BBC iPlayer has released Secrets of the Bayeux Tapestry: Inside the Museum, a documentary produced by Blast Films. The film examines the physical condition of the 70 metre embroidery and investigates damage sustained during the Second World War.
Textile conservators Monique Pullen and Thalia Bajon Bouzid identify a hole in the linen ground with burnt edges. They attribute this damage to cigar ash dropped by Nazi personnel during the occupation of Bayeux. This account is supported by a letter dated 6 November 1942, which follows a visual condition assessment conducted on 16 September 1942 by Mr Bazin, a curator at the Louvre. The letter notes a small hole caused by cigar ash but does not specify the exact location of the mark or the identity of the individual responsible.
Project curator Dr Millie Horton-Insch presents archival evidence regarding the Ahnenerbe, the SS Bureau of Ancestral Heritage. The Ahnenerbe classified the tapestry as a Germanic object representing Aryan military success. The documentary reports that Nazi occupation forces and researchers photographed the work and that archival records indicate a plan to move the artifact to Germany. Historian Dan Snow contributes to the film, noting the tapestry survived two fires in Bayeux Cathedral and a period of exhibition in Paris under Napoleon.
The production details current conservation protocols at the museum. Conservators work in pairs and are assigned one metre of the fabric to assess over an eight hour period. This process involves checking every inch of the material for damage. The Bayeux Tapestry depicts the events of the Norman Invasion of 1066.