Norman Conquest of England
1 2020-10-18T04:46:26+00:00 Lexi Viencek 827387f0923746e01018497ccc9bb6ab2995997b 39 1 Brief History of the Norman Conquest of England plain 2020-10-18T04:46:26+00:00 Lexi Viencek 827387f0923746e01018497ccc9bb6ab2995997bThis page is referenced by:
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2020-10-14T21:52:42+00:00
The Bayeux Tapestry: The Mystery of Who Made It
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by: Lexi Viencek
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2020-10-26T16:32:47+00:00
For centuries, Western civilization has defined what a patriarchal society is; people can see this male superiority throughout Western culture, including the art world. One of the most popular pieces of medieval art, The Bayeux Tapestry, has been up for debate for years regarding who is behind creating this fascinating piece of work. Scholars continue to argue over whether it was created by men or by women. Since western civilization has only ever given world recognition and praise to male artists over thecenturies, many would conclude that men created this famous artwork. But evidence has shown that, based on society's expectations at the time, women were more than likely responsible for the creation of The Bayeux Tapestry.
The Bayeux Tapestry is an embroidered cloth that dates back to the eleventh century that spans almost 250 feet in length. It depicts certain events during the Norman Conquest of England, specifically the Battle of Hastings with the Duke of Normandy.[1] It tells the story from the perspective of the conquering Normans but was most likely made in England. Scholars believe Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, commissioned the tapestry to honor of the Duke of Normandy's success as the Battle of Hastings.[2] As it is still unknown who embroidered the tapestry, scholars continue to debate the answer of this question to this day. There is a dispute that a group of male embroiderers made it, but it was probably created by female embroiderers, as it was much more common for women to practice this skill.
There are no known sources that say who created The Bayeux Tapestry; however, art historians agree that it was made by English embroiderers. It is most likely that women would have created it because all evidence suggests that mainly women in Medieval England embroidered. Embroidery was considered an excellent occupation for women in elite groups, and in some cases, women would embroider as a profession.[3] However, men might have created the design. For instance, a fashion example is when Æthelwynn, a tenth-century woman known for her embroidery skills, wrote to Saint Dunstan, requesting him to create an embroidery pattern for a priest's stole that she could embroider.[4] Monks during this time were very skilled in drawing and putting images onto manuscripts, so one cannot ignore the belief that men were involved in the overall process of making the tapestry.[5] So while it is likely that men were involved in making the tapestry via creating the images, they were unlikely to make it. As it was much more common for women to embroider, there is a high possibility that women were responsible for making The Bayeux Tapestry.
The reason behind this debate on whether or not men or women created The Bayeux Tapestry comes down to the basic fact that western civilization lives in a sexist society. When analyzing artwork made by men compared to women, there is always this notion that women's art is not, in fact, "art" but more a "craft." Since having artistic abilities, such as drawing and embroidery, was an essential skill for privileged women to have, it was seen more as a hobby than an actual profession. And to further degrade women's influence in the art world, it was nearly impossible for them to develop a career as an artist. This was done in many ways, but the most prominent was through the prohibition of women in guilds. A guild was an association of artisans who oversaw their craft's practice that was created to protect the furtherance of their professional interests.[6] Through these guilds, artists were able to gain an apprenticeship, which was the key to becoming a successful professional artist and making some profits off their artwork.[7] Women were prevented from joining such guilds to discourage women from attempting to gain any status as a professional artist, decreasing their influence on the public sphere.
Even though there is clear evidence that women most likely created The Bayeux Tapestry art historians still argue over the fact that men might've made it. Since evidence shows that men might have designed the tapestry, one cannot completely rule out that they were involved. But the fact that it was mainly women who embroidered during this time, and there is still a debate over the creation of the tapestry, reflects the patriarchal society western civilization lives under. The Bayeux Tapestry is such a world-renowned artwork, so believing that it was a group of women that created it is so bewildering to many because of the patriarchal order that has consumed western civilization for centuries. There is clear evidence that women were most likely the ones that physically made the tapestry. Still, people refuse to believe that women can make incredible works of art because of their "inferiority" and inability to make a life for themselves unrelated to the home and the family.
[1] Whitney Chadwick, Women, Art, and Society, (London: Thames and Hudson, 1996), 47[2] What Is The Bayeux Tapesrty About - The Story Of The Tapestry, Bayeux Museum, 2019, https://www.bayeuxmuseum.com/en/the-bayeux-tapestry/discover-the-bayeux-tapestry/what-is-the-bayeux-tapestry-about/#:~:text=The%20Bayeux%20Tapestry%20is%20a,by%20the%20Duke%20of%20Normandy .[3] Dr. Alexandra Lester-Makin, The Making Of The Bayeux Tapestry, BBC History Magazine, 2020 https://www.historyextra.com/period/norman/bayeux-tapestry-where-make-how-long-who-when-stitch-penises-visit/#:~:text=Men%20could%20have%20created%20the,girls%20could%20embroider%20in%20gold .[4] Ibid[5] Ibid[6] Gary Richardson, Medieval Guilds, Economic History Association, https://www.eh.net/page/6/?s=tariff .[7] Ibid
