V.—THE PHOTOGRAPHIC COPY OF THE ORIGINAL.
ON the 3rd of August 1871 the Lords of the Committee of Council on Education agreed to Mr. Joseph Cundall going to Bayeux to obtain permission to take a full-sized photograph of the Tapestry. Permission having been obtained, a highly-skilled photographer, Mr. E. Dossetter, went to Bayeux for the purpose. In the first instance quite small photographs were taken, which were subsequently enlarged to the size of the original. A complete photographic copy enlarged to full-size and coloured after the original was exhibited in the Albert Hall at the Exhibition of 1873. This is the copy that is now exhibited in the Museum (Gallery 79).
What Carlyle thought of this copy cannot fail to be of interest—he expresses his enthusiasm in a letter to Sir Henry Cole:—
“I went yesterday with two companions for a look at your Bayeux Tapestry in the Albert Hall and I cannot but express to you at once my very great contentment with what I saw there. The enterprise was itself a solid, useful and creditable thing; and the execution of it seems to me a perfect success far exceeding all the expectations I have entertained about it. Mr. Froude, who was one of my companions, was full of admiration, and a brother of mine who had seen the Tapestry itself at Bayeux last year seemed to think that this copy you had managed to make (I hope in a permanent and easily repeatable manner) was superior in vivid clearness, beauty of colour, etc., to the very original. As the work is in essence photographic, I flatter myself you have preserved the negative and other apparatus whereby the thing can be repeated as often as you like and at a moderate expense—in which case it might with evident and great advantage be imparted in the same complete form to all British Colonies, and even in America itself would be precious to every inquiring and every cultivated mind. In a word, I am much obliged to you for sending me to see this feat of yours (by far the reasonablest in completeness of its kind yet known to me), and very much obliged above all for your having done it and so done it.
“Yours truly, with many thanks,
“T. CARLYLE.”
VI.—NOTES ON THE ILLUSTRATIONS.
Plate I.
King Edward gives instruction to two persons, of whom one is Harold; Edward’s clothes are richly embroidered. He is seated on a throne and has a crown and sceptre.
The scene shows a room in Edward’s castle; a portion of the outside wall is given; but the rest is cut away to give a view of the interior in a manner very common in mediæval art. It will be seen that the castle is in the Norman style. On the left is a round Norman window and there are Norman turrets above. The throne on which Edward is sitting is typical of the art of the period, the animal’s head which forms the right arm being a common decoration. In an Anglo-Saxon calendar of the 11th century (the MS. Cotton and Julius A VI.) a drinking party is shown on a large daïs, the two ends of which are in form like the head and front legs of two great dogs.
As to the nature of the communications passing between Edward the Confessor and Harold, it may be added that three reasons are given of Harold’s journey to Normandy in different versions: (1) To release his brother and nephew from imprisonment; (2) that, owing to a storm when out fishing, he was shipwrecked on the coast of France; (3) to impart to William Edward’s intention of making him his heir. The third was the Norman method of explaining what happened and is apparently the one accepted by the designer of the Tapestry.
Plate II.
Harold’s Oath.
William of Normandy, sword in hand, sits on the left while Harold takes a solemn oath of fealty; each hand rests on an altar, supporting a box of relics. The cloths that cover the altars are of embroidery, though in the Tapestry they look like velvet. The absence of any secrecy in the matter of the relics is here insisted on, the story being told from the Norman point of view.
Plates III., IV.
The Palace of Westminster, and Edward the Confessor’s body borne to the Church of St. Peter’s.
Several points of interest arise in connection with these two plates; it will be seen that the Palace of Westminster shows a general similarity to the representation in the first scene. The room in which Edward receives Harold is the same shape and similar turrets appear in each case. Further historical accuracy is shown in placing Edward’s palace immediately to the left of St. Peter’s Church.
