The Bayeux Tapestry will be displayed in the UK for the first time following months of talks between culture department officials in London and Paris. This would mark the first time that the historic work of art has ever left French shores since it was created in the 11th century.
French President emmanuel macron is expected to announce the decision on Thursday as part of his visit to the UK. The Tapestry will not be loaned before 2020 at the earliest, and the move will require tests to show that the Tapestry is safe to move. It has not yet been decided where the Tapestry will be displayed.
Tracing the threads of history
The 70m-long Tapestry depicts the events leading up to William of Normandy's (later known as William the Conqueror) 1066 invasion of England. The invasion ended with the defeat and death of King Harold II at the Battle Of Hastings, marking the start of the 69-year reign of the House of Normandy in England and the end of the Anglo-Saxon rule.
The earliest known reference to the Tapestry is from an inventory of Bayeux Cathedral made in 1476. It is believed that the original was commissioned in the 1070s by William's half-brother, Bishop Odo of Bayeux.
One of the most famous stories in British history -- that Harold II was killed at Hastings by an arrow through his eye -- comes from the depiction of the event in the Bayeux Tapestry.
This is disputed by earlier sources claiming that four Norman knights killed Harold.
Two previous attempts have been made to loan the Tapestry. The first was to mark the Queen's coronation in 1953, while the second was made in 1966 to mark the 1,000-year anniversary of the Battle of Hastings.
A gesture of goodwill
The loan offer is a gesture of goodwill ahead of President Macron's visit to the UK.
A new UK-France border agreement will be one of the main thrusts of the discussions. President Macron is expected to demand Prime Minister Theresa May do more to help avoid the creation of another Calais Jungle -- the refugee camp that became a symbol of the European migrant crisis before being closed by the French authorities in October 2016.
Macron is expected to ask the UK to accept unaccompanied children and adults with family members already in the country, as well as for more money to help with border security.
In last year's presidential election, Macron suggested he may tear up the 2003 Le Touquet agreement, which established French border controls at UK Channel ports and British border controls in Calais. It was this agreement that precipitated the formation of refugee camps in Calais, which have become a bone of contention for local and national French politicians.
