Harold's death in the Bayeux Tapestry.
One of the most famous scenes in the Bayeux Tapestry purports to show the death of Harold at the Battle of Hastings. In the wall hanging one of the Saxons appears to receive an arrow in or about the right eye. This appears during the battle in the Bayeux tapestry. For centuries this section of the Bayeux Tapestry was interpreted as meaning that Harold died from an arrow in the eye. Many historians now believe that the man depicted in the wall hanging is one of Harold's knights, not Harold himself. Contemporary Norman accounts say only that Harold fell in battle, so we do not actually know if the "arrow in the eye" story depicted in the tapestry is true. The Bayeux Tapestry was the victim of a well-meaning restoration attempt in the last century, which resulted in modern stitching filling in the gaps in the fabric of the wall hanging, with limited accuracy. For all its faults, both material and in historical accuracy, the Bayeux Tapestry remains one of the true treasures of the Norman period in English history It would be well worth your time to study the scenes portrayed in the Bayeux Tapestry carefully. The wall hanging offers a rare glimpse into the lives of both high and low in northwestern Europe in the middle of the eleventh century.
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