The Treasury is set to insure the historic Bayeux Tapestry for an estimated £800m when it arrives on loan at the British Museum next year.
The government-backed cover will protect the 70-metre artefact, which depicts the 1066 Norman invasion and the Battle of Hastings, against damage or loss during its transfer from France and throughout its exhibition in the UK.
The insurance will operate under the Government Indemnity Scheme, a vital alternative to commercial insurance that allows major art and cultural objects to be displayed across the UK.
The Financial Times reported that the Treasury had provisionally approved the estimated valuation for the more than 900-year-old tapestry, with the final figure expected to be around £800m.
“The Government Indemnity Scheme is a long-standing scheme that allows museums and galleries to borrow high-value works for major exhibitions, increasing visitor numbers and providing public benefits,” An HM Treasury spokesperson said.
“Without this cover, public museums and galleries would face a substantial commercial insurance premium, which would be significantly less cost-effective.”
The scheme is estimated to have saved UK museums and galleries £81m compared to commercial insurance.
The Bayeux Tapestry depicts the 1066 battle that saw William the Conqueror take the English throne from Harold Godwinson and become the first Norman king of England.
It will be on loan while the Bayeux Tapestry Museum in Normandy closes for renovation, with its reopening scheduled for October 2027.
It is part of a cultural exchange that will see the British Museum loan the Sutton Hoo collection, the Lewis Chessmen and other items to France in return for the tapestry.
In France, voices from the art and conservation fields have called on president Emmanuel Macron to abandon the project over concerns that transportation would cause irreparable damage to the tapestry.
