Row breaks out over Bayeux Tapestry after historian claims he's found an 'extra penis'
For centuries, highbrow scholars have debated the myriad mysteries of the Bayeux Tapestry.
There are still questions about the stunning 11th century depiction of the Norman Conquest, not least where it was made and who commissioned it.
But now, nearly 1,000 years on from the Battle of Hastings, a new academic row has broken out: exactly how many penises feature on the embroidery?
Seven years ago, Oxford academic Professor George Garnett claimed to have identified 93 depictions of male genitalia.
Five were on soldiers, while 88 belonged to horses, including the steeds of England's King Harold and William the Conqueror.
However, medieval scholar and expert on Anglo-Saxon nudity, Dr Christopher Monk, believes he has found another appendage, taking the real figure to 94.
In the original count, the human genitals are all attached to naked figures.
But there is one contested depiction of a running man with something hanging low beneath his tunic.
Medieval scholar and expert on Anglo-Saxon nudity, Dr Christopher Monk, believes he has found another penis in the Bayeux Tapestry
Seven years ago, Oxford academic Professor George Garnett claimed to have identified 93 depictions of male genitalia. Above: A wider view of the section of tapestry that features the man and the alleged appendage
Dr Monk is sure it is indeed his manhood.
'I am in no doubt that the appendage is a depiction of male genitalia – the missed penis, shall we say?' he told the HistoryExtra Podcast.
'The detail is surprisingly anatomically fulsome'.
But Professor Garnett is firm in his view that this is a scabbard of a sword or dagger.
He said: 'It's quite clear to me that what is being depicted in that instance is the scabbard of his sword or dagger because right at its end is a yellow blob, which I take to be probably a depiction of brass.
'If you look at what are incontrovertibly penises in the tapestry, none of them has a yellow blob at the end.'
Podcast host and tapestry expert Dr David Musgrove said: 'The possibility of there being another penis in the Tapestry is fascinating.
'It invites us to think again as to why there are these explicit scenes in what is otherwise a story of politics, power and pitched battle.
'It's a reminder that this embroidery is a multi-layered artefact that rewards careful study, and remains a wondrous enigma almost a millennium after it was stitched'.
The tapestry is thought have been woven in the 1070s to celebrate the victory of William, Duke of Normandy, over the Anglo-Saxon King Harold in the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
William the Conqueror's horse horse has the largest appendage
Another well-endowed horse seen on the Bayeux Tapestry
It is nearly 230 feet (70 metres) long and 18 inches high.
Writing about his original research in 2018, Professor Garnett, of St Hugh's College, Oxford, said: 'By my calculations there are 93 penises in what survives of the original tapestry.'
He said four were attached to men, whilst what may be a fifth appears on a soldier's corpse in the margin below the embroidery.
'There is also what appears to be a pair of testicles, the penis itself being concealed by a discreetly positioned axe handle,' he said.
'All of these human male genitalia are confined to the upper or lower borders.
'There are 88 penises depicted on horses, all in the main action; and curiously, none on dogs, or on any of the other many creatures in the main frame or borders.
'With the possible exception of the dead soldier, all the human members are shown tumescent [erect]. A small minority of the equine ones are too.'
The expert added that it was likely no coincidence that King Harold is seen 'mounted on an exceptionally well-endowed steed'.
In the original count, the human genitals are all attached to naked figures
A scene from the Bayeux Tapestry showing two naked figures
And the 'largest equine penis by far' is seen on a horse presented to a figure who 'must be' William just prior to the battle, Professor Garnett went on.
'The clear implications are that the virility of the two leading protagonists is reflected in that of their respective mounts, and that William was in this respect much the more impressive of the two, as the denouement of what survives of the tapestry showed to be the case.'
Discussing the impact of his research, Prof Garnett told the podcast: 'I think my academic colleagues were mostly very entertained. One of them said to me, 'You're not a historian of masculinity; you're a historian of masculinities, 93 of them'. '
He insisted that his work is not about sensationalism – it is about understanding medieval minds.
'The whole point of studying history is to understand how people thought in the past,' he says. 'And medieval people were not crude, unsophisticated, dim-witted individuals. Quite the opposite.'
HistoryExtra - an offshoot of BBC History Magazine - is inviting the public to offer thoughts on the 'missing penis' on its social media channels.
