Tag: society for creative anachronism

Twa Corbies, recorded by Cannach

Twa Corbies (or Two Ravens) is a traditional Scottish/English folk song. It was first collected and published in 1611 by Thomas Ravenscroft (tell me that isn’t just fun, name-wise), in his collection Melismata. It is recorded as Child Ballad #26.

International Music Source Library Project’s Entry (includes PDF sheet music): [Link]

There is a “happier” version of the song, but I like the cynical one better.

Lyrics:

As I was walking a’ alane,
I heard twa corbies makin’ a mane.
The tane untae the tither did say,
Whaur sail we gang and dine the day, O.
Whaur sail we gang and dine the day?

It’s in ahint yon auld fail dyke
I wot there lies a new slain knight;
And naebody kens that he lies there
But his hawk and his hound, and his lady fair, O.
But his hawk and his hound, and his lady fair.

His hound is to the hunting gane
His hawk to fetch the wild-fowl hame,
His lady ta’en anither mate,
So we may mak’ our dinner swate, O.
So we may mak’ our dinner swate.

Ye’ll sit on his white hause-bane,
And I’ll pike oot his bonny blue e’en
Wi’ ae lock o’ his gowden hair
We’ll theek oor nest when it grows bare, O.

We’ll theek oor nest when it grows bare.
There’s mony a ane for him maks mane
But nane sail ken whaur he is gane
O’er his white banes when they are bare
The wind sail blaw for evermair, O.
The wind sail blaw for evermair.

Happy October!

(Source: https://www.youtube.com/)

Houses and domestic life in the Viking Age and medieval period: material perspectives from sagas and archaeology

Houses and domestic life in the Viking Age and medieval period: material perspectives from sagas and archaeology

By Teva Vidal
PhD Dissertation, University of Nottingham, 2013

Abstract: This thesis examines the representations of houses as physical structures in the Íslendingasögur with specific emphasis on the material aspect of housing culture in the Viking Age and medieval period, as well as the interactions between material culture and text. The Íslendingasögur were written in Iceland as of the thirteenth century, but look back onto the Viking Age (c. 800-1100 AD). Comparison with the archaeology of domestic space reveals that the house in the Íslendingasögur generally corresponds with medieval housing models, contemporary with the period of saga writing. However, there are also examples of structures which correspond to the models of the Viking Age. Descriptions of antiquated buildings are sometimes framed in statements that make explicit reference to the chronological separation between the Viking Age and the writer’s present time, suggesting a familiarity with the evolution of housing culture.

Detailed analysis of buildings in the sagas reveals domestic space in its context of use, and demonstrates how the physical nature of the house and farm framed the productive and social activities that went on within. The materiality of domestic life has particular importance for the dispensing of hospitality. Demonstrations of domestic space in use also allow for a better understanding of the relationship between objects and language, and elucidate some difficulties in translation and academic usage both in archaeology and literary studies. Material culture can itself influence the processes of composition in oral/written narratives such as the sagas, by inspiring the formation of narrative episodes. The built environment can also provide a contextual framing for narratives, acting as a mnemonic device facilitating the preservation and transmission of saga narratives.

mediumaevum:

Inside the Codex Rotundus lays a 266 page book of hours in Latin and French.

The manuscript is unique in form and size: the pages are cut approximately circular in shape and measure a little over 9cm in diameter. The book binding feat here is enormous: since the layers are bound together on a mere 3cm book spine, the body of the book must be held together by 3 clasps.

The original clasps were re-used when the book was rebound in the 17th century; each clasp an artful monogram shaped in the form of different gothic alphabetic letters.

Reblogging because it is awesome.

Hi! I’m a bb!scribe and I was wondering if you knew anywhere to find reference pictures for buildings in manuscripts. I got challenged to do a scroll with a tower on it, and my usual haunts for this weren’t turning anything up (my google fu is weak). I tend to spend more time in later period French, but any time frame is good for the challenge (except for the hyper-realistic Dutch that I cannot draw and paint to save my life). Thank you so much!

