Overview
- The Government Indemnity Scheme will cover the nearly 1,000-year-old embroidery against damage or loss during its transfer from Normandy and while on display in London.
- The exhibition is planned for September 2026 to July 2027 in the British Museum’s Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery, coinciding with renovation of the Bayeux museum.
- A UK–France administrative agreement specifies a special transport crate, protective screening, a facsimile dry run with vibration monitoring, and road transit via the Channel Tunnel.
- The loan is part of a reciprocal cultural exchange that will see the British Museum send the Sutton Hoo collection, the Lewis Chessmen and other items to France.
- French conservation experts have urged caution over transport risks, while the Treasury says the indemnity scheme has saved UK museums an estimated £81m versus commercial insurance.