This Week in Medieval Manuscript Images
What a porcupine might look like after running through a grapevine – this and more than forty more medieval manuscript images.
Chaucer in Iceland
My project is called Chaucer in Iceland and its main aim was to take the congress in Iceland as a case study for looking at the impact of Scandinavia identity on contemporary medieval studies.
War-Winning Weapons? On the Decisiveness of Ottoman Firearms from the Siege of Constantinople (1453) to the Battle of Mohács (1526)
How important a role did gunpowder weapons play in these Ottoman victories? The following re-examination of selected sieges and battles attempts to answer this question.
Aquinas on Torture
Here we are faced with something that, for this writer at least, is something of an enigma. It does not appear that Aquinas approved of this practice. Nowhere does he defend it, although he explicitly defends putting heretics to death.
Egyptian cemetery may contain one million graves from Roman and Byzantine eras
The announcement of a potentially huge gravesite in Egypt has led the world’s media to make claims that a million mummies have been discovered. Now, the entire archaeological project might be in jeopardy.
The Lost Foot – A medieval tale from the Gesta Romanorum
A certain tyrannical and cruel knight retained in his service a very faithful servant. One day, when he had been to the market…
The Louvre: Highlights for Medievalists
Despite offering exemplary samples of almost every type of art, the Louvre showcases some great examples of medieval art. The Richelieu Wing is where it’s at!
Animals in the Middle Ages: The Monkey
‘Monkeys are animals that like to imitate everything they see men doing. They feel happy when there is new moon, and with the full and waning moon, they get sad and filled with melancholy.’
Can you answer the Riddles of The Hobbit?
One of the most famous scenes in the story of The Hobbit is when Bilbo meets up with Gollum in the caves under the Misty Mountains. The two engage in a game of riddles, and Bilbo is able to escape with his life and a magical ring. Here are eight of the riddles they told each other – can you solve them?
The King’s Courts and the King’s Soul: Pardoning as Almsgiving in Medieval England
This paper examines the workings of the English royal courts in the thirteenth century through one of their practices—pardoning—and argues that the king and his officials could see courts not just as venues for justice, but also as institutions through which the king could see to the health of his own soul.
Domiciling the Evangelists in Anglo-Saxon England: a Fresh Reading of Aldred’s colophon in the Lindisfarne Gospels
What is actually reliable about this highly literary colophon is Aldred’s purpose in writing the gloss: to give the Evangelists a voice to address ‘all the brothers’− particularly the Latinless.
London at War: The City of London’s Involvement in Warfare from 1330-1400
This dissertation will discuss this military organisation, firstly in respect to the troops London was required to raise, how many, and where these men were sent.
Marital Affection and Expectations in a 14th-Century Parisian Court
I argue that the women in fourteenth-century Paris expected affection, or at least a lack of hatred, within their marriages.
Beowulf mini-series being created for television
A thirteen episode mini-series of Beowulf is being created by the the British broadcaster ITV.
Spanish Vikings: Searching for the Norse presence in Iberia
The fearsome reputation of the Vikings has made them the subject of countless exhibitions, books and films – however, surprisingly little is known about their more southerly exploits in Spain.
Angels on Christmas trees and medieval ideas of hierarchy
In the fifth century, the medieval theologian Pseudo-Dionysius wrote the definitive work on angelic hierarchies, during which he asserted that there were nine orders of hierarchy, ranging from the most humble messenger angels to the most elevated archangels.
Movie Review: The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
That was one long battle scene – however, The Hobbit trilogy ends with a relatively good movie.
Medieval Gothic Cathedrals were built from iron and stone, researchers find
Using radiocarbon dating on metal found in Gothic cathedrals, an interdisciplinary team has shown, for the first time through absolute dating, that iron was used to reinforce stone from the construction phase.
‘In the hilt is fame’: resonances of medieval swords and sword-lore in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings
This paper seeks to illuminate resonances of medieval swords and sword-lore in Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, where swords and the lore associated with them play important, if largely neglected, roles.
The Hobbit: Which Member of Thorin’s Company Are You?
Are you ready to journey into Middle-earth one last time? Come celebrate the final film in Peter Jackson’s epic film series, The Hobbit, with us and find out which member of Thorin’s Company you’re most like!
Earliest known piece of polyphonic music discovered
New research has uncovered the earliest known practical piece of polyphonic music, an example of the principles that laid the foundations of European musical tradition.
Templar attitudes towards women
The rule of the order of the Temple took a traditional monastic attitude towards women, being strongly anti-feminine in tone, and seeing women as contaminating the brothers.
Which Medieval English Cathedral are you?
Everyone loves visiting England’s wonderful medieval cathedrals. However, it’s not quite as easy as taking a multiple-choice internet quiz! At last, now you can find out which one of the diocesan mother churches of the Middle Ages can be assigned to your exact personality type!
King John gets his own App!
Anthem Press has just released an app for iPhones and iPads that looks at the reign of King John of England. Produced in in collaboration with Graham Seel, who wrote the book, King John: An Underrated King, it is free to download.
Bad Heritage: The Vikings in North America
I’ll propose that few times are more Immemorial than the medieval, which I think helps explain why the North American Norse have been promoted so heavily. It’s not just their priority among European arrivals; it’s that they’re medieval arrivals.