This St. Peter’s Church is the earliest form of what has since been known as Westminster Abbey, before it was rebuilt in the Gothic style during the latter part of the 13th century. This picture is of particular interest, as considerable care seems to have been taken in the reproduction to give an accurate picture. The long series of Norman arches below and the smaller row above are particularly noticeable. The centre tower is also well portrayed. The hand of God appearing through a cloud as if in dedication, and a man placing a weather-cock on the roof, seem to suggest that the church was just being completed, a fact that is nowadays believed to be true, though before it used to be held that Edward never finished the church.
The foundations of this original edifice are still to be seen in Westminster Abbey and in their main features bear a strong resemblance to the Abbey of Jumièges (see “Social England,” Vol. I., p. 318), which was built about the same time and very likely designed by the same architect.
The whole question of the old building of St. Peter’s at Westminster has been discussed by Professor Lethaby and the Dean of Wells, Dr. Armitage Robinson (formerly Dean of Westminster), in the Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries for 1910.
Plate V.
Harold enthroned[8] with Archbishop Stigand by his side.
Stigand wears an amice, a pall, a chasuble, gloves, boots, alb, stole and maniple. He is, however, bareheaded, which is an argument for an early date for the Tapestry as the mitre is rare in manuscripts till the 12th century. If the mitre had been known to the designer of the Tapestry he would surely have given it to Stigand for so important an occasion. It will be noticed that his chasuble is very long behind though very short in front, and that his maniple is carried between his thumb and first finger rather than hanging down from the elbow, as is the fashion to-day. This fact goes to prove the contention of those who hold that the maniple was originally in the nature of a handkerchief. (The central portion of this scene is reproduced on a larger scale in the frontispiece.)
Plate VI.
“They wonder at a star,” which is shown very curiously in the border.
This appearance of Halley’s Comet is mentioned by English, Norman, South Gaulish, German and Italian chroniclers, by whom it was generally held to portend the conquest of England. It is also thought that there is a reference to it in Chinese Annals. The comet appeared nine days after Easter, and shone with great brightness for some days. Harold had been crowned on the 6th of January, and the Conqueror anchored off Pevensey on the 28th of September. Halley’s Comet also appeared in 1145, 1223, 1301, 1378, 1456, 1531, 1682, 1759, 1835 and 1910. A full account, with extracts from the contemporary chroniclers, can be seen in Freeman’s “Norman Conquest” (2nd Edition). Vol. III., pp. 640-5.
Plate VII.
Building the Ships.
The ships which are being built in this plate are the famous “Snekkjur” or serpent vessels of the Vikings, so praised by the Skalds. On the whole the Normans had altered their marine equipment comparatively little since their Norwegian days. A 9th century Viking boat was in 1880 discovered at Gokstad on the west coast of the Gulf of Christiania. It was about 75 ft. long, 16 ft. broad, 5·7 ft. deep, with a displacement of 30 tons and able to carry 40 men. Such a ship would have been a fine one in the days of the Conqueror.
William’s fleet consisted of 3,000 boats of different shapes and sizes, of which 696 were of the “Snekkjur” type. The serpent decoration on the prow and stern of this type of boat was often omitted, but is shown in the Tapestry. William’s own ship was called the “Mora,” and was a present to him from Queen Matilda. On the prow was the statue of a boy in copper gilt, who held a bow in his hand in which there was an arrow pointing ever towards England. His ship also flew the “Consecrated Banner” of Pope Alexander II., whose support of the expedition William had secured.
Plate VIII.
A Feast is made.
