lightning rod for debate about heritage, diplomacy, and the sometimes fraught balance between preservation and public access. With engineering solutions in development and ongoing studies into safe transport, the world will be watching closely to see whether one of its most precious artefacts can survive the journey unscathed.
Whatever the outcome, the saga of the Bayeux Tapestry’s loan is a vivid reminder of the enduring power of art to unite—and to divide—across centuries and borders.
