The tapestry is secured to a grid which is lowered in to a shallow bath of cool deionised water and sprayed with a detergent solution.  The surface of the tapestry is sponged by hand to help the detergent penetrate the fibres.   The grid is then raised out of the water and the tapestry is rinsed with deionised water.  The amount of detergent and the pH of water is measured throughout to determine when the tapestry is clean. The whole process takes three to four hours. 

A tapestry will only be washed every 50 -100 years.  To help keep them free from dust in between washes we vacuum them every three years.

Many conservators were needed to hang the tapestry in The Great Hall. Click here to see how it happened.