On the left of this Plate chickens are being handed to the diners on spits, a spit apparently being provided for each guest. A knife is on the left table, also a piece of flat round bread, the common shape in which bread was made during that period. Spoons and forks were practically unknown at the time, and though two rough forks can be seen on a 12th century manuscript, the “Hortus deliciarum” of Herrad von Landsberg, they remain rare even in high society till the 16th century. Jean Sulpice writes as follows in 1480 on “La Civilité”:—“Prends la viande avec trois doigts et ne rempli pas la bouche de trop gros morceaux.” A round bowl is on the table and one of the men drinks out of a large horn. These drinking horns were particularly popular in England, where practically no wine was drunk and mead was the favourite liquor. They were the same shape as musical horns with some form of stopper at the small end. Two horns of this kind are exhibited among the Ivories (Room 8) in this Museum (Nos. 7593, 8035-1862). A fine Rhenish drinking horn is in the British Museum, of which a good illustration is given in the article on Drinking Vessels in the “Encyclopædia Britannica.” The British Museum also possesses a Scandinavian horn, illustrated on page 100 of the British Museum Guide to the Mediæval Department. The famous horn of Ulphus (“Homes of Other Days,” p. 43) is in the Treasury of York Cathedral. Readers may remember in Boswell’s “Tour to the Hebrides” how “we looked at Rorie More’s horn, which is a large cow’s horn, with the mouth of it ornamented with silver and curiously carved. It holds rather more than a bottle and a half. Every Laird of McLeod, it is said, must, as a proof of his manhood, drink it full of claret without laying it down.” (Journal for Wednesday, Sept. 18th.)
These horns were not so universal in France, some forms of goblet being in use even during the 8th and 9th centuries, one such being seen on the right-hand end of the main table, where sit the Bishop and those of higher rank. By the 14th century horns seem to have gone completely out of use.
On this right-hand table is a goodly array of knives, goblets and plates of various sizes; some pieces of the Norman pottery shown here are in the British Museum. The figure on the extreme right of this table, though occupying such an honoured place near the Bishop, is tearing a fish to pieces and thrusting it into his mouth with his fingers.
The figure coming towards the table holding a porringer is the cup-bearer and wine-taster, a prominent figure at every banquet. It is difficult to be certain as to the nature of the other object he is holding in his hand, but it may be a napkin, which was handed round to the most important people that they might wipe their fingers after the repast.
Plate IX.
Odo. William. Robert.
This scene shows three portraits, William the Conqueror being in the centre, with Bishop Odo on his left and on his right Count Robert of Normandy.
On William’s death, his son, William Rufus, succeeded to England, and Count Robert to Normandy. On the death of William Rufus in 1100, Count Robert was still on an expedition in the Holy Land. Hence Henry I. was elected king by the popular voice, in spite of protests from Normandy, and became an English as opposed to a French monarch.
This happy division of powers was, however, not permanent, and England, Normandy and many other French provinces were reunited under the Angevins, an event which marked the beginning of that perpetual trouble with France which hardly ended with King Henry VI.
Plate X.
Burning a House.
In this plate again there seems to be a rough attempt at a portrayal of Norman domestic architecture. The Norman nature of the work is suggested in the house being of two storeys, the Saxon dwelling usually being of one. A woman and her child escape from the hall, which occupies the whole of the ground floor, and is of nearly as much importance as it would have been in the Anglo-Saxon period. The room above is smaller and lit by a window with a Norman arch. No glass, however, would be placed in the window. The top storey would be provided with a rough kind of fire-place, as perhaps might also the ground floor, though the old fire piled right up in the middle of the hall was still quite common.
Plate XI.
The Battle, showing the “packed shield” formation of the English.
This method of fighting particularly impressed William at Hastings, and no doubt the English employed it with great skill. But whereas the most important part of William’s army was the cavalry, Harold’s army consisted entirely of foot soldiers. The Thanes and other important men might be able to ride up to the scene of battle on horseback, but they dismounted for the fight. The “packed shield” formation they proceeded to employ consisted, as is seen in the Tapestry, of a thick wedge of men, widening out from about two in front to an uncertain number at the base; the officers and better armed men formed the front wedge, backed by a dense column of the inferior troops.
The English and Normans wear for the most part the same armour, the body of which goes down to the knees in one piece, a type of armour known as the “hauberk” or “byrnie.” These hauberks occasionally extended to the ankles, but the legs were generally cased in leather gaiters, somewhat resembling the “puttees” of to-day. Later, in the border, the hauberk is correctly shown being pulled off the body of a dead soldier over the head, like a shirt.
