Marco Polo really did go to China, new study finds
A thorough new study of Chinese sources by University of Tübingen Sinologist Hans Ulrich Vogel dispels claims that Venice’s most famous traveler never truly went as far as China.
Walking in the Shadows of the Past: The Jewish Experience of Rome in the Twelfth Century
During this pivotal century and within the special microcosm of Rome, Jews and Christians experienced unusually robust cultural and social interactions, especially as the Jews increasingly aligned themselves with the protective power of the papacy.
The viaggio in Inghilterra of a viaggio in Oriente: Odorico da Pordenone’s Itinerarium from Italy to England
Odorico da Pordenone was a Franciscan Friar who, in the wake of the thirteenth-century expansion of the Mongolian empire, travelled to the court of the Great Khan at Khanbalik (modern Beijing).
Scandinavian Influences on the English Language
The Viking Age lasted roughly from the eighth century to the eleventh, with the Viking attacks on Europe beginning around 750 AD. The Scandinavians were excellent sailors, and they had impressive ships and navigational skills that carried them as far as North America (‘Vinland’) long before the arrival of Columbus in 1492.
Ohthere’s voyages seen from a nautical angle
But whatever Ohthere and his English hosts exchanged in the way of news and information, the re- corded account keeps closely within ränge of its objective: a geography of unknown and little known areas of Scandinavia and their inhabitants.
The Search for Knowledge: Andalusi Scholars and Their Travels to the Islamic East
In this paper I have analyzed biographical information concerning Andalusi scholars who traveled to the East as a part of their academic training, focusing on the ages at which they undertook their journeys, which closely relates to their ages at the beginning of their studies.
Waiting For Prester John: the legend, the Fifth Crusade, and medieval Christian holy war
The legend of Prester John and his magnificent kingdom has captivated scholarly and lay audiences from the twelfth-century through the twenty-first.
Silk Roads or Steppe Roads? The Silk Roads in World History
Modern historiography has not fully appreciated the ecological complexity of the Silk Roads. As a result, it has failed to understand their antiquity, or to grasp their full importance in Eurasian history.
Polish Pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostella: Way of St. James in Poland
It is very difficult to estimate the exact scope of Polish pilgrimages to Santiago de
Compostela in the Middle Ages on the basis of preserved historical sources. The presence of pilgrims from Poland was mentioned in the Pilgrim Records of the Middle Ages found in the archive of the Kingdom of Aragon in Barcelona…
Silencing the Bells: A Statement of Power in Medieval Spain
Much scholarship has been devoted to researching and documenting the significance and metaphysical qualities of the ringing of the bells within Christian culture. Specific efforts have been made to capture bells from defeated cathedrals as symbols of victory throughout history.
Saga-Accounts of Norse Far-Travellers
What did medieval saga-writers think about the Viking travellers who sailed west across the ocean without knowing the way to the lands they sought, or even whether or not these lands existed?
The contribution of early medieval China (AD 220-589) to the travel culture of landscape appreciation
Tourism has a long history that in the Western culture dates back to ancient Rome and Greece. In imperial China, tourism has a tradition independent of Europe, and is defined in the present study as “the travel culture of landscape appreciation”.
The Spanish Touch – Barcelona and Catalonia’s Medieval Treasures
Barcelona’s medieval district is rightly considered one of the best preserved in Europe. There is literally a story on every street, and around every corner a legend.
When did Laskaris Kananos travel in the Baltic lands?
The author describes how he visited Bergen, Stockholm, Riga, Danzig, Lübeck and Copenhagen before moving on to England and Iceland. His account is clearly the result of first hand observation, rather than classical mimesis, and it includes a number of verifiable details such as distances, climate and the diet of the locals.
Benjamin of Tudela, Spanish explorer
Benjamin of Tudela, Spanish explorer Shalev, Zur (Department of General History, Department of Land of Israel Studies, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel) Mediterranean…
Novgorodian Travelers to the Mediterranean World in the Middle Ages
Novgorodian Travelers to the Mediterranean World in the Middle Ages Matsuki, Eizo Studies in the Mediterranean World Past and Present (1988) Abstract “Novgorod…
RECONSTRUCTION OF THE BATTLE OF GRUNWALD AS EMOTIONAL PROMOTIONAL MESSAGE
RECONSTRUCTION OF THE BATTLE OF GRUNWALD AS EMOTIONAL PROMOTIONAL MESSAGE Hochleitner, Janusz (University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, Faculty of Humanities) &,…
Discovering Medieval Bohemia
By Zoe Brooks, Czech Tours I have my perfect job. It combines two of my loves – history especially medieval history and the Czech…
The Far East in the Early 16th Century: Giovanni da Empoli’s Travels
There have been many studies on the impact of the Portuguese discoveries on Europe, and as a result, new perspectives and approaches to the subject have opened up.
Rituals on the Road: Two highways at Rome and Ravenna AD 400- 750
This study will analyse rituals on the Via Tiburtina, and their impact on the bid for power in late antique Rome.
Sir John Mandeville and the Rhizomatic Travel Book
Sir John Mandeville and the Rhizomatic Travel Book By Galia Halpern Paper given at Forum on Forms of Seeing Symposium, New York University…
Looking East and West : the reception and dissemination of the Topographia Hibernica and the Itinerarium ad partes Orientales in England [1185-c.1500]
Looking East and West : the reception and dissemination of the Topographia Hibernica and the Itinerarium ad partes Orientales in England [1185-c.1500] David, Sumithra…
The Pilgrims’ Way Revisited: The use of the North Downs main trackway and the Medway crossings by medieval travellers
Popular notions that the trackway that skirts the southern edge of the North Downs once served as the principal thoroughfare for pilgrims travelling to Becket’s shrine at Canterbury are commonplace.
Bibliography Japan and the Japanese in printed works in Europe in the sixteenth century
Bibliography Japan and the Japanese in printed works in Europe in the sixteenth century By João Paulo Oliveira e Costa Bulletin of Portuguese-Japanese…
SINO-WESTERN CONTACTS UNDER THE MONGOL EMPIRE
SINO-WESTERN CONTACTS UNDER THE MONGOL EMPIRE By Herbert Franke Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch, Vol.6 (1966) Introduction: Contacts between…