Professor Hind, of the British Nautical Almanac Office, recently sent
an interesting letter to the London _Times_ on the comet depicted in
that famous piece of embroidery known as the Bayeux Tapestry. Probably
no one of the great comets recorded in history has occasioned a more
profound impression upon mankind in the superstitious ages than the
celebrated body which appeared in the spring of the year 1066, and was
regarded as the precursor of the invasion of England by William the
Norman. As Pingre, the eminent cometographer, remarks, it forms the
subject of an infinite number of relations in the European chronicles.
The comet was first seen in China on April 2, 1066. It appeared in
England about Easter Sunday, April 16, and disappeared about June 8.
Professor Hind finds in ancient British and Chinese records abundant
grounds for believing that this visitant was only an earlier
appearance of Halley's great comet, and he traces back the appearances
of this comet at its several perihelion passages to B.C. 12. The last
appearance of Halley's comet was in 1835, and according to
Pontecoulant's calculations, its next perihelion passage will take
place May 24, 1910.
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