In most cases the shields of the two armies are of the same shape, being pointed at the bottom and rounded at the top, a type that succeeded the kind which was narrow at each end and broadest in the middle. This old-fashioned shape of shield was still used by the English as well as the round embossed shield of yet earlier times.
An English warrior, probably Harold himself, is to be seen wielding one of those terrible battle-axes that did such execution at Hastings. This weapon was the mainstay both in attack and defence, and the glory of the Saxon army. But, nevertheless, it marks a far less advanced point in the history of war.
William’s army is seen to be wearing stirrups, which, according to some authorities, were new to Europe at the beginning of the 12th century, having been introduced from China by the Mahommedans. But it seems extremely doubtful if they were such a late discovery as this. In any case, their use brought with it great changes in horsemanship, as the cavalry were enabled to sit forward on their saddles, often charging with their lances under their arm instead of leaning right back and charging with the arm erect.
It will be seen that the helmet is conical with a “nasal,” that is to say, with a bar coming down as a shelter for the nose. The huge “vizor,” covering the whole face and leaving only peep-holes for the eyes, was a later invention. Also the horses are here quite unprotected, not “tot couvert de fer” as Wace, a 12th century historian of the Conquest, would have had them be. The armour would certainly be very heavy, but lighter than the massive defences of the 14th and 15th centuries.
But the whole question of this early armour raises many points of difficulty and dispute. The subject of Saxon and Norman armour is well treated in Mr. C. H. Ashdown’s “British and Foreign Arms and Armour” (1909), where special attention is devoted to the body-armour of the Bayeux Tapestry.
Plate XII.
The Death of Harold.
The king is seen on the left, pierced through the right eye with an arrow which he is endeavouring to pull out with his hand. This is quite in accordance with tradition on the subject, though it is believed that Harold died, not at the moment of receiving the wound, but possibly some hours later. Three arrows are seen sticking in his shield. On the right there is an English warrior, struck down by the sword of a mounted Norman knight.
Figures Nos. 1 to 4.
These four figures form part of the borders under numbers X., XI., XII.; three represent scenes from the ordinary life of the peasantry—ploughing, harrowing, and slinging at birds; the fourth shows the figure of a lion.
These rural scenes are extremely frequent in mediæval illustrated MSS. An illuminated MS. of the 11th century in the British Museum shows a good example of slinging (see “Social England,” Vol. I., p. 316). The Louterell Psalter, which dates from the early years of the 14th century, gives many scenes of ploughing and harrowing (see Vetusta Monumenta, Vol. VI., especially Plates XXI. and XXII.). The shoulder collars and the iron shoes worn by the horses in these borders are held by some to have been an invention only made at the end of the 11th century.
VII.—BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Mr. F. R. Fowke has written a short and extremely clear account of the Tapestry in “The Bayeux Tapestry; a History and Description” (George Bell & Sons, 1898), with a reproduction of the Tapestry. This invaluable book has been reprinted (1913) by Messrs. Bell in cheaper form. Professor Lethaby (“Embroidery, 1908-9”) holds that the Tapestry may have been made in Kent.
In the study of the subject from an archæological point of view there are two admirable articles by Mr. J. Horace Round: “The Bayeux Tapestry” (“Monthly Review,” December 1904) and “The Castles of the Conquest” (Archæologia, LVIII). Mr. Round has also contributed an article on the Bayeux Tapestry to the “Encyclopædia Britannica.”
In the Archæological Journal, Vol. LX., Sir W. H. St. John Hope has an article on “Fortresses of the 10th and 11th Centuries.” All these books and articles support the belief that the Tapestry is practically contemporary with the events narrated.
M. le Commandant Lefebvre de Noëttes has approached the subject from a different point of view in the “Bulletin Monumental” of April 1912. He discusses the armour, weapons, harness of the horses and kindred subjects, coming to the conclusion that the Tapestry was probably made between 1120 and 1130, a date neither so late nor so early as extremists on either side have asserted.
