Harold's Coronation and Halley's Comet

The Bayeux Tapestry, scenes 30–41: A new king, a burning star, and a fleet going up in the forests of Normandy.

Bayeux Tapestry scenes 30–41 · 28.5 m to 42.5 m along the cloth

A new king, a burning star, and a fleet going up in the forests of Normandy.

Harold is crowned and sits enthroned with orb and sceptre. Beside him the embroidery names Stigand, Archbishop of Canterbury — a pointed choice, because Stigand's appointment was regarded as uncanonical and naming him quietly taints the coronation. English accounts say Ealdred of York performed it.

Then five men point upward at a streaking object and the inscription reads ISTI MIRANT STELLA, "these men marvel at the star". This is Halley's Comet, which passed in late April 1066, and it is the earliest depiction of it we have. Harold is told, and in the lower border beneath him a line of empty ships waits — the tapestry's only piece of open prophecy.

The news crosses the Channel. Trees are felled, planks shaped, hulls built and dragged to the water; men carry hauberks slung on poles and haul a wagon loaded with a barrel of wine and spears. Then William crosses in a great ship and comes to Pevensey, and the horses step off the boats onto English ground.

Listen while you walk — free

Our free walking guide keeps pace with you along the cloth: open audioguide.london/bayeux-tapestry on your phone before you go in. It needs no app and no sign-up.

Photography is not permitted in the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition, so the camera on the audioguide.london home page will not work there. Open audioguide.london/bayeux-tapestry instead and keep your phone in your hand.

audioguide.london now covers the British Museum’s permanent galleries too, in beta. This walking guide is separate, made for the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition, where photography is not allowed.

What the audio guide says here

The narration for these scenes, word for word, as you hear it in the walking guide — 8:31 to 12:20 into the 20-minute walk. It was written with reference to Wikipedia, whose text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

The excommunicated archbishop Stigand stands nearby, as the new ruler takes his place on the throne. Above them, a star with a burning tail streaks across the sky, and men below marvel at its light. In the lower border, ghost-like ships wait in the dark, hinting at the invasion to come.

Word of Harold's crown reaches William. He orders ships built, yet it is Bishop Odo who issues the commands. In the lower border, men haul ropes and handle tools, preparing the fleet that will soon cross the Channel.

The planning gives way to labor. Men haul heavy wooden frames toward the water’s edge, dragging the new vessels into the sea. In the lower border, figures stand over logs, swinging axes with both hands raised high against the sky. Others carry branches across their shoulders, moving steadily toward the trees on land. The effort is relentless, a physical manifestation of William’s will. The scene changes. Men carry swords, shields, and axes toward the decks. A wagon is pulled along the shore, its wheels creaking under the weight of wine and more arms. The men on the deck hold reins, their faces turned upward, perhaps toward the wind or perhaps toward the distant English coast. The tension in the cloth is palpable, the air thick with the anticipation of war.

The fleet is loaded. The Channel is crossed. Duke William sits in his great ship, hands resting on the deck as he stares toward the English coast. The wind fills the sails. Men in chain mail grip the oars, their faces set against the spray. The journey is long, but the purpose is clear. Pevensey waits. The land is close. The invasion has begun.

The horses step out of the boats. The inscription calls it a simple exit, but the weight of the invasion lands with them. Men on the decks gesture toward smaller vessels, coordinating the chaotic unloading. The air is thick with the promise of war, and the ground shakes under the hooves of the arriving Norman cavalry.

Men rush toward the shore to seize food. Soldiers strip the countryside bare, taking what they need by force. Then the eye catches a name in the border: Wadard. He rides his horse, axe raised high, a nobleman sent from Normandy to help feed the army. His land in Kent would later belong to Odo, but here he is just another man with a weapon, ready for the fight that follows.

The inscriptions in these 12 scenes

The embroidered Latin, letter for letter, with translations. Positions are measured from the start of the cloth.

  • Scene 30

    hIC RЄSIDET hAROLD RЄX ANGLORVM

    Here sits throned Harold, King of the English

    Ici siège Harold roi des Anglais

    28.5 m along the cloth

  • Scene 31

    STIGANT ARChIEPISCOPVS

    Stigand, archbishop

    L'archevêque Stigand

    29.0 m along the cloth

  • Scene 32

    ISTI MIRANT STELLA

    These men marvel at the star

    Ceux-ci admirent l’étoile

    29.2 m along the cloth

  • Scene 33

    hAROLD

    Harold

    Harold

    29.8 m along the cloth

  • Scene 34

    hIC NAVIS ANGLICA VЄNIT. IN TЄRRAM VWILLELMI DVCIS

    Here an English ship came to the country of Duke William

    Ici un navire anglais vint dans la terre du duc Guillaume

    30.1 m along the cloth

  • Scene 35

    HIC VVILLЄLM DVX IVSSIT NAVЄS EDIFICARE

    Here Duke William ordered ships to be built

    Ici le duc Guillaume donna l’ordre de construire des navires

    31.0 m along the cloth

  • Scene 36

    hIC TRAhVNT NAVЄS AD MARЄ

    Here ships are hauled to the sea

    Ici les navires sont tirés vers la mer

    32.0 m along the cloth

  • Scene 37

    ISTI PORTANT ARMAS AD NAVЄS ЄT hIC TRAhVNT CARRVM CVM VINO ET ARMIS

    These men carry arms to the ships, and here they pull a wagon with wine and arms

    Ceux-ci portent des armes aux navires et ici ils tirent un chariot avec du vin et des armes

    34.1 m along the cloth

  • Scene 38

    † hIC VVILLELM DVX IN MAGNO NAVIGIO MARЄ TRANSIVIT ET VENIT AD PЄVЄNЄSÆ

    Here Duke William in a great ship crossed the sea and came to Pevensey

    Ici, le duc Guillaume, dans une grande navigation, franchit la mer et vint à Pevensey

    35.3 m along the cloth

  • Scene 39

    hIC ЄXЄVNT CABALLI DE NAVIBVS

    Here the horses leave the boats

    Ici les chevaux sortent des navires

    38.0 m along the cloth

  • Scene 40

    ЄT hIC MILITЄS FESTINAVERVNT hЄSTINGA VT CIBVM RAPERENTVR

    And here soldiers have hurried to Hastings to seize food

    Et ici les chevaliers se hâtent vers Hastings pour y prendre de la nourriture

    40.2 m along the cloth

  • Scene 41

    HIC EST VVADARD

    Here is Wadard

    Ici est Wadard

    41.5 m along the cloth

See it in person

The Bayeux Tapestry is at the British Museum from 10 September 2026 to 11 July 2027 — the first time it has been in Britain in roughly 950 years. Entry is by timed ticket, booked in advance and separate from the museum's free general admission, and each slot is short, so it is worth knowing what you are looking at before you arrive.

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