A British Museum curator has proposed a new explanation for one of the Bayeux Tapestry's most puzzling scenes, in which a noblewoman named Aelfgyva is depicted being touched on the cheek by a clergyman, with a naked man stitched into the border below. Professor Michael Lewis suggests the enigmatic woman may represent Emma of Normandy, and that the scene subtly references rumours of an affair between her and Alfwin, Bishop of Winchester, during her first marriage. If correct, the theory would add a fresh layer of political intrigue to the tapestry's account of events surrounding the Norman Conquest.

Emma of Normandy was married first to King Aethelred the Unready and later to King Cnut, and was also the mother of Edward the Confessor and great-aunt of William the Conqueror; when Edward died childless, William cited this family connection to justify his claim to the English throne. Lewis argues that by alluding to Emma's alleged infidelity, the tapestry's makers may have deliberately undermined her legitimacy, and by extension William's claim and the conquest itself. Oxford historian Dr Emily Winkler offered a different reading, noting Aelfgyva is portrayed with dignity and presence, raising questions about how directly the scandal was actually being invoked. The 70-metre tapestry, thought to have been commissioned in the 1070s or 1080s by Bishop Odo of Bayeux, contains 58 surviving scenes and remains one of the world's most significant historical artefacts.