The antiquity of the Tapestry has been attacked by M. Marignan in his “La Tapisserie de Bayeux” (1902). He wishes to prove that its date cannot be before the middle of the 13th century. His views have, however, met with little support and have been answered by M. Lanore in his volume “La Tapisserie de Bayeux” (1903).
J. C. Bruce, in “The Bayeux Tapestry Elucidated with Coloured Illustrations” (1856), is inaccurate on some points but indulges in much ingenious speculation.
Two fresh books on the Tapestry have appeared in recent years. Mr. Hillaire Belloc (“The Book of Bayeux Tapestry,” London, 1914), assigns the work to the second half of the 12th century. M. A. Levé (“La Tapisserie de la Reine Mathilde,” Paris, 1919) holds that it was made for the consecration of Bayeux Cathedral in 1077.
INDEX.
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, L, M, N, O, P, R, S, T, U, V, W, Y.
A
Academy (French), paper before, 11
Aelfgyva, personality unknown, 5, 9
Albert Hall, Photograph of Tapestry at, 19
Alexander II., Pope, blesses William’s enterprise, 23
Amyot the antiquary, 10, 12
Angevins, Kings of England, 24
Anglo-Saxon Calendar, 20
Antiquaries, Society of, papers before, 21
“Archæologia,” papers in, 12
Archæological Journal, papers in, 28
Architecture, Anglo-Saxon, 25
” Gothic, 21
” Norman, 20, 21, 24
Armitage-Robinson, Dr., Dean of Westminster, 21
Ashdown, C. H., “British and Foreign Arms and Armour”, 28
B
Battle-axes, 26
Bayeux Cathedral, burned, 11,
” ” Inventory of, 11
” City, Hôtel de Ville at, 12
” ” Public Library at, 12
” ” sacked by Calvinists, 11
Beaurain, Harold taken to, 5
Benoît de Saint Maur, Annalist, 8
Borders of Tapestry discussed, 9
Bosham, Harold at Church of, 4
Boswell, “Tour to the Hebrides”, 23, 24
Boulogne, Eustace Count of, 8
Boy on prow of William’s ship, 23
Bread, 23
British Museum, Mediæval Horn at, 23
” Norman Pottery at, 24
Brittany, Harold arrives in, 5
Bruce, J. C., Book on Bayeux Tapestry, 28
Bulletin Monumental, Article in, 28
Byrnie, Nature of, 25, 26
C
Calvinists sack Bayeux, 11
Carlyle, Thomas. Letter to Sir Henry Cole, 19
Castles, Early Norman, 2
China, Annals of, 22
” Spurs introduced from, 26
Christiania, Gulf of, 22
Chronique des ducs de Normandie. (Footnote), 8
Civilité, La, by Jean Sulpice, 23
Clerk, a certain, and Aelfgyva, 5, 9
Cole, Sir Henry. Letter from Thomas Carlyle, 19
Comet, Halley’s, appears, 6, 22
Conan II., Duke of Brittany, 5
Consecrated Banner, given by the Pope to William, 23
Cousenon, R., Crossed by Harold and William, 5
Cundall, Joseph, goes to Bayeux, 19
D
Dol, Siege of, 5
Dossetter, Mr., the Photographer, 19
Drinking Horns, 23, 24
Drinking Vessels, 24
Ducarel, Dr., Archæologist, 12
E
Eadgyth, Queen of Edward the Confessor, 6
Ecclesiastical Vestments worn by Stigand, 21, 22
Edward the Confessor, 1, 4, 6, 20, 21
Eustace, Count of Boulogne, 8
F
Feast of Relics, Tapestry exhibited during, 11
Florence of Worcester, Annalist, 4
Forestier M. le, Commissioner of Police in Bayeux, 11
Forks, 23
Fowke, F. R., Book on the Bayeux Tapestry, 28
Fowling, 25
Freeman, Professor J. H., 1, 4, 5, 13, 22
