Another fascinating paper from “Making the Medieval Relevant” was given by Daniel Curtis, a specialist in Social and Economic History, and a professor at the University of Utrecht.
Curse or Blessing: What’s in the Magic Bowl?
September 19, 2015 By
I intend to look at magic bowls in order to see how and for what purpose they were used, and to get a glimpse at the way they worked and what hidden treasures can be found within them.
Rosh Hashanah in the Middle Ages
September 13, 2015 By
As the Jewish High Holy Days takes place, we take a look at how Jews celebrated Rosh Hashanah in the Middle Ages.
The Problem of Old Debts: Jewish Moneylenders in Northern Castile
September 13, 2015 By
Focusing especially on Jewish moneylending, the article explores economic relations between Jews and Christians in Northern Castile at the turn of the fourteenth century.
Mosaics discovered at Byzantine-era Synagogue in Israel
August 6, 2015 By
Excavations of a medieval synagogue in Israel dating to the Byzantine period (4th—7th c. CE) have uncovered a partially-preserved colorful mosaic floor.
Medieval Jews on Christianity
July 27, 2015 By
Whatever medieval Jews said, or thought, about Christianity, one may be sure that very little of it was good.
Explore the Medieval Jewish Trail in Winchester
July 27, 2015 By
Visitors to Winchester have a new way to explore the English city’s medieval Jewish past. Winchester City Council and the University of Winchester have launched a new city trail telling the story of this community.
‘But Where are the Dungeons?’: How to Engage the Public at the Tower of London
July 12, 2015 By
A talk about how historical sites, like the Tower of London engage the public. How to handle visitor expectations, what do people come t see and how to tell history in a captivating but accurate manner.
David Nirenberg on ‘Religion and Violence’
May 2, 2015 By
Do the respective claims of the Jewish, Christian, and Islamic holy texts contribute to the violence between the various communities that read them? Or do they provide a basis for solidarity between the three Abrahamic religions?
Moses as a Germanic hero? Biblical Poetry in Anglo-Saxon England
April 16, 2015 By
Samantha Zacher talks about Anglo-Saxon Jewish heroes.
Dragons: A Symbol of Evil in European Synagogue Decoration?
January 30, 2015 By
At first glance, images of evil would seem to be an unexpected element in synagogue art. Only during a relatively short period in eighteenth-century eastern-European synagogues were paintings of predatory beasts and birds catching their prey depicted to convey the idea of the People of Israel pursued by enemies.
The Medieval Myth of Jewish Ritual Murder: Toward a History of Literary Reception
January 7, 2015 By
An analysis of this myth, beginning with the events around Hugh of Lincoln, is illustrative: The various literary and cultural transformations of the story provide an insight into the transition of the myth from its medieval genesis to its post-medieval reception.
The Regional Impact on Medieval Text and Image: Exploring Representations of Anti-Semitism in English and Northern French Medieval Bestiaries
January 1, 2015 By
This thesis endeavors to explain the variations in representations of anti-Semitism between medieval bestiaries.
‘Forget Your People and Your Father’s House’: Teresa de Cartagena and the Converso Identity
December 3, 2014 By
Religion is a very important factor to take into consideration in discussions about the identity of the conversos [converts] or New Christians, an emerging group in 15th-century Castile.
The last wonderful thing: the icon of the Heavenly Ladder on Mount Sinai
November 23, 2014 By
Description and dating of the icon of the Heavenly Ladder Jacob ‘dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached toheaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
Picturing Maternal Anxiety in the Miracle of the Jew of Bourges
November 14, 2014 By
During the middle ages, one of the most popular and most frequently illustrated Miracles of the Virgin Mary was the Miracle of the Jew of Bourges. According to the text of the miracle, the Virgin saves a young Jewish boy after his father throws him into a fiery oven upon learning he attended a Christian mass.
The Patriarch Alexios Stoudites and the Reinterpretation of Justinianic Legislation against Heretics
November 10, 2014 By
Using normative legal sources such as law codes and imperial novels to illuminate Byzantine heresy is a very difficult proposition. One of the great problems in the analysis of Byzantine law in general is that the normative legal sources rarely were adapted to subsequent economic, political, or social conditions.
Intellectual Cartographic Spaces: Alfonso X, the Wise and the Foundation of the Studium Generale of Seville
November 7, 2014 By
This dissertation, “Intellectual Cartographic Spaces: Alfonso X, the Wise and the Foundations of the Studium Generale of Seville,” I reevaluate Spain’s medieval history, specifically focusing on the role of Alfonso X and his court in the development of institutions of higher education in thirteenth-century Andalusia.
Bede’s Temple as History
October 28, 2014 By
Another IHR paper, this time, a talk given about Bede’s writing and his interest in the image of the Temple and its relation to Christianity. This paper also examined how Bede’s views shifted over time. How did Bede view Judaism? Was he truly ambivalent?
Oldest known Jewish prayer book goes on display
September 21, 2014 By
An Israeli museum is showcasing a Jewish prayer book that was written in the year 820 – believed to be the oldest known copy of a Siddur.
Taxes, Loans, Credit and Debts in the 15th Century Towns of Moravia: A Case Study of Olomouc and Brno
September 7, 2014 By
The paper explores urban public finance in the late medieval towns on the example of two largest cities in Moravia—Olomouc and Brno.
Race, Periodicity, and the (Neo-) Middle Ages
August 25, 2014 By
My goal is to intervene in ongoing discussions of race and periodicity, particularly vis-à-vis medieval culture, in order to investigate the informing role of the medieval and more particularly of medievalisms in the construction, representation, and perpetuation of modern racisms.
The Depiction of Jews in the Carnival Plays and Comedies of Hans Folz and Hans Sachs in Early Modern Nuremberg
August 23, 2014 By
This study will thus demonstrate that the Bakhtinian model and its critics both contribute to our understanding of the Fastnachtspiel and the development of early modern German attitudes toward Jews.
Slaves, Money Lenders, and Prisoner Guards: The Jews and the Trade in Slaves and Captives in the Crimean Khanate
August 20, 2014 By
Trade in slaves and captives was one of the most important (if not the most important) sources of income of the Crimean Khanate in the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries.
‘That melodious linguist’: Birds in Medieval Christian and Islamic Cosmography
August 12, 2014 By
“Birds,” writes Albertus Magnus, “generally call more than other animals. This is due to the lightness of their spirits.”
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