Bayeux Tapestry replica goes on display in town

A full replica of the famous Bayeux Tapestry is going on display as part of a nationwide programme to bring the story of the 1066 Norman conquest to more people.

The real 11th century artefact is currently on display at the British Museum for a limited time having been carefully packed up and shipped from France, with tickets selling out fast.

John Wood, collections manager at Swindon's STEAM Museum, said the Bayeux Around Britain programme had sent them high-quality images of each section of the tapestry, enabling them to print it.

"You'll get a sense of the scale of the tapestry, 70 metres is huge. It's a remarkable comic strip of events," he said.

Wood hopes the replica will be able to show the detail within it too, down to every stitch.

The tapestry, technically an embroidery, features more than 600 characters and 200 horses.

He explained that Swindon does have a connection to the artefact through the man believed to have commissioned it - Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, William the Conqueror's half-brother.

Odo was given land near Swindon after the conquest and collected rent from people in the area.

"In some small way, Swindon may have paid an amount towards the manufacture of the tapestry," he said.

The replica is at the museum from 10 to 19 November and due to school visits will be open 15:00 to 17:00 GMT on weekdays but the usual museum opening times at the weekend.

Councillor Matt Vallender Swindon Borough Council's Cabinet Member for Culture, Planning and Regeneration, said: "We're proud that STEAM Museum has been chosen as a host venue for Bayeux Around Britain.

"This exhibition will give people the chance to get up close to a full-scale, 70 metre, reproduction of the Bayeux Tapestry and explore one of the most important events in English history."

Once the exhibition in Swindon is over, sections of the replica will move to the Wiltshire Museum in Devizes where it will go on display from 12 December to 20 February.

Devizes was founded in the Norman period with the castle built around 1080 by Osmund, Bishop of Salisbury and nephew to King William I.

The Fragments of 1066 exhibition will have Wiltshire objects from the time period on display as well.

The British Museum hopes the Bayeux Round Britain programme will give more people the chance to engage with the tapestry.

The exhibition in London has been a sell out, with many disappointed they have not yet got tickets.

John Stokes, Head of National Partnerships, British Museum called the full sized recreation "staggering", adding: "Not everyone can afford to travel to London, so it's vital that we are able to share this story with as many people as possible wherever they are."

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