Hundreds of years ago, in the 11th century, craftsman set to work on the Bayeux Tapestry, a gorgeous tapestry depicting the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England. If you want to see it today, you’ll have to go to the Museum of Bayeux in Normandy.
About a hundred years later, Tourism Ireland got to work on the Game of Thrones Tapestry, a work inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry that chronicled the loves, losses, and betrayals of HBO’s international hit. And now, as reported by the Irish Examiner, the Game of Thrones Tapestry hangs for all to see in the Hotel du Doyen in its spiritual hometown of Bayeux, France.
The mayor of Bayeux, Patrick Gomont, was on hand to present the tapestry to the public. “This inter-museum loan demonstrates the influence of, and strengthens the reputation of, the Bayeux Tapestry, a unique work of art that continues to inspire all over the world,” he said. “Its relevance in the modern world is undeniable, evident in the countless references made to it in popular culture, of which the Game Of Thrones Tapestry is just one example.”
The Tapestry is on loan from the Ulster Museum in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where it will likely eventually return for good, in honor of how integral Northern Ireland was to the production of Game of Thrones. “The tapestry was created by Tourism Ireland for two reasons,” explained Mark Henry, the organization’s central marketing director. “It created word of mouth publicity and social media chat around the world among Game Of Thrones fans, and after each episode we added on another section, and secondly to bring people to Belfast to see it for themselves.”
By all accounts, the tapestry did what it set out to do. “Research by Tourism NI revealed that one in six out of state visitors said Game of Thrones was an influence, in 2018 that amounted to 350,000 people who contributed an estimated £50 million in spending to the local economy,” Henry said.
Longterm, Henry hopes the tapestry will help inspire “screen tourism” to Northern Ireland. “Who doesn’t think of New Zealand and its association with Lord of the Rings,” he asked. “It has now been 16 years since the last Lord Of The Rings movie. Game Of Thrones clearly offers Northern Ireland a similar opportunity and will for decades to come.”
He’s right that, even now, New Zealand is inextricably tied to The Lord of the Rings movies and their progeny. I’d love to visit Northern Ireland and take a look at some of the Game of Thrones locations myself someday, so it looks like Henry’s plan is working.
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