Lovesickness in “Troilus”
The history of lovesickness in the Middle Ages is the record of physicians’ attempts to understand what happens to the body and the mind when passion renders a lover a patient.
Oldest surviving timber-framed house discovered in Ireland
Archaeologists in County Clare believe they have discovered Ireland’s earliest surviving example of a timber framed house.
Miracle or Magic? The Problematic Status of Christian Amulet
The Church Fathers and intellectuals made the distinction between the miracle of the relics and sacred words of the Bible, verba sacra….
Rex Vandalorum – The Debates on Wends and Vandals in Swedish Humanism as an Indicator for Early Modern Patterns of Ethnic Perception
The German word Wenden is documented as a synonym for Slavs since
the 6th century A.D.. Medieval authors also used Wandali instead of Wenden/Slavs
Christianization of the Norse c.900-c.1100: A Premeditated Strategy of Life and Death
Examines how Christianization of the Norse in the tenth and eleventh centuries was the effect of a premeditated mission strategy borne from the experiences of converting the Anglo-Saxon English in the seventh century AD.
East and West: Textiles and Fashion in Eurasia in the Early Modern Period
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.
Terry Jones’ Medieval Lives
In Terry Jones’ Medieval Lives his mission is to rescue the Middle Ages from moth-eaten cliches and well-worn platitudes.
Medieval English Apprenticeship as Business Education
We have done medieval apprenticeship an injustice in conceiving it to be primarily a training in technical skill. Medieval apprenticeship attempted technical training in craft skill, but it also attempted much more.
Getty Museum Acquires Rare Late-Medieval German Sculpture
The Getty Museum were the successful bidders at auction for an extraordinary rare sculpture of St. John the Baptist dating from early 16th-century.
The Woodland Economy of Kent, 1066-1348
At the time of Domesday Book a great part of the county, perhaps a third, or even more, was tree clad, and while by the thirteenth century the proportion had fallen.
The Manuscript Context of the Middle Dutch Fabliaux
Busby’s conclusion with regard to Old French fabliaux might just as well apply to Middle Dutch tales: “Reading fabliaux in their manuscript context reveals an important aspect of their significance for early readers or listeners which would otherwise remain concealed.”
Learning Magic in the Sagas
The image of magic spells being taught by more seasoned practitioners to others eager to learn them comports well with what can be deduced about the actual practice of witchcraft and magic in medieval Scandinavia
Medieval children and surrogate mothers: a study of maternal sensibility
Responsibility for providing child care, both physical and emotional, was frequently delegated by medieval parents to alternative people and institutions.
Christian Society on the Second Crusade: Religious Practices in the De expugnatione Lyxbonensi
Throop examines an Anglo-Norman account of the conquest of Lisbon in 1147, De expugnatione Lyxbonensi, to see what religious practices we see in the text, including lay piety and the implications for crusading.
Flesh of My Flesh – Greek Patristic Exegeses of the Creation of Eve
How do the Greek Fathers deal with these two sometimes conflicting descriptions of creation? Some, most notably John Chrysostom, treat it at length.
Viking-Age sailing routes of the western Baltic Sea – a matter of safety
Included in the Old English Orosius, compiled at the court of King Alfred the Great of Wessex around 890, are the descriptions of two different late 9th-century Scandinavian sailing routes.
King Alfred, Mercia and London, 874-886: a reassessment
The creation of a new burh in London is seen as a natural development of the system of burhs which had been established by Alfred all over Wessex in the previous two years, following his victory over Guthrum’s forces at Edington
Byzantines, Goths and Lombards in Italy: Jewellery, Dress and Cultural Interactions
The temptation is naturally to seek differences or contrasts from one power to another, to reinforce the conflict and tension identified in contemporary historians.
Buried with Honour and Stoned to Death? The Ambivalence of Viking Age Magic in the Light of Archaeology
In 1981 Danish archaeologists revealed a remarkable Viking Age grave mound in the village of Gerdrup.
Humanities scholars study health, disease in the Middle Ages
What do the 2012 summer Olympics and medieval scholarship have in common? For both, London will be the site of extraordinary achievements.
The Problem of Miracles and Methodology in Hagiography Research
In the following paragraphs I hope to bring to light the current state of study of hagiography and the issues which beset it.
The monastic response to Papal reform: Summi Magistri and it reception
This is a question which has dogged the history of the interaction between Rome and the Black monks, and it brings a second question in its wake – what were the medieval Popes trying to do with monasticism?
Fiat lux: climatic considerations in medieval stained glass aesthetics
Shelters have always been integral elements of human society; people have relied on them since prehistoric times to provide vital protection from the outside world.
Colour in Dore Abbey
Modern visitors can touch the furniture, see the kitchens, walk around the hall and guestroom, enjoy live fires (unusual for many children) and even take part in re-enactments that can include the ‘King’ himself.
A “Triangular” Shawl Style for the Viking Age?
Drawing together archaeological evidence of textiles, fastenings, and artwork, from Scandinavia and neighbouring cultures around the 8th-10th centuries.