The secrets of medieval nanotechnology revealed in new study
Medieval artisans made use of a form of nanotechnology to create an ultra-thin metal known as Zwischgold. Now new scans of medieval artifacts have helped to determine how this was done.
What Did Medieval Slavery Look Like? New research reveals how art was not imitating reality
Why were artists in later medieval Iberia consistently depicting enslaved people as having dark skin and coming from sub-Saharan Africa during a time when Black slaves were a small minority in this society?
Thousands of medieval images available for free, thanks to Albertina Museum
A museum in Austria has made available over 150,000 images into the public domain, including many from the Middle Ages. Fans of Albrecht Dürer will be particularly delighted, as more than 2100 of his works are now available.
Two protestors glue their hands to Botticelli’s Primavera
Italian environmental activists staged a protest in Florence’s Uffizi Gallery by glueing their hands to the painting Primavera by Sandro Botticelli on Friday. The painting was not damaged as it was protected by glass.
Medieval artist left hidden image in the Melun Diptych, scholar finds
The Melun Diptych by the French artist Jean Fouquet is one of the most famous artworks from the fifteenth century. Now, new research suggests that the artist created a hidden image, revealed only by combining the two halves.
The Role of Colors in the Middle Ages: Materiality and Theories
This lecture aims to show some of these aspects related to the perception and role played by color in medieval societies with particular reference to the art of the central Middle Ages (twelfth-thirteenth century) and to the medium that perhaps more than any other focused on the visual power of colors: stained glass.
Early Icons of Kyivan Rus’
A look at some of the beautiful icons created in Kyivan Rus.
The Medieval Body exhibition opens in New York
The exhibition, which began on January 21st, will run to March 12th.
St. Francis, Giotto and Geology
St. Francis of Assisi (c.1181-1226) and Giotto (c.1270-1337), would change the history of religion, art and ecology. Some 800 years later, geologists would examine the limestone used to construct the Basilica of St. Francis at Assisi and would discover the secret behind the extinction of the dinosaurs.
The Eclectic Visual Cultures of Medieval Eastern Europe
By Maria Alessia Rossi and Alice Isabella Sullivan In 2018, we set on a quest to explore the rich medieval heritage of Eastern…
Medieval people used nanotechnology, researchers find
Nanotechnology is typically viewed as something that human beings are only now starting to make use of, and would be considered a technology of the future. However, a team of researchers has discovered that medieval artisans made use of some form of nanotechnology to create ultra-thin gilding material. But they still don’t know exactly how they did it.
King Milutin of Serbia: A Medieval Patron of the Arts
2021 marks 700 years since the death of Serbia’s King Stefan Uroš II Milutin (r. 1282–1321).
The tomb of the Black Prince reveals its secrets
A new analysis of the tomb of Edward the Black Prince – who was due to become the King of England – has shed new light on the ingenuity of royal artists in the 14th century.
15th-century tapestry on display again after conservation
A rare 15th-century tapestry – the oldest owned by the National Trust – is returning to display at Montacute House in southwestern England after spending four years away for conservation, but with it comes a mystery.
16th century shield returned to the Czech Republic
A stunning decorative shield, made in the sixteenth century, is returning to the Czech Republic after being looted by the Nazis nearly eighty years ago.
Giotto and the Early Italian Renaissance
The heritage of Rome and the influence of earlier traditions on artists like Cimabue, Duccio, Simone Martini and Giotto will be examined in the context of the ‘rebirth’ of the arts in Renaissance Italy.
Byzantine soft power in an age of decline, with Cecily Hilsdale
A conversation with Cecily Hilsdale about the coping strategies that late Byzantium used to counter, ameliorate, and reverse its imperial decline.
Armenian Art and Contested Lands
The virtual exhibition Ancient Faith: The Churches of Nagorno-Karabakh brings to the attention of international audiences the Armenian historic sites and cultural legacy of the contested region of Artsakh, known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh.
Canterbury Cathedral’s windows date back to 12th century, study suggests
A group of windows from Canterbury Cathedral may be the earliest extant stained glass windows in England, according to a team of scientists from University College London and conservators from Canterbury Cathedral.
Medieval Scottish Patronage in France with Bryony Coombs
Talking about medieval artwork that connects France to Scotland. The first part of a conversation with Bryony Coombs.
Why is there an Egyptian obelisk in the hippodrome of Constantinople?, with Cecily Hilsdale
A conversation with Cecily Hilsdale about the history and ritual functions of Egyptian obelisks, from ancient Egypt down to Rome, Constantinople, and beyond.
Painting the Passion with Passion: Giotto and the Easter Story in Padua
Giotto’s frescoes in the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, painted between 1303 and 1305, constitute one of the most beautiful, most coherent and most complete decorative schemes to have survived the ravages of time, the changes of taste, and the vagaries of flood, fire and other ‘Acts of God’.
Study examines the creation of lotus-pattern tiles in Tang Dynasty
The researchers conducted an investigation of 449 tile ends with lotus patterns from various periods during the Tang dynasty that had been recovered from the Ximing Temple.
Museum offers best new online view of the Bayeux Tapestry
Making use of 2.6 billion pixels, the most detailed digital version of the Bayeux Tapestry has been released online. It offers unprecedented views of the 11th-century embroidery.
From India to Byzantium, with Paroma Chatterjee
A conversation with Paroma Chatterjee on Indian perspectives and approaches to Byzantium.