Ohmygosh tell me about it. Trompe-l’œil makes me cry. It’s beautiful, but I am a paste-eating child when I’m asked to attempt it. Tasty, tasty paste.

BTW, I’m totally doing the mental super-sekrit-scribal-handshake. Rock on, scribes! And welcome! (Also, bb!scribe makes me giggle. <3)

First of, Google is weird when it comes to finding specific images in illuminated manuscripts. My two absolute favorite resources are the British Library and the Bodleian Library. There are, of course, plenty of other libraries and institutions that have digitized cataloges that you can search, but BL and Bodl are my go-tos.

I have written about how to search these two resources – you can find those blog posts here: [British Library 1] [British Library 2] [Bodleian Library]

Okay – Towers.

BableStone: 72 Views of the Tower of Babel – This blog has a cool run-down of various images of the Tower of Babel in manuscripts, along with citations (yea citations!) and links. If the links don’t work, use the shelf/manuscript number to search the collection (those links should work) and find it. (I’m having some issues with it, so if you run into problems, let me know and I will help you track down individual images.

I really like this one.
image

illustration by Michiel van der Borch to Jacob van Maerlant’s Rhimebible
MMW, 10 B 21 folio 9v
Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Hague, Netherlands
Netherlands (Utrecht), 1332

“Tower of Babel” or “Babel” would be good search terms to use in Bodley and BL. “Building” and “architecture” aren’t bad, but you will get less.

A lot of 12th and 13th century portraiture use architectural elements for framing, like this portrait of King Solomon:

image

Additional 11639  f. 116
Miscellany of biblical and other texts (‘The Northern French Miscellany’ or earlier ‘the British Museum Miscellany’): including the Pentateuch, Haftarot, Tiqqun Sofrim, Five Scrolls, prayer book for the entire year with Haggadah, legal texts, poetry, calendars, Book of Tobit in Hebrew, etc.
France, N.
1277-1286
[Link]

The Visconti Hours also has some cool architectural elements to it, but it’s a later period. It’s not tromp, but it’s still more realistic than earlier stuff. It’s not fully digitized online, but you can pick up a facsimile copy (with notes) for fairly cheap.

image

LF 155, Visconti Hours – The Gates of Gaza
National Library, Florence
Facsimile to purchase: [Abebooks]Facsimile in libraries: [Worldcat]

I hope that helps! Let me know if you need more. 🙂

Fancy Old Buildings

Fancy Old Buildings

warpedellipsis:

medievalpoc:

Maybe I’m searching wrong, but I can’t find anything about fancy old buildings built in Africa, like giant churches and state buildings plastered everywhere from Europe. I tried looking for specific countries but still nothing. Surely they’re not…

Basically, if you don’t already follow medievalpoc, you need to. Seriously. Click the little + button. Her research is amazing, and you, as a medieval historian (amateur or professional), or even just “a person who is interested in medieval stuff” will adore it. I promise you.

<3

Essoinments

essoin, v. [eh-SS-oy-n]

1. trans. To offer an excuse for the non-appearance of (a person) in court; to excuse for absence.

Earliest known usage: 1494, Acts of Parliament (1266-), Hen. VII c. 5. “The defendaunt..be not essoyned.”

2. To accept an excuse from, let off (a person)

I’ve been reading The Horologicon: A Day’s Jaunt Through the Lost Words of the English Language, by Mark Forsyth (The Inky Fool). It is far too much fun.

So whenever there is someone called into court who isn’t there/is unavailable, someone should offer an essoinment on their behalf.

Many apologies, Your Majesties – allow me to essoin Lord Boris, for he is occupied in the kitchens following the exquisite feast you have just enjoyed.

We shall not essoin Lord Boris – bring him before Us post-haste!

mediumaevum:

This Book of Hours has the most peculiar shape: its pages resemble lily leaves (the yellow background is a paper sheet used for contrast).

It was made for king Henry II of France, who used it for private devotion – the Book of Hours contained prayers and other short texts, which were read at set times during the day. 

You can view other pages in more detail here

Medieval shaped books are really nifty!
Check out this heart-shaped one. 🙂

Chansonnier Cordiforme (1470s), also known as Chasonnier de Jean de Montchenu. “Cordiform” just means “heart-shaped.” This music manuscript was commissioned by canon Jean de Montchenu, later Bishop of Agen (1477) and Bishop of Vivier (1478-1497), in Savoy between 1460 and 1477.
Link to the whole thing (PDF): [Link]Bibliotheque nationale de France catalog record: [Link]You can listen to the music, recorded by Anthony Rooley and the Consort of Musicke in two parts: [Part 1], [Part 2]

This tumblr has made my afternoon far more interesting and entertaining – thank you for making it! I have been trying to find a comprehensive history on mail (maille). I have found plenty of resources on different weaves, but I am looking for something that is more about the evolution, the application, etc. of maille in society. Have you come across any resources or references that you could possibly pass on?

Greetings!

I’m so glad that you’re enjoying my tumblr. 🙂

Here are some items that may help you in your search for a comprehensive history of mail/maille/chainmail:

A Critical Inquiry into Ancient Armour, as it existed in Europe, but particularly in England, from the Norman Conquest to the Reign of King Charles II, by Samuel R. Meyrick (1824). 3 vols.
Worldcat [Link]I’ll point out that a contemporary review of Meyrick’s work was not favorable. You can read it here: [Google Books]

A glossary of the construction, decoration, and use of arms and armor in all countries and in all times: together with some closely related subjects, by George Cameron Stone (1999).
Worldcat [Link]You can see a preview on Google Books – it appears that each entry is rather comprehensive, so this is potentially very good.
Publisher’s Description: Widely considered the classic book in the field, George Cameron Stone’s A Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times is an indispensable resource and reference tool for anyone interested in arms and armor. Originally published in 1934, it remains an essential guide to the field. To describe the worldwide range and variety of weaponry, Stone drew upon the more than 4,000 items in his private collection of Eastern arms and armor, as well as the European arms collection of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, and a variety of other sources. Since the author subsequently bequeathed his entire collection to the Metropolitan Museum, this volume serves as an abbreviated visual reference to that institution’s Arms and Armor collection.
By profession a metallurgist, the author focused on techniques of manufacture and workmanship to derive his method of codifying the typology of weapons, relying on an alphabetized dictionary format to avoid the confusions he found in a field without standardized nomenclature. This “glossary” format makes it easy for anyone to locate material on the astonishing variety of weapons covered. These include arquebuses, blunderbusses, flintlocks, wheel locks, matchlocks, and other antique guns; German armor; French rapiers; Roman short swords; Turkish crossbows; all the Japanese bladed weapons (katana, wakizashi, naginata, etc.); the East Asian kris in its countless permutations; and many more.
Illustrated with 875 detailed figures, incorporating thousands of individual photographs and drawings, the book was written from the unique viewpoint of an expert who devoted a lifetime to the field. Hard to locate today (original editions are worth hundreds of dollars), Stone’s Glossary represents a peerless resource for scholars, experts, collectors, students, hobbyists, and institutions — any student of the long history and development of weapons and armor around the world.
Worldcat [Link]

British and foreign arms and armour,by Charles Henry Ashdown (1909)
Archive.org (read online): [Link]Wordlcat: [Link]

Hope these help!

NetSERF: Hypertext Medieval Glossary: A

NetSERF: Hypertext Medieval Glossary: A

NetSERF’s goal is to provide those interested in any aspect of the Middle Ages a single index of all the best medieval resources available on the Internet.

This reaches out to the word-geek in my and gives me so many gleeful feels.