All  
Home / middle ages

middle ages

Full Contact Sword Combat during the Medieval combat in Russia. Source: Wranglerstar / YouTube Screenshot.
21 May, 2019 - 14:04 ashley cowie

World Championship in Medieval Combat Unfolds Like a Ukrainian Game Of Thrones

This weekend the ‘World Championship in Medieval Combat’ was held in the Ukraine where hundreds of warriors clanking around in armor , swinging swords and axes, in a scene reminiscent of an episode...
The hotel in Passau where three people were found dead, shot by crossbow
15 May, 2019 - 01:18 Alicia McDermott

Medieval Weapon Enthusiasts Killed With Crossbows

A quaint Bavarian hotel has become the scene of a murder mystery with medieval links. When hotel employees found the dead bodies of three people the scene was described as something akin to a scene...
Medieval knight armor with chain mail
14 May, 2019 - 18:52 dhwty

Advances in Medieval Knight Armor Could Not Match Weapon Technology!

The knight in shining armor is undoubtedly the first image that comes to mind for most people when they think about warfare during the Middle Ages . The knight in this mental image is often a warrior...
Boy went through 14 years of training on the journey to knighthood
11 May, 2019 - 13:50 dhwty

Journey to Knighthood: The Hidden Steps of Becoming a Medieval Knight

The knight is arguably one of the most iconic figures of the Middle Ages. Knights were essentially mounted warriors, and in the hierarchy of Medieval society, were considered to be part of the lower...
Drolleries were common in medieval manuscripts.
6 April, 2019 - 13:57 dhwty

Drolleries of the Middle Ages Included Comical Yet Sinister Killer Rabbits and Erotic Art

A drollerie (also spelled as drollery) is a type of marginalia found on Medieval manuscripts. Drolleries are amusing, often grotesque, figures drawn on the edges of manuscripts and may be found in...
Dr. Benjamin Pohl with the both the royal charter and the Bishop of Durham charter
26 March, 2019 - 17:48 ancient-origins

Original King John Royal Charter Resurfaces After 800 Years [Press Release]

Press Release / University of Bristol A rare, original royal charter from the first year of King John’s reign has been discovered in Durham by a medieval historian from the University of Bristol. The...
The Iron Maiden: This Medieval Torture Device Was Used as Recently as 2003!
20 February, 2019 - 23:01 dhwty

The Iron Maiden: This Medieval Torture Device Was Used as Recently as 2003!

The iron maiden is a torture device widely believed to have been used in Europe during the Middle Ages. This notorious contraption is known by other names, such as the Virgin (a reference to the...
Woman in the countryside
2 February, 2019 - 18:21 Sarah P Young

Kulning: The Ancient Swedish Herding Call That Has Echoed Through the Ages

Kulning is a vocal art with its origins in the forests and mountains of Scandinavia. It was first used as a method to call back cattle who were left free to graze in the wild landscape, but it is...
Detail from one of the fragments showing the name Merlin.
1 February, 2019 - 13:57 Ed Whelan

Fragments of Ancient Manuscript About Merlin Have Been Discovered and Could Change Arthurian Legend

A lucky discovery in a rare book has the potential to transform our knowledge of perhaps the most famous story from the entire Middle Ages. Some damaged manuscript pages found inside the volume are...
Ruins of Gedi Palace
31 January, 2019 - 01:56 Ed Whelan

Could The Gedi Ruins Be Haunted By Jins?

Historic cities throughout the world have always intrigued experts and travelers and one of the most fascinating is the abandoned city known as Gedi on the coast of Kenya. The ruins of Gedi are...
Old iron chastity belt from Middle Ages.
29 January, 2019 - 22:54 Sarah P Young

The Long Fascination With the Chastity Belt – But Was it Just A Fantasy?

The chastity belt is an item that titillates and fascinates in equal measure. The idea of the brave medieval knight locking up his beloved, naively believing a mere padlock would be enough to keep...
Example of Anthropodermic bibliopegy – an 18-19th century notebook allegedly covered with human skin.
12 January, 2019 - 23:03 dhwty

Books Bound in Human Skin – The Practice Isn’t As Rare As You Might Think!

Anthropodermic bibliopegy refers to the practice of binding books in human skin . According to folk legend, the binding of books (or more appropriately manuscripts, as they were hand-written) in...
Self portrait of Guda, a 12th century nun and female scribe.
10 January, 2019 - 13:55 Ed Whelan

Blue Pigment Found on Medieval Teeth Reveals Secret Existence of Female Scribes

The analysis of human teeth has become increasingly important in modern archaeology. A recent discovery of a set of teeth in a German monastery is revolutionizing our understanding of women in...
Jayne and Martin Townley at their Middle Ages themed house hosting a medieval banquet
1 January, 2019 - 17:57 Joanna Gillan

Jousting Champion and Magician Wife Transform House into Medieval Castle Complete with Banqueting Hall

A medieval-obsessed couple have transformed their four-bedroom, semi-detached home in Somerset, England, into a Middle-Ages-themed castle complete with a banqueting hall. Martin and Jayne Townley...
The Medieval skeleton was found still in its boots
4 December, 2018 - 22:57 ashley cowie

Mystery Man in High Leather Boots: How Did His Medieval Skeleton End Up in London’s River Thames?

Archaeologists working at London’s 'super sewer' in Bermondsey have recovered the skeletal remains of a man, wearing high leather boots, lying face-down in the silt of the River Thames. Much about...
Detail of ‘Brawl between soldiers and peasants’ (1565-1570) by the Circle of Marten van Cleve. A new ‘murder map’ shows that Medieval London streets were the backdrop to many murders.
28 November, 2018 - 18:57 ancient-origins

Beaten to Death for Littering with Eel Skins: ‘Murder Map’ Reveals Medieval London’s Meanest Streets

The first digital map of the murders recorded by the city's Coroner in early 1300s shows Cheapside and Cornhill were homicide ‘hot spots’, and Sundays held the highest risk of violent death for...

Pages