Under the
auspices of the Society, Mr. C.A. Stothard undertook the task; and he
has executed it in the course of two successive visits with the greatest
accuracy and skill. The engravings from his drawings we may hope shortly
to see: meanwhile, to give you some idea of the original, I
enclose a sketch, which has no other merit than that of being a faithful
transcript. It is reduced one half from a tracing made from the tapestry
itself. By referring to Montfaucon, you will find the figure it
represents under the fifty-ninth inscription in the original, where "a
knight, with a _private_ banner, issues to mount a led horse." His
beardless countenance denotes him a Norman; and the mail covering to his
legs equally proves him to be one of the most distinguished characters.
[Illustration: Figure from the Bayeux Tapestry]
Within the few last years this tapestry has been the subject of three
interesting papers, read before the Society of Antiquaries. The first
and most important, from the pen of the Abbe de la Rue[89], has for its
object the refutation of the opinions of Montfaucon and Lancelot, who,
following the commonly received tradition, refer the tapestry to the
time of the conquest, and represent it as the work of Queen Matilda and
her attendant damsels.
Pages:
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301