Advent – Truce of God
At first Advent was a period of Parousia with Christmas signalling the Second Coming of Christ. Later it became a period set aside for peace when warring and feuding was strictly prohibited. Signalled by the Triumphant Coming of Christ and his earthly representative, the King heralded a new worldly peace
Medieval Christmas AD 336 – c. 1400
Was Medieval Christmas a religious feast? Or a boisterous folk-festival? The answer is probably both!
Acting out the Nativity
Sometime in the 10th–11th centuries the tradition evolved to turn part of the Christmas celebrations into a drama. Out of this grew the tradition of building a manger scene….
Late Medieval Christmas was a German Invention
In Late Medieval Germany, Christmas turned into a family event. How did this come about and why?
Christmas Party at Aagaard in Denmark in 1496
The History of Aagaard reaches back into the Viking Age and the fortress at Aggersborg. In 1496 it was home to a famous Christmas party…
Medieval Christmas Banquet in Paris 1378
In 1377 a fabulous medieval Christmas banquet was celebrated in the ancient royal castle at île des la Cité. A newly opened exhibition tells the story…
Medieval Christmas in Linköping in Sweden
From Sweden comes an old bishop’s manual dating from c. 1520. It tells the story of how Christmas was celebrated in Linköping in Östergötland.
How to Plan a Medieval Christmas
A quick list for a perfect Medieval Christmas is hand when everybody stresses and everything threatens to crash….
News
Civilizations of the Supernatural
11/12/2020Astrology, amulets, pagan magic charms, witches, and superstitions. All figure in a new book
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IMC 2021 Goes Virtual
29/10/2020International Medieval Congress in 2021 will be digitally organised. Clearly, Leeds hope to overwinter as the flagship of the Medieval History World Read more
China Tries to Corrupt History of Mongol Culture
27/10/2020Du to Chinese attempt at censorship, the Museum of Nantes in Bretagne has been forced to postpone an exhibition of Genghis Khan and the Mongols Read more
Two Princely Graves from the Migration Period – in Sachsen-Anhalt and the Thames Valley
05/10/2020Two Migration Period Graves are considered “once-in-a-lifetime” finds in England and Germany Read more
Cnut the Holy in Odense Cathedral
03/10/2020For nine centuries, the Cathedral in Odense has held the relics of a Danish King, Cnut the Holy and his brother Benedict. Both were murdered inside St. Albans in AD 1086. Read more
Who were the migrants of the migratory period?
03/10/2020Last year, ten million euros were granted to the project, HistoGenes, to study the aDNA of 6000 individuals from AD 400-900. Read more
Medieval Food in Norwegians Towns
03/10/2020A new interdisciplinary research project – The impact of food culture in Medieval towns (FOODIMPACT) will analyse more than 30.000 items in the Cultural Museum in Oslo Read more
The Gjellestad Excavation of a Viking ship Live Streamed
03/10/2020Last week, the Gjellestad excavation was live streamed by Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation Read more
New Books
The Anonymous Old English Homily
28/11/2020Apart from charters, the homilies in Old English constitute the largest preserved corpus of texts preserved in the vernacular. A new introduction offers insights into this often overlooked source material Read more
Craftsmen and Jewelers in the Middle and Lower Danube Region
28/11/2020In the Middle Ages, craftsmen and jewellers in the Middle and Lower Danube Region were versatile and skilled in numerous techniques. Read more
The Languages of Early Medieval Charters
28/11/2020Studies of literacy and society has long since demolished the assumption that reading and writing were skills reserved for a small and distinct clerical elite. Rather literacy was widespread in a the multilingual world of the Early Middle Ages. New book focus on the writing of charters This is the… Read more
Returning to Gokstad
27/11/2020The Gokstad ship with the buried warrior and his grave gifts was discovered in 1880. Since 2011, archaeologists have reexamined the original find Read more
New Research
The Schlüsselfeld Ship
07/11/2020In the 14th century, it became fashionable to decorate tables at noble or royal banquets with models of ships, symbolising “Good Luck” and “Fair Wind”. Later, the wealthy merchants in the cities picked up this fashion. The Schlüsselfeld ship is one of the more famous. Read more
Ships as Table Decorations in the Middle Ages
06/11/2020Ships were prized ornaments decorating the tables of kings and lords into the 16th and 17th century. Read more
Marian Ughi visits St. Thomas of Becket in 1444
05/11/2020A newly discovered travel account of a Florentine merchant visiting Canterbury and the shrine of Thomas Becket sheds light on late medieval devotion Read more
Disc-on-Bow and Cruciform Brooches
26/10/2020New research points to the role distinct brooches played in the formation of “ethnic” identities in the North Sea region during the migration period and in the Early Viking Age; and the role women played as custodians of their cultural and mythological heritage. Already in the 6th and 7th centuries,… Read more
New Exhibitions
Visigoths in Toulouse
24/08/2020The Visigoths in Toulouse forged one of the first barbarian kingdom inside the Roman Empire, ruling from 420 – 507. In 2020 an exhibition in Toulouse celebrates the 1600-anniversary of their foundation. This summer a major exhibition focusing on the Visigothic kingdom in Toulouse 420 – 507 has been organised… Read more
Nuns and their lives in the 14th century
04/08/2020This summer, visitors to Zürich National Museum can study the remarkable story of the careers of medieval nuns. Extended to mid-august, an exhibition is worth looking into, if you are in the vicinity. Read more
The Early History of Copenhagen at a New Museum
11/02/2020Last week, a new attraction opened, The Museum of Copenhagen, covering the history from the ice-age hunters and gatherers and into the near future. Central is the brand new story of the earliest period in the life of the town ca. 1000 Read more
Facing Van Eyck – The Miracle of the Detail
08/02/2020Come September, Brussels houses an exhibition focusing on the visually detailed techniques of Jan van Eyck and his work of art. The exhibition is paired with a prized digital resource. Read more