Hertfordshire Charter to be displayed with Bayeux Tapestry

A Saxon document signed in 1060 is due to go on display at the British Museum alongside the Bayeux Tapestry.

The Hertfordshire Charter records King Edward the Confessor granting land in Wheathampstead to the convent at Westminster.

The document also mentions Earl Harold, later King of England, whose defence of the throne and eventual death at the hands of William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 is depicted in the famous embroidery.

It will be loaned to the British Museum next year, where it will become part of the landmark Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition.

The charter is the oldest document held by Hertfordshire Archives and is part of Hertfordshire County Council's archive collection, according to Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Because of its age and fragility, visitors to Hertfordshire Archives would usually only see copies of the charter, including photographs and a transcript.

Before the original joins the exhibition in London, there will be a limited timed entry slots for visitors to see the document on display at Hertfordshire Archives and Local Studies in Hertford.

A spokesperson for the county council said: "We are pleased to loan the Hertfordshire Charter from the county archives for this once-in-a-generation exhibition of the Bayeux Tapestry.

"We hope Hertfordshire residents, as well as the many thousands who are expected to visit the exhibition, will enjoy these historical artefacts."

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