Lost Leviathans: The Technology of Zheng He’s Voyages
The key vessels of the voyages, Zheng He’s ‘Treasure Junks’ or Bao Chuan, had the purpose of displaying the might and awe of China to encourage other nations to enter the tribute system.
The Early Medieval Period
The Early Medieval archaeology of the region is internally diverse in terms of chronology, with the 5th and 6th centuries (Sub-Roman, Dark Ages, Early Anglo-Saxon) looking very different from the 7th to early 9th centuries (Middle Anglo-Saxon) and the late 9th to mid-11th centuries (Late Anglo-Saxon or Viking period).
Historical imagination in/and literary consciousness: The afterlife of the Anglo-Saxons in Middle English literature
The long-held belief that the Norman Conquest represented a cultural apocalypse has been challenged by scholars who have emphasized continuity and gradual change as opposed to the agonistic model that formerly placed a crisp border between the AngloSaxon period and the arrival of the Normans.
The Reference Corpus of Late Middle English Scientific Prose
This paper presents the current status of the project Reference Corpus of Late Middle English Scientific Prose, which pursues the digital editing of hitherto unedited scientific, particularly medical, manuscripts in late Middle English, as well as the compilation of an annotated corpus
Friction and Lubrication in Medieval Europe: The Emergence of Olive Oil as a Superior Agent
Medieval machines suffered from a variety of internal stresses that were controlled only by the weight of their parts.
The lifespan of Korean eunuchs
The average lifespan of eunuchs was 70.0 ± 1.76 years, which was 14.4–19.1 years longer than the lifespan of non-castrated men of similar socio-economic status
Got Medieval?
Developing queer history through the concept of affective connection—a touch across time—and through the intentional collapse of conventional historical time, I wanted in Getting Medieval to help queer studies re- spond to such desire.
A Tale of Two Kings: The Use of King David in the Chronicle of Pere III of Catalonia
It is my contention that Pere chose to emulate David because David was a highly respected Biblical king, as well as the fact that David’s history as a warrior could be used to spiritually justify the military actions of Pere.
Cum Status Ecclesie Noster Sit: Florence and the Council of Pisa (1409)
Of all the divisions and crises that the Catholic church endured in its first fifteen hundred years of existence, none was so destructive as the Great Schism (1378-1417)
The tower societies of medieval Florence
This thesis addresses the topic of the tower societies of medieval Florence during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.
Call for Papers: Beasts, Humans, and Transhumans in the Middle Ages and Renaissance
ACMRS invites session and paper proposals for its annual interdisciplinary conference to be held 14–16 February, 2013
Contacts between the Romanians and Turkic nomads. Disinformation, mystification and xenophobia: N. Berend
It is not as much the lack of minimal knowledge of the history of medieval Moldavia which astounds the reader of the review, as the outpour of misinformation and a hardly veiled bias against Romanians.
When a Knight meets a Dragon Maiden: Human Identity and the Monstrous Animal Other
The amount of research into the field of medieval monsters has been growing within the past few decades, but the monster has not always been accepted as a worthwhile topic of serious study
King João II of Portugal “O Príncipe Perfeito” and the Jews (1481-1495)
King João II of Portugal, who reigned over the Portuguese from 1481 un- til 1495, has enjoyed a rather positive posthumous reputation in Portugal and in Portuguese historiography…In Jewish historiography, however, the ruthlessness of King João II has earned him considerable infamy.
Singers, advisers, and servants: role of eunuchs from a historical context
According to the Book of Matthew, Jesus said that there were eunuchs made of men, who had made them- selves by their fathers to be that way for heaven’s sake, and if they have received such a procedure, then let them keep it. Jesus referred to castration as an infallible way to achieve celibacy. And records of Christian history indicate that many Christian religious figures were castrated.
Falconry in Jewish Art, Law, and Lore
When I explain that I am studying the topic of Falconry in Rabbinic Literature, people are usually bewildered, or just plain shocked. ‘Jewish hunting? Is that Kosher? Are there really any sources?’
Climate Change in the Recent Past: Selected Climate Events from Historical Records
Another important sign of a mild climate during the MWP is the fact that England was a major wineproducing country. Between 1100 and 1300, vineyards spread across southern and central England and as far north as Hereford.
Prolegomena to the Ju-nan i-shih: A Memoir on the Last Chin Court Under the Mongol Siege of 1234
Ju-nan i-shih is a reminiscence on the events at the refuge Chin capital of Emperor Ai-tsung (r. 1224-1234) at Ts’ai-chou, Honan, during the Mongol siege of July 1233 to February 1234, when it capitulated.
Treason and Betrayal in the Middle English Romances of Sir Gawain
This article explores the themes of treason and betrayal which are common motifs of medieval romances, specifically those featuring the Arthurian knight Sir Gawain.
The Arian Controversy: Some Categories Reconsidered
The choice of categories to designate the two opposing sides in the fourth-century theological controversy is crucially important, for the categories color the whole interpretation of the controversy. Some of the categories used in the past are less than satisfactory. The pair “Arian” and “Nicene” is anachronistic, and perhaps too dogmatic.
Charles IV: Religious Propaganda and Imperial Expansion
The Bohemian Charles IV (1316 – 1378) was crowned King of Bohemia in 1347, King of the Romans in 1349, and Holy Roman Emperor in 1355.
Anglo-Saxon presence and culture in Wiltshire c. AD 450-c. 675
It is suggested that the initial Germanic immigration may have taken place within the framework of the former Romano-British civitates.
Macbeth: bloody tyrant or popular king?
Most of us know Shakespeare’s version of Macbeth. What was the reality? Jackie Cosh reports
Draumkvedet and the Medieval English Dream Vision: A Study of Genre
The Medieval English dream vision evidence influences from a variety of earlier vision literature, notably the apocalyptic vision and narrative dream.
Heraldry in the Trecento Madrigal
This study investigates a repertoire of eighteen madrigals whose texts refer to heraldry, all of which were composed in trecento Italy.