It is a piece of brownish linen cloth, about two hundred and twelve feet
long, and eighteen inches wide, French measure. The figures are worked
with worsted of different colors, but principally light red, blue, and
yellow. The historical series is included between borders composed of
animals, &c. The colors are faded, but not so much so as might have been
expected. The figures exhibit a regular line of events, commencing with
Edward the Confessor seated upon his throne, in the act of dispatching
Harold to the court of the Norman Duke, and continued through Harold's
journey, his capture by the Comte de Ponthieu, his interview with
William, the death of Edward, the usurpation of the British throne by
Harold, the Norman invasion, the battle of Hastings, and Harold's death.
These various events are distributed into seventy-two compartments, each
of them designated by an inscription in Latin. Ducarel justly compares
the style of the execution to that of a girl's sampler. The figures are
covered with work, except on their faces, which are merely in outline.
In point of drawing, they are superior to the contemporary sculpture at
St. Georges and elsewhere; and the performance is not deficient in
energy. The colors are distributed rather fancifully: thus the fore and
off legs of the horses are varied.
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