Image extraite d’une vidéo
The director of the British Museum, “Dr Nicholas Cullinan”, has signed an opinion piece in Ouest-France defending the loan of the Bayeux Tapestry to his museum. He “seeks to be reassuring”, explaining that “its conservation is a primary concern in this operation”.
The director of the British Museum must know what he is talking about. Really? We must admit that we were not familiar with “Dr Nicholas Cullinan”. Let us recall that, in Italy, for instance, it is common practice to precede the name of an art historian who has defended a thesis with “Dott. [1]”. This is never done in France, where the title is used only for medical professions. In England, it is used in an academic context, but hardly ever in the general press. Yet, using the title Dr in this context confers authority. Dr Nicholas Cullinan obviously knows what he is talking about. He must be a great medievalist, perhaps even a specialist in ancient textiles.
Not at all, in fact. Quite the opposite. Appointed in March 2024, he is a specialist in modern and contemporary art. He was previously Curator of International Modern Art at Tate Modern in London, then Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and finally, from 2015 to 2024, Director of the National Portrait Gallery. Certainly, the British Museum also houses works from the twentieth century, but these are found essentially in its Department of Prints and Drawings and in “Room 48”, a small gallery you can have fun trying to find on the official museum plan!
With the exception of old master drawings, the British Museum is essentially a museum of antiquities (Europe, Egypt, the Near East, Rome and Greece, Islam), of so-called “primitive” art (Latin America, Africa), and of Asian art. In other words, it is equivalent to the departments of Antiquities at the Louvre, the Musée du Quai Branly, the Musée Guimet, and the Department of Prints and Drawings at the Louvre. It also holds medieval art. One wonders what legitimacy Dr Nicholas Cullinan has in these fields.
He, who was appointed after the more or less forced departure of his predecessor Hartwig Fischer following the discovery of the disappearance of about 2,000 objects from the collections, is not necessarily a bad director; in truth, we do not know. But his opinion on the dangers facing the Bayeux Tapestry carries credibility close to zero.
As we have already written, we ourselves are no more competent than he is in this field. But we rely on the views of real specialists, those who have studied the work and its conservation. They are unanimous, as is also evident from all the studies carried out recently on this subject: it cannot be transported over a long distance without running serious risks.
Contrary to what some (admittedly rather few) write, there is no debate among experts. It is therefore not useless to recall who is in favour of the loan, and therefore of moving this work.
– Emmanuel Macron, first of all, whose expertise in medieval embroidery remains to be proven.
– The mayor of Bayeux, who extends to the Tapestry his knowledge of folding shirts (see the article).
– Hervé Morin, President of the Regional Council of Normandy, who “rejoices at the loan” but whose knowledge of textile conservation remains equally unproven,
– Antoine Verney, Chief Curator of the Museums of Bayeux, and therefore of the Tapestry, whose knowledge of the work is real; but what did he say seven years ago (see this article)? That: “the loan of the work is considered by all partners as not feasible in view of the current knowledge of its condition of conservation”. Nothing has changed in the last seven years, except the opinion of his boss: the mayor of Bayeux.
– Philippe Bélaval, senior civil servant, well versed in heritage matters, but not at all a specialist in the Bayeux Tapestry or medieval textiles, whose direct superior is none other than Emmanuel Macron, and who recently declared (see this article from the Telegraph) that: “if a man can be sent into space, France can send the Tapestry to London”. An argument that seems irrefutable, if one overlooks the fact that about 4% of astronauts/cosmonauts have died on mission or in training. A 4% risk of serious deterioration of the Bayeux Tapestry, are we sure we can accept that?
– On the English side, many more politicians can certainly be found in favour of this move. And of course Dr Nicholas Cullinan.
When the latter affirms (in the Ouest-France article) that “its conservation is a primary concern in this operation”, we are therefore entitled to doubt. In the meantime, if you have not yet done so, sign the petition.