Visualization in Medieval Alchemy
Therefore, rather than attempting to establish an exhaustive inventory of visual forms in medieval alchemy or a premature synthesis, the purpose of this article is to sketch major trends in visualization and to exemplify them by their earliest appearance so far known.
The Greek Renaissance in Italy
For various reasons north Italy toward the end of the fourteenth century seemed peculiarly adapted to become the seat of another classical renaissance, though of one some what different in character and results from that which had already run its course.
The European Reconquest of North Africa
The chief structural features of Africa Minor are simple. The territory consists of a long strip of land bounded on the north by the Mediterranean,on the south by the Sahara, on the east by the Gulf of Tripoli and the Libyan Desert, on the west by the Atlantic.
Teaching the Creed and Articles of Faith in England: Lateran IV to Ignorantia sacerdotum
The broad conclusion of this thesis is that the available evidence shows that the basic principles of Christian doctrine were available both to the lower clergy who would preach and teach the Creed and Articles of Faith and also to the laity who would receive this preaching and instruction.
Julian of Norwich’s “Christ as Mother” and Medieval Constructions of Gender
Recent Christian feminists have revived an interest in women mystics and feminine religious imagery. In light of what most people generalize about medieval misogyny and about the veneration of the Virgin as a surrogate for a female divinity, Julian of Norwich’s trope of Christ as Mother seems even more remarkable.
Did people in the Middle Ages take baths?
A closer look shows that baths and bathing were actually quite common in the Middle Ages, but in a different way than one might expect.
Wonders and Wisdom: Anglo-Saxons and the East
What the Anglo-Saxons ‘knew’ about Moslems and Jews, and about Babylon and Egypt and India, depended upon Biblical exegesis, saints’ lives, and other texts derived from Latin sources. Numerous Old English texts, as well as Latin versions that circulated and were copied in Anglo-Saxon England, concern Asia; these are quite varied in genre and in content.
The Voices of Counsel: Women and Civic Rhetoric in the Middle Ages
A full discussion of women’s civic rhetoric in the Middle Ages has been somewhat obfuscated for two reasons: persistent generalities about women’s roles, and generalities about the nature of the civic itself in the Middle Ages.
Bīmāristān Al-Manṣūrī: State and Medical Practice in Mamluk Egypt (1285-1390)
The Bīmāristān was the major part of a huge complex built in the center of Cairo in 1285 by the Mamluk Sultan al-Manṣūr Qalāwūn, who was the founder of the Qalāwūnid dynasty/dawlah that ruled the Mamluk empire for over a century
When the Dark Ages Were Lit Up: The Sutton Hoo discovery 70 years on
Alex Burghart looks back 70 years to the discovery of the fabulous Anglo-Saxon burial at Sutton Hoo, and ponders how far we’ve come in our knowledge of the period since 1939.
The Rage of the Wolf: Metamorphosis and Identity in Medieval Werewolf Tales
The werewolves of medieval literature were forced to conform to the Church’s view of metamorphosis and, in so doing, transformed from bestial and savage to benevolent and rational.
The Interrogation of of a Male Transvestite Prostitute in Fourteenth Century London
Despite the general rule that sexual offenses were matters for the church courts, in some cases the city of London took charge of these offenses. Prostitution and procuring, for example, involved public order; the temporal courts dealt with them for that reason, so that the same people might be prosecuted in both jusrisdictions for the same offense.
A Feminist Critique of Beowulf: Women as Peace-Weavers and Goaders in Beowulf’s Courts
This thesis will examine the fundamental roles of women in the societies described in Beowulf, paying specific attention to the function as peace-weavers and goaders.
“Of Arms and Men”: Siege and Battle Tactics in the Catalan Grand Chronicles (1208-1387)
What was the nature of combat as then practiced by the Aragonese? Who and what was involved? How were the practicalities of battle realized on the field?
Empress Matilda, Lady of the English
Here lies the daughter, wife, and mother of Henry.
The Battle of Yarmuk
On August 20, 636 AD, a battle was fought in Syria between the Roman army and a Saracen force made up of allied Arab tribes which during the previous decade had been converted to the new monotheistic religion of the prophet Mohammed.
Hatred as a Social Institution in Late-Medieval Society
At some point early in 1355, the laborer Pons Gasin of Marseilles killed a woman named Alazais Borgona. The peace act that arose from this killing does not tell us why. What it does tell us is that the killing marked the birth of a great hatred between Alazais’s kinfolk and Pons.
The Welsh soldier: 1283-1422
The present thesis is a study of the reality – and the myth – of the ‘Welsh soldier’ in the later middle ages.
Dramatic ritual and preaching in late Anglo-Saxon England
My thesis involves an examination of the dramatic liturgical ritual of the late Anglo-Saxon period and its relationship to other aspects of Christian worship, especially vernacular preaching.
Society, economy and lordship in Devon in the age of the first two Courtenay earls, c. 1297-1377
This thesis is a contribution to the social history of medieval Devon and the south- west in the lifetimes of the first two Courtenay earls, Hugh II (1275-1340) and Hugh III (1303-77).
Old English and the lexicography of Old High German
In this lecture I will focus on how Old English affected the early German written record and on the difficulties of its lexicographical description.
Francesco Filelfo at the court of Milan (1439-1481)
Milan was the city where Filelfo spent half his life, where he wrote almost all his works and where he left a deep imprint in the development of humanistic culture.
Call for Papers: The Archaeology of Gatherings Conference
With 2013 being the year of ‘The Gathering’ this theme was chosen to examine why people over millennia have come together, often in large numbers, for religious assemblies, social interaction, to exchange commodities and ideas, along with other reasons such as farewells, wakes, political opposition, inaugurations etc.
Game of Thrones – Review of Season 3 Episode 2: Dark Wings, Dark Words
In this week’s episode, we wrap up where all our other characters left off – Arya, Theon, Rob, Jamie, Bran and Sansa.