Froude, J. A., mentioned by Thomas Carlyle, 19
G
Gaulish (South) Chronicles, 22
German Chronicles, 22
Gokstad, Viking ship discovered at, 22
Gothic Style of Architecture, 21
Gurney, Hudson, Antiquarian, 12
Gyrth, Brother of Harold, killed, 8
Guy Count of Ponthieu, 4, 5
H
Halley’s Comet, 6, 22
Harold Hardrada defeated, 8
Harold, King of England, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 20, 21, 26
Harrowing, 27
Hastings, Battle of, 1, 8, 25, 26
” Town of, 7
Hauberks, 25, 26
Henry I., 24
Henry II. (Footnote), 8
Henry VI., 25
Herrad von Landsberg, 23
Holy Land, The, 24
Hope, Sir W. H. St. John, 28
“Hortus Deliciarum”, 23
Hume, David, 12
I
Inscriptions on the Tapestry translated, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18
J
Jumièges, Abbey of, 21
L
Laird of Macleod, The, and Drinking Horns, 24
Lanore, M., Book on Bayeux Tapestry, 28
Launcelot, M., reads paper before French Academy, 11
Lefebvre de Noëttes, Commandant, Article on Bayeux Tapestry, 28
Leofwyne, Brother of Harold, killed, 8
Lethaby, Professor, Articles by, 21, 28
Louterell Psalter, and Agricultural life, 28
Lyttelton, Lord, on the Bayeux Tapestry, 12
M
Macleod, Lairds of, and Drinking Horns, 23
Mahommedans, spurs perhaps introduced by, 26
Marignan, M., book on Bayeux Tapestry, 28
Matilda, Queen of William the Conqueror, 23
Maur, Saint, Père Montfaucon of, 11
Montfaucon, Père, Archæologist, 11
“Monuments de la Monarchie Française,” Publications, 11
“Mora,” The, given by Matilda to William, 23
Musée Napoléon, Bayeux Tapestry exhibited at, 12
N
Napoleon, and the Bayeux Tapestry, 12
Nasal, 26
Nicholls, Mr. Bowyer, Antiquarian, 13
Norman Architecture, 22, 23, 25
” Castles, 2
” Chronicles, 22
” Conquest, 1, 8
” Pottery, 24
O
Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, 3, 7, 8, 10, 24
Oman, Professor, 1
Omen at Harold’s Coronation, 7, 22
P
“Packed Shield” formation, 2, 8, 25
“Palæographica Britannica,” by Stukeley, 12
Peter, Church of Saint, at Westminster, 6, 21
Pevensey, William lands at, 7
Ploughing, 27
Ponthieu, Guy Count of, 4, 5
Prussians near Bayeux, 12
R
Rennes, Harold and William pass, 5
Robert, Count of Normandy, 7, 24
Roman d’Enéis. (Footnote), 8
” de Thèbe, 8
” de Troie, 8
Rorie More’s Horn, 24
Round, Mr. J. Horace, Archæologist, 1, 28
Rufus, William, 24
S
Slinging, 27
“Snekkjur” boats, 22
Spoons, 23
“Star,” Appearance of strange, 6, 22
Stigand, Archbishop, 6
Storm, Question of Harold and, discussed, 4
Stothard, Charles, 8, 9
” Mrs. Charles. (Footnote), 9
Strickland, Miss Agnes, on Bayeux Tapestry. (Footnote), 5
Stukeley. “Palæographica Britannica”, 12
Sulpice, Jean, Author of “La Civilité”, 23
T
Throne of King Edward the Confessor, 20
Tostig, Death of, 8
“Tour to the Hebrides,” by James Boswell, 23, 24
Turold, 5, 10
U
Ulphus, Horn of, in Treasury at York, 23
V
“Vetusta Monumenta,” Reproductions in, 13
Vital, 8, 10
Vizor, 26
W
Wace, 14th century Historian, 26
Wadard, 7, 10
Westminster, Church of Saint Peter at, 6, 21
” Palace of, 21
William the Conqueror, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 20, 22, 24, 25, 26
Y
York, Horn of Ulphus in Treasury at, 23