If you are at all familiar with the Bayeux Tapestry, which is a staggering masterpiece, then this may sound incredible, but this book does it full justice. I can not get over my amazement and my feeling of being incredibly lucky to have discovered a book that reproduces the entire work-all 70 meters-in plates large enough to show fine details of the embroidery stitching (invaluable for the historical needleworker!), in what I believe (or at least devoutly hope) is faithful color. You don't miss anything at the edge of each page because an inch or so of the edge of each plate is reproduced on the next. The author wisely saved the historical and cultural explanations for another section of the book, allowing each plate to fill a full page. The historical explanations are printed in the last third of the book (the first two thirds being given entirely to the color plates) under a small black-and-white reproduction of the tapestry which is marked with plate numbers so that you can easily refer back to the large color reproduction. The author's commentary is very readable, and he sometimes demonstrates dry, British wit. The book also includes a stylistic analysis of the tapestry, and, with the aid of photographs, dicusses artifacts similar to those depicted.