People were healthier in the Early Middle Ages than in later centuries, study finds
The Early Middle Ages, from the 5th to the 10th centuries, is often derided as the ‘Dark Ages’. But a new study suggests that the middle and lower classes were healthier than their descendants in later centuries – even as late as the 19th-century industrial age.
New book examines the medieval slave trade in Russia
While the slave trade collapsed in medieval Western Europe following the emergence of sovereign monarchies, territorial states and their rule of law, the situation in Russia was very different.
Norse World – new database on medieval Scandinavian literature goes online
A new online database that will make it easier for researchers to study Medieval Scandinavian literature was launched today.
How fern plants were used as medicine in medieval Europe
The remains of a medieval skeleton has shown the first physical evidence that a fern plant could have been used for medicinal purposes in cases such as alopecia, dandruff and kidney stones
Pictish stone symbols date back hundreds of years earlier than first believed, study shows
“Our dating reveals that the symbol system is likely to date from the third-fourth century AD and from an earlier period than many scholars had assumed.”
Historian examines the complex networks of empires
Connecting axes tend to be more important than centers: what is true of many contemporary networks is also the case for social and geographical links in antiquity and the Middle Ages.
Archaeologists track the ancient and medieval times of a Middle Eastern town
German archaeologists exploring the remains of a town in Turkey have revealed how the city flourished about 1800 years ago, and then had a revival in the early Middle Ages.
Last traditional medieval manor on sale for £7 million
It’s more than just 1,845 acre, with 17 farmsteads and a pub – Laxton is the last remaining example of a medieval Open Field System and Court Leet.
Man arrested after trying to steal Magna Carta copy from Salisbury Cathedral
British police have arrested a man after he apparently tried to steal one of the original copies of Magna Carta from Salisbury Cathedral.
Texas Medieval Association Conference begins today
Texas Tech University’s Medieval & Renaissance Studies Center is hosting the 28th annual conference of the Texas Medieval Association.
Eighth-century skeleton discovered near Venice
Archaeologists working on the island of Torcello, near Venice, have uncovered a medieval skeleton dating to around 700 A.D.
Free(ish) online course on Medieval Spain starts next week
The University of Colorado and is teaming up with Coursea to launch a partially-free online course: Toledo: Deciphering Secrets of Medieval Spain. The course begins on October 29th and runs for six weeks.
Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms: Art, Word, War opens at the British Library
The British Library has opened what they are calling the largest ever exhibition on Anglo-Saxon England.
Viking ship discovered under the ground in Norway
Archaeologists using high resolution georadar have found a Viking ship and a large number of burial mounds and longhouses in southeastern Norway.
Parasites from medieval latrines tell a story of changing dietary habits
A radical new approach combining archaeology, genetics and microscopy can reveal long-forgotten secrets of human diet, sanitation and movement from studying parasites in medieval poo.
Medieval city of Koh Ker may have been inhabited for centuries, study finds
Ecological data reveals urban populations lasted long after royal abandonment of the Khmer city in the 10th century.
‘Vampire burial’ discovered in Italy dates to the 5th century AD, researchers find
The discovery of a 10-year-old’s body at a medieval Roman site in Italy suggests measures were taken to prevent the child, possibly infected with malaria, from rising from the dead and spreading disease to the living.
800 illuminated medieval manuscripts digitized, to go online in November
The British Library, the Bibliothèque nationale de France and The Polonsky Foundation have teamed up to create two websites that will provide digital access to 800 medieval manuscripts. The websites will be launched next month.
8-year-old girl discovers medieval sword in Swedish lake
A story making headlines around the world this week is the discovery of a medieval sword in Sweden. While an unusual event on its own, what is more remarkable is that the person who discovered it was an 8-year-old girl.
Brock conference bridges medieval and neo-Victorian worlds
The conference is expected to bring around 60 international scholars from medievalism studies and neo-Victorian studies to discuss topics ranging from Beowulf to Brexit.
Medieval round tower discovered in Northern Ireland
Researchers have discovered that a major medieval monument has been hidden in plain-sight for centuries in the heart of a major city in Northern Ireland.
Three medieval artworks acquired by the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
A rare, 14th-century Hebrew Codex from the Rhineland; a silver-gilt and enamel Spanish
processional cross, circa 1400; and a 1516 design for Rouen cathedral tower are now on view
House of the Blackfriars discovered in Scotland
Archaeologists working in the Scottish city of Stirling have discovered the foundations of a medieval Dominican friary.
Discovery of Earliest Known Image of Pilgrims on the Road to Canterbury
Researchers have made a remarkable discovery of a stained glass panel picturing pilgrims travelling by horse and on foot to visit the tomb of archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral. The newly discovered stained glass panel dates to the mid 1180s, less than twenty years after Becket’s death.
