Dusty and somewhat faded, as befits its onetime use as insulation for horse stables, a priceless piece of medieval artistic heritage, France's Apocalypse Tapestry, is getting a welcome clean-up. In truth, she is a little frayed at the edges, her once gloriously vivid red, blue, green and yellow threads less eye-catching than when the 104-metre (340 feet) oeuvre of wool and silk, showing the Apocalypse according to the Revelation of Saint John, was first crafted at the behest of Louis I, duke of Anjou, in 1373. This feast of dragons, angels and seven-headed beasts depicting in gory style John's vision of the last days, was done about three centuries later than the better known Norman conquest era Bayeux Tapestry embroidered cloth -- but it is larger.
