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Jan Messent
Search Press
October 2010/ ISBN 1844485846
History/Embroidery
Amazon US
|| UK
Reviewed
by Rachel A Hyde
Everybody has heard
of the Bayeux Tapestry, but how was such a vast project actually
tackled, who made it, what do all the pictures mean and what sort
of stitches were used in its making? All these questions and more
get answered in this beautiful and unusual book.
This is one book that can grace your coffee table and is sure to
interest even those guests who aren’t interested in embroidery
(ie men). There is as much about what the tapestry (which is a misnomer)
depicts as how it was made. Every page in this landscape shaped
book is laid out in the Bayeux Tapestry style and tinted elegantly
with colored pencils. At first glance trying to read the mediaeval
style print will have you booking in for an appointment at the opticians,
but turning to the back will give you a transcript of what it says
in ordinary type on white paper. The print looks attractive but
after flipping backwards and forwards trying to match the transcript
to the page, I found myself wishing that a more legible font had
been chosen to start with. This gripe aside, this is one of the
most attractive books I have seen for a long time, and very informative
too. There are sections on the people portrayed in the tapestry,
who designed it and why, who made it and what they used and how
they used it and more. There is even a blow-by-blow depiction of
each panel and what it all means, which is helpful, and after reading
it all, I felt that I knew a lot more about the tapestry and the
context in which it was made. Hard-to-read print aside, this one
is a keeper.
Reviewer's Note:
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