Engineers put Leonardo da Vinci’s bridge design to the test
Proposed bridge would have been the world’s longest at the time; new analysis shows it would have worked.
€10 million project to understand migrations in early medieval Europe
A €10 million research grant is set to fund a multidisciplinary study of more than 100 medieval cemeteries located across central and eastern Europe. The aim of the project will be to better understand the waves of migrations that took place in the early Middle Ages.
Staffordshire Hoard secrets revealed in new book
Following a decade of intensive conservation and expert research, a new book is revealing the importance of the spectacular Staffordshire Hoard to our knowledge of British and world history. It is set to offer fascinating discoveries about England in the seventh century.
Why some greens turn brown in historical paintings
Copper acetate (also known as verdigris) and copper resinate were used in European easel paintings between the 15th and 17th centuries
Five ‘medieval’ video games that are coming out in 2020
The Middle Ages have often been a popular topic in video games, and there are always more on the way. Here are five games – some more historically-based than others – to look forward to in 2020.
New insights into the genetic evolution of the Black Death
Analysis of 34 ancient plague genomes from the Black Death and succeeding plague epidemics in Europe between the 14th and 17th centuries, reveals how the bacterium diversified after a single introduction
Project to discover who came to Mount Athos in the Middle Ages
Zachary Chitwood of Mainz University will set up a comprehensive database that will include the inhabitants and visitors of Athos over a period of 700 years.
New project to examine medieval burials in Scotland
The Tarbat Medieval Burials Project has been launched in northern Scotland, which will examine a set of burials from the 15th century.
Medieval wall paintings at risk, English Heritage says
England’s painted past is at risk, English Heritage warned last month, as the charity revealed the catalogue of threats causing the country’s precious wall paintings to deteriorate and decay.
New method for archaeologists to examine bones discovered
Archaeologists and those studying human remains from the Middle Ages and other periods may soon have a new method to examine bones, which will leave these remains undamaged.
Medieval masterpiece by Cimabue discovered in France
A lost masterpiece by the medieval artist Cimabue has been discovered near Paris, France. It will be going up for auction next month and is expected to sell for up to €6 million.
New Light on the Battle of Stirling Bridge
The Battle of Stirling Bridge, in 1297, was the first major victory of the Scottish Wars of Independence. Did high tides help to defeat the English?
Few people from the British Isles participated in the First Crusade, historian finds
Chroniclers of the First Crusade often noted the diversity of the people who took part in the campaign to capture Jerusalem at the end of the eleventh-century. Among the long lists of groups they mentioned include the English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish. However, a new article shows that participation from the British Isles was very slim.
Do you want to help transcribe a medieval manuscript?
University of Birmingham researchers are calling for members of the public to help them transcribe one of the most important manuscripts of the Estoria de Espanna, a key medieval Spanish history.
Medieval Africa spotlighted in new exhibition at the Aga Khan Museum
An often unheralded part of the medieval world will be the focus of a new exhibition at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto, Canada. Caravans of Gold, Fragments in Time opens on September 21st, and will showcase dozens of fascinating pieces highlighting the African continent during the Middle Ages.
12th century carving of Eleanor of Aquitaine discovered
Archaeologists working at Bradwell Abbey in central England have unveiled a stone carving of Eleanor Aquitaine, dating back to the 12th century.
The Shroud of Turin was in the Byzantine Empire before 1204 AD, researchers suggest
Could the Shroud of Turin have been displayed in the Byzantine Empire before the thirteenth-century? A pair of Italian scholars suggest so, basing their theory on micro-particles of gold found on the famous cloth
Medieval PhD Dissertation turned into comic
A doctoral student at the University of Iceland has recreated his dissertation in a novel way – by making it into a comic.
Call for Papers: Writing Contest on the History of Blood
Hektoen international is an online journal of medical humanities and invites you to send an essay of under 1600 words on the subject of blood.
Open call for a Workshop: “Dialogues in the Late Medieval Mediterranean: Methodological Encounters and (Dis)Encounters
The COST Action “Islamic Legacy: Narratives East, West, South, North of the Mediterranean (1350-1750)” [CA 18129] is launching the first call for a training school entitled “ISLAMIC HERITAGE IN EUROPE”.
Norse arrival on Iceland led to extinction of its walrus population, study finds
A team of researchers have shown that soon after the Norse arrived in Iceland, that island’s species of walrus went extinct.
Archaeologists discover medieval man ‘broken on the wheel’
An archaeological dig in Milan has uncovered the remains of a young man who suffered massive injuries, likely caused by torture and execution while being ‘broken on wheel’.
Two medieval textile exhibitions open in Washington D.C.
Dumbarton Oaks Museum and the George Washington University Museum, both in Washington D.C., have open new exhibitions that look at fashion, clothing and textiles from the medieval world.
Did Henbane make Berserkers go Berserk?
A new study on the legendary Viking warriors known as berserkers suggests that they were able to achieve their battle trances and ferocity through the use of henbane.
