As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, baptism for infants arose early in the Christian Middle Ages, and signaled to all witnesses that the child had been admitted into the grace of God. “Team God” was obviously the side everyone wanted to be on, but it raised a problem — when Christians opposed each other, whose […]
Emperor Constantine and His Nickname “Kopronymous” Read More »
In the background you are hearing the 15th-century English Christmas “Boar’s-Head Carol,” and looking at a closeup of a boar hunt from the month of December in the lavishly illustrated _Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry_ (circa 1440). In my home state of Pennsylvania, deer rifle season is heralded by hunters as an important
Boar Hunting in “Tres Riches Heures du Duc be Berry” Read More »
This illustration of the Garden of Eden comes out of one of the most lavishly decorated Medieval manuscripts in history, the _Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry_ (c. 1416). Close examination reflects much more than the basic story from the Hebrew Bible’s story of the expulsion out of earthy paradise. For one, the world
Beauty Standards in “Tres Riches Heures du Duc be Berry” Read More »
She looks lovely, doesn’t she? Well, if not lovely, certainly fancy. But turn to the next slide, and you’ll get a very different view. This two-sided ivory pendant of an aristocratic woman was carved in the Netherlands around 1500, and perfectly represents a Late Medieval artistic motif called “momento mori,” or “remembrance of death.” In
Late Medieval Motif Momento Mori Carving Read More »
Medieval people from every social status played games, but wealthy ladies and gentlemen had the resources for specialer ones. The first image you see here is the earliest intact deck of playing cards, known as the “Flemish Hunting Deck.” Made up of fifty-two hand-painted cards, the deck was created about 1480, and used real gold
Medieval Table Games Read More »
In Early Medieval Europe, to have a book meant you were fantastically wealthy. But to commission a book such as the one featured here meant you were at the pinnacle of society. This manuscript is the _Codex Argenteus_, and it is among the most important human-made objects created in sixth-century Europe. Parchment was expensive and
The Codex Argenteus Read More »
This bra broke history: excavated out of a rubble heap from a medieval castle in Austria in 2008, it was one of four bras discovered there, all dating to the 15th century. This find brought up to four our total examples of extant medieval bras — before these fragments from Lengberg Castle, we had zero.
Medieval Bras Found in Austria’s Lengberg Castle Read More »
Each year, I write historically themed Christmas Carols, and this year’s is about the society of the Early Medieval epic poem _Beowulf_. Enjoy! “Hwaet! Gear-Dagum (Sings the poet)” to the tune of “Deck the Halls (with Boughs of Holly)” “Hwaet! Gear-Dagum,” sings the poet./ Gather ’round and hear/ The tale I tell.// Danish thegns win
Historical Christmas Carol – “Hwaet!” Read More »
Happy St. Lucy’s Day! Would you like to celebrate by meditating on gouged-out eyeballs? In a tradition stemming from the Middle Ages, saints who had been martyred were frequently shown in artwork with either the instrument of death (Lucy was also stabbed — see the knife?), or the body parts in their story recieving the
Saint Lucy and Her Traditional Celebrations Read More »
Here you see a ginormous “Foo Dog,” as the guardian lions of Chinese architecture are known in the West. These statues began to flank the entrances to homes of the elite during the Ming and Qing Dynasties (14th-20th c). Standing for strength and power, they appear in pairs, with the left lioness (as indicated by
Foo Dogs and Protection of Ancient Chinese Elite Homes Read More »
About two months ago, in my small town of south-central Pennsylvania, people gathered for a municipal board hearing to debate whether we should stop putting fluoride in our public water supply as a preventative measure against tooth decay. Loads of scientific evidence is easily available for the critical reader to make up her mind on
Struggles of Relieving Medieval Tooth Aches and Decay Read More »
Happy Holiday Season to all. Here comes the final historically themed Christmas Carol of 2019: “In an Old-English Leechbook” (to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas) In an Old-English Leechbook, scribe Baldy wrote to me: “a cow stomach will help you see.” . . . When the moon was waning crescent my lunaria
Historical Christmas Carol – “In An Old-English Leechbook” Read More »
The tradition of gift-giving in human history resonates deeply this time of year, and although we usually think of this custom as a joyful one celebrating bonds of affection, love, and friendship, anthropologists have studied it in other contexts. Shown here in this 15th-century engraving by Northern Renaissance artist Martin Schongauer is a legend famous
The Tradition Gift-Giving in Human History Read More »
Here is a rare painting of Frau Minne, the Goddess-Allegory of Love popular among German-speaking Europeans in the Middle Ages. Her actions radically contradict the ways we often think women were expected to behave: Minne is forceful and violent, and she is always victorious. Here in this 14th-century coffer she is about to pierce the
Frau Minnie – The Allegory of Love Read More »
One of the best things about your day today is not waking up to ergot poisoning. Unfortunately, this condition caused great suffering to many throughout history. In the Middle Ages, people called it “St Anthony’s Fire,” after a 4th-century saint who was said to have endured hallucinations and burning sensations — two of the many
The Painful Conditions From Ergot Poisoning Read More »
The Ancient Roman deity Janus appears as a two-headed God. With one face looking backwards in time and the other forward, he was appropriately worshipped at the start of the New Year. Janus was invoked for good luck in all new undertakings, and today many of us continue a long tradition when we set out
The Ancient Roman Deity Janus and New Year Traditions Read More »
It’s almost New Year’s Eve, a time when many people gather for celebrations throughout the night and into the wee hours of the morning. Rationally we know that nothing really changes when the clock rolls from 11:59 to midnight – The new calendar year is a human invention, and yet we are conditioned to feel
The Aztec’s New Fire Ceremony Read More »
You are looking at a sixteenth-century Japanese scroll showing pictures of “tsukumogami:” discarded household items that become angry at their lack of use and turn into animated demons. My favorite story from this genre of folk tales comes from another sixteenth-century work known as the Sufuku-ji scrolls. It begins with a haunting warning about how
Ancient Japanese Folklore – The Tsukumogami Read More »
This is Michaelangelo’s portrait of the Biblical prophet Moses, designed for the tomb of the powerful and controlling patron of the great artist, Pope Julius II. Completed in 1545, Michelangelo’s sculpture immediately causes viewers pause: Moses has horns protruding from his head. The bestial qualities of a horned animal long resonated among European Christians as
Artistic Misinterpreted Representations of Moses Read More »
Two years ago, researchers published findings concerning DNA samples taken from the Early Medieval York Gospels. Manuscripts from this era are extremely rare: it was written around 990 and lavishly illustrated. By taking a simple eraser, scholars used a technique called “eZooMS,” which allowed them to sample DNA from the pages without damaging them. A
Medieval York Gospels and Science Read More »
