Whether it’s the morning paper, the games on the back of a cereal box, or just scrolling through social media, there is something nice about reading with a meal. For the monks living in St. Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury, England, one of the most famous (and phallic) tapestries in the world may have been their equivalent to the back of the cereal box. New research recently published in the journal Historical Research claims that the 1,000-year-old Bayeux Tapestry may have served as mealtime reading. What is the Bayeux Tapestry? At 224 feet long and roughly 770 pounds, the Bayeux Tapestry is a large piece of medieval embroidery. It depicts the events surrounding and leading up to the Battle of Hastings in 1066, when William the II of Normandy, France, invaded England. The Bayeux Tapestry culminates in William II’s victory, taking the throne from Harold II. Harold ruled for only nine months before he was killed in the battle and is considered the last Anglo-Saxon king of England. Scholars generally agree that the Bayeux Tapestry was likely designed at St. Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury during the 1080s. This was during the tenure of Scolland of Canterbury, the first post-Conquest abbot at the monastery. Scolland was a Norman who had previously been a monk at the island monastery of Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy. It is also likely that Odo of Bayeux, the bishop of Bayeux, earl of Kent, and William the Conqueror’s half-brother, was involved in the Tapestry’s creation, but opinions differ about Odo’s role.  Relevant Bayeux Tapestry Stories Medieval toilet helps uncover lost home of the England’s last Anglo-Saxon King Medieval tapestry’s penis count remains a bone of contention Communal meals This new re-examination of the Bayeux Tapestry helps answer some important questions and resolve a few contradictions surrounding its design and complicated origins. The first documented written source about the whereabouts of the Tapestry is a 1476 inventory document that places it at Bayeux Cathedral in Normandy. “The truth is: we simply do not know where the Bayeux Tapestry was hung—or indeed if it was hung anywhere at all–prior to 1476,” Benjamin Pohl, study author and a historian at the University of Bristol, said in a statement.  In his paper, Pohl argues that the most suitable place for displaying and engaging with the Bayeux Tapestry would have been in St. Augustine’s refectory, a room for communal meals similar to a cafeteria. During a seminar, he asked his students to think of alternative possibilities for where the famous tapestry was hung and considered a large range of rooms throughout the monastery. They debated if the Bayeux Tapestry was intended for a religious or a secular audience, if the audience viewing it needed to be literate in order to engage fully with the narrative, or what kind of story it tells (English, Norman, or both/neither).  “There still is no way to prove conclusively the Bayeux Tapestry’s whereabouts prior to 1476, and perhaps there never will be, but the evidence presented here makes the monastic refectory of St. Augustine’s a serious contender,” said Pohl. “Just as today, in the Middle Ages mealtimes were always an important occasion for social gathering, collective reflection, hospitality and entertainment, and the celebration of communal identities. In this context, the Bayeux Tapestry would have found a perfect setting.” While Pohl stresses that there is “no concrete evidence of the Bayeux Tapestry’s presence at St. Augustine’s,” that could be due to the fact that the abbey’s refectory that was designed in the 1080s was not completed until the 1120s.  “Consequently, the Tapestry might have been put in storage for more than a generation and forgotten about until it eventually found its way to Bayeux three centuries later,” he said.In fall 2026, the Bayeux Tapestry will go on display in the British Museum, marking the first time it has returned to the United Kingdom since it was made nearly a millennium ago. The post Famous phallic tapestry may have entertained monks during meals appeared first on Popular Science. ...read more read less