Bayeux Tapestry

Timeline

1. c. 1051–1060Bayeux · BayeuxIn the 1050s, Odo served as Bishop of Bayeux; the diocese's wealth and the embroidery and tapestry traditions of Normandy provided the manpower, materials, and iconographic conventions for later large-scale narrative textiles. Though no tapestry survives from this stage, the craft environment was already mature.
2. c. 1067–1077Normandy (presumed place of production) · NormandyWithin years of the conquest, tradition holds that Odo sponsored a workshop embroidering scenes of Harold's visit to Normandy, his coronation, and the Battle of Hastings; the imagery includes warships, cavalry, and castle details, providing rare continuous visual evidence of 11th-century military culture.
3. c. 1077Bayeux · BayeuxThe tapestry was traditionally completed around its dedication at Bayeux Cathedral and used for religious and public display; it thereafter remained locally for a long period, undergoing restoration and conservation, becoming a core material carrier of medieval visual sources and the narrative of the Norman Conquest.