Tag: history
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The Prittlewell Prince
Introduction Archaeology is about much more than treasure-hunting but, inevitably, popular attention tends to be drawn towards rich and magnificent finds. Within an early medieval context, the ‘Princely’ burials of the Mid Saxon period are particularly notable in this context. The Sutton Hoo Mound 1 ship-burial is deservedly famous and the most impressive example, but…
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The Yale Early Medieval Lecture Series
Occasionally, you come across a resource that is so incredibly good, it amazes you that it’s free. The Yale Early Medieval Lecture Series (available free on Youtube) is one of these cases, and is an amazing contribution by the Yale outreach programme to leveling the playing-field and getting everyone access to the humanities. You can…
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The Viking Society for Northern Research
This week we’re looking at the wonderful Viking Society for Northern Research, a society founