The Anglo-Norman cathedral of Ferns, history and architecture
A history of Ferns and its Cathedral, with an insight into Ferns becoming a diocesan centre in the reform of the 12th century
How the borders of the Crusader States changed in the Middle Ages
The launch of the First Crusade in 1095 would result in new states in the medieval Middle East. Here are three videos on how the Crusader States developed from the 11th to 13th centuries.
Word Embodied: Entangled Icons in Medieval Japanese Buddhist Art
My project on the Japanese jeweled pagoda mandalas reveals the entangled realms of relics, reliquaries, and Buddhist scripture engendered through intricate interactions of word and image.
Dead Dogs are so 9th Century
My research looks at specific acts of ritualised mortuary violence enacted on objects, animals, and people by Vikings in the British Isles, and aims to develop a new interpretative framework with which to consider them.
Religion on the Frontier: Identity and Ritual Adaptations after the Anglo-Saxon migration
This paper will explore what it meant to practice religion on a frontier compared to the core, where the religion was based, by contrasting Anglo-Saxon ritual practices in Britain and the Continent.
Dragons in Medieval Literature
We are going to speak about dragons because dragons are among the creatures that figure in almost all fantasy books.
Rescuing the Medieval World: Matthew Parker, Sir Robert Cotton, and the Preservation of England’s Past
What I want to tell you today is that we are exceptionally fortunate to have as many books as we still do – medieval books have undergone many adventures across the centuries.
How the borders of the Caucasus changed in the Middle Ages
One of the lesser known regions of the medieval world was the Caucasus – the lands now spanning the present-day countries of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
The Land of Darkness and the Global Middle Ages
Why do we find coins from Central Asia and silver from Iran in Lincolnshire? What prompted medieval people to pack up and look for opportunity and adventure elsewhere?
Leo Africanus Discovers Comedy: Sixteenth Century Theatre Across the Mediterranean Divide
This afternoon I want to describe through the persons of the North African Muslim Hassan Al Rosen and the Italian Jew, Jacob Mantino, an encounter between two traditions of theatre and poetry in the early 16th century.
The Reuse of ‘Antiques’ in Anglo-Saxon Graves
Were these curated or items ‘won or stolen’ from earlier sites? At a different level, it is suggested that a type of Iron Age ‘safety pin’ brooch became popular at this time in the mid- 7th century.
Late Medieval Books and their Fittings: A material culture study
There have been various approaches applied to study and understand the nature of the late Medieval book, including historical, palaeographical and codicological methods, and yet, traditionally, little attention has been given to the book as a form of material culture, especially by archaeologists.
How the borders of the Bulgaria and Romania changed during the Middle Ages
These two neighbouring nations had a tumultuous history during the Middle Ages. Here are five videos examining their changing borders.
Romans, Britons or Anglo-Saxons in Fifth Century Britain: How do we know, why should we care?
Romans, Britons or Anglo-Saxons in Fifth Century Britain: How do we know, why should we care? Paper by Paul Gorton Given at the Theoretical…
The Nuremberg Chronicle as Entry Point to Explore the Rise of the Print
I’ll be using the 1493 Nuremberg Chronicle as the starting point to explore the rise of print throughout Europe.
How to explain the Medieval Papacy
How on earth did it come to wield the enormous amount of power that it did in the 13th century?
The Poetic Edda
Comic, tragic, instructive, grandiose, witty and profound, the poems of the Edda have influenced artists from Wagner to Tolkien and a new generation of video-game and film makers.
How the borders of India changed in the Middle Ages
The Indian subcontinent would see the rise and fall of many states during the Middle Ages. Here are five videos to explain the changing borders.
How the borders of the Low Countries changed in the Middle Ages
The lands of the Low Countries – today’s Belgium andThe Netherlands – would change both politically and physically during the Middle Ages. Here are six videos to explain how.
Close to Home or Far Away? Exploring identity in early Medieval Suffolk
What do changes in the material expression of identity tell us about social dynamics in 5th to 9th century Eastern England? Do wider geographic patterns show influences shifting from east to west, or is societal change a localized process
Love Sex Magic in Medieval Europe: The archaeological evidence
Love magic was used for a variety of purposes connected to love, sex and reproduction in the Middle Ages. It was most often used to arouse love or sexual desire, or to impede it by causing hatred or impotence.
Trade in the pre-capitalistic North Atlantic
The paper examines the evidence for international trade in 14th century Iceland based on excavations of a merchants’ camp at Gásir in North Iceland
How the borders of the Mamluk Sultanate changed in the Middle Ages
From the years 1250 to 1517 Egypt and parts of the Middle East were ruled by the Mamluks.
Liturgy Matters: Benedictine Women’s Communities in Medieval England
Katie Bugyis is pursuing her current book project, “Liturgy Matters: Benedictine Women’s Communities in Medieval England,” which reclaims the materiality of Benedictine nuns’ liturgical practices by viewing these women as “technologists” who transformed—and were transformed by—their sensual engagement with the objects they created, acquired, handled, and treasured.