While plenty of us are already flocking to the Pompidou Centre before it closes for a five-year renovation in the summer, it’s not the only major cultural space in France that’ll be temporarily shutting its doors this year.
The Grand Seminary of Bayeux is part of the Bayeux Museums complex (alongside the Normandy Battle Memorial Museum and the Baron Gérard Museum of Art and History) in northwest France, but it’s set to close from September this year until October 2027 for a major refurbishment and conservation project.
And what extraordinary piece of artwork calls this place home? The Bayeux Tapestry, of course. Stretching across a 70-centimetre-wide and 70-metre-long cloth, the tapestry tells the story of William the Conqueror’s 1066 invasion of England.
It’s been on display there since 1983, but if you’re keen to marvel at the world-famous tapestry soon, you’ll need to do so by August 31 – the last day the museum will be open before the project gets underway.
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So, what’s happening to the Grand Seminary of Bayeux? Well, the €38 million project, which is being led in collaboration by the City of Bayeux, the French State (aka the tapestry owners), the Departmental Council of Calvados and the Regional Council of Normandy, will add a new extension to the building, doubling exhibition space and leaving room to display the tapestry.
According to CNN, mayor of Bayeux Patrick Gomont said: ‘In terms of economic and cultural influence, this is the most complex and ambitious project… ever undertaken by the Town of Bayeux.’
While all that’s going on, the tapestry, which has already been carefully dusted down and had its 1983 fleece backing removed, will be packaged into a conservation crate and moved to temporary reserves. Once the museum has reopened, it will be displayed in a hermetically sealed (air-tight) room to protect it from light and pollution variations.
The museum’s reopening is scheduled to coincide with William the Conqueror’s 1000th birthday, but in the meantime, you’ll be able to explore the Bayeux Tapestry virtually on the museum’s website – take a look at it here.
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