By the early fourteenth century, the Mediterranean was approaching maturity as a commercial structure. Various arteries of exchange brought into its scope the full range of European, African and Asian commodities.
Causes of Piracy in Medieval Japan
August 21, 2012 By
The scope of the study spans two distinct phases of piratical activity by Japanese marauders known as the wako, the first lasting from 1223 to 1265 and the second from 1350 to the early 1400s.
In Our Time: Marco Polo
August 20, 2012 By
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the celebrated Venetian explorer Marco Polo.
Sex, Lies, and Paradise: The Assassins, Prester John, and the Fabulation of Civilizational Identities
July 29, 2012 By
The more interesting question would be to ask, as a way to begin a critical exchange, why some features in the story of medieval Assassins get attention and become targets of desire while others drop out of sight
‘Old Men of the Mountains’: a comparative study of the Ghūrids and the Ismā‘īlīs of Alamūt
July 26, 2012 By
Striking parallels exist between these two dynasties – marginalised and despised by their neighbours, they established secure mountain strongholds, which acted as refuges and bases from which to expand.
How did Persian and Other Western Medical Knowledge Move East, and Chinese West? A Look at the Role of Rashīd al-Dīn and Others
July 17, 2012 By
This paper looks specifically in this larger context at one key aspect of the western knowledge arriving in China, Islamic medicine, which included major Ancient Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Syrian Christian as well as Persian and even Indian components, making it truly international, and speculates as to how it got there.
The Eagle Returns: Evidence of Continued Ismaili Activity at Alamut and in the South Caspian Region following the Mongol Conquests
June 24, 2012 By
The catastrophic Mongol incursions into the heart of the Muslim world during the thirteenth century left a path of death and destruction in their wake.
Marco Polo really did go to China, new study finds
May 1, 2012 By
A thorough new study of Chinese sources by University of Tübingen Sinologist Hans Ulrich Vogel dispels claims that Venice’s most famous traveler never truly went as far as China.
Friar Benedict the Pole of Vratislava his mission to Mongolia and his narrative (1245-1247)
April 26, 2012 By
This is a study of the life and achievements of the Franciscan, Benedict the Pole of Vratislavia, who was sent with an Apostolic mission by Pope Innocent 17 in 1245 to the Great Khan of the Mongols.
Did traditional cultures live in harmony with nature? Lessons from Angkor, Cambodia
March 18, 2012 By
Recent archaeological and geomorphological research at the medieval Khmer capital of Angkor reveals that the impact of this low-density pre-industrial city on the natural environment was profound.
Ancient Afro-Asia Links: New Evidence from a Maritime Perspective
February 13, 2012 By
Historical records have shown that the East African coast was connected to ancient global trade networks. These early overseas contacts are evidenced by references to trading voyages in the early 1st millennium AD and in the 11th to 14th century AD.
Medieval Jewish manuscripts discovered in Afghanistan
January 3, 2012 By
Over 150 medieval Jewish documents have been discovered in Afghanistan. The works were found, purportedly by shepherds looking for sheep, in the mountains of Samangan province, which lies along the Silk Road trade route.
East and West: Textiles and Fashion in Eurasia in the Early Modern Period
December 6, 2011 By
Fashion underpinned the commercial growth and cultural transformation of western society. From at least the sixteenth century, fashion’s demotic stimuli unleashed desires across European social ranks.
The Book of Dede Korkut: the Villains within and out of Turks
September 25, 2011 By
The Book of Dede Korkut: the Villains within and out of Turks By Dilek Tufekci Can Paper given at the 1st Global Conference: Villains and Villainy (2009) Abstract: The Book of Dede Korkut, regarded as the Iliad of the Turks, is an epic of the Oghuz, one of the major branches of the Turkish Peoples, in […]
Was it Translated: Turkish Diplomatic Correspondence to China in Medieval Times
August 15, 2011 By
The focus of our inquiry is whether the two state letters presented to Sui China in 584 and 607 were translated into Chinese, or composed in Chinese.
Traces of Ancient Earthquakes in Medieval Cities Along the Silk Road, Northern Tien Shan and Dzhungaria
July 24, 2011 By
Traces of Ancient Earthquakes in Medieval Cities Along the Silk Road, Northern Tien Shan and Dzhungaria By ANDREY KORJENKOV, KARL BAIPAKOV, CLAUDIA CHANG, YURY PESHKOV and TAMARA SAVELIEVA Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol. 12 (2003) Abstract: The evidence for earthquake destruction at medieval cities along the Silk Road from 800 A.D. to 1500 A.D. […]
TRAVEL WRITING FROM HELL? MINAMOTO NO YORIIE AND THE POLITICS OF FUJI
July 17, 2011 By
TRAVEL WRITING FROM HELL? MINAMOTO NO YORIIE AND THE POLITICS OF FUJI NO HITOANASŌSHI Kimbrough, Keller R. (University of Colorado, Boulder) PAJLS, Volume 7 (2007) Abstract Within the fantastic world of late-medieval Japanese prose fiction, extraordinary, supernatural, or otherwise improbable journeys are the norm. Whether the eponymous Urashima Tarō’s visit to the underwater palace of […]
“Western Islamic Art” The Metropolitan Museum of Art
July 17, 2011 By
“Western Islamic Art” Aanavi, Don The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 27, no. 3 (November, 1968) Abstract Islamic art springs from a vast geographic expanse from Spain to Indonesia and its history consists of a dynamic interchange of peoples and ideas. It is scomplex and as with the art of Europe or the Far East, […]
Hellenistic Residue in Central Asia under Islamic Regimes
May 30, 2011 By
Hellenistic Residue in Central Asia under Islamic Regimes By Xinru Liu Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies in History and Archaeology, Vol. 1, No. 2 (2004) Abstract: Islamic scholars in the Middle Age translated many Greek, Persian, and Sanskrit literature into Arabic. Among the many scholars who contributed to scholarship in the Islamic world, Central Asia produced […]
The Baltic Sea and the Sea of Japan: History of Cooperation
May 24, 2011 By
The Baltic Sea and the Sea of Japan: History of Cooperation By Yulia Lamasheva The journal of the study of modern society and culture, No.33 (2005) Introduction: From far away, the Baltic region looks perhaps as a rather homogeneous area. The Baltic Sea is situated in Europe, all bordering States are maritime States. However, in […]
The Far East in the Early 16th Century: Giovanni da Empoli’s Travels
April 29, 2011 By
There have been many studies on the impact of the Portuguese discoveries on Europe, and as a result, new perspectives and approaches to the subject have opened up.
The Mongol Connection: Russia’s Asian Entry into European Politics
April 25, 2011 By
The Mongol Connection: Russia’s Asian Entry into European Politics By Iver B. Neumann Published Online (2008) Abstract: The end of the 15th Century saw what was beginning to be known as Europeans coming into first contact with the ‘new world’ to their West, and driving the Moor out of Europe to their South. In what […]
Early medieval warfare objects from the Central Balkans
March 10, 2011 By
Early medieval warfare objects from the Central Balkans Jaric, Jelena MA Thesis in Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, May (2009) Abstract This research focuses on the military collision of the Byzantine army and the barbarians of Indo-European and Asian origin on the territory of Central Balkans in the Early Middle Ages. Belligerency was always part of […]
How you can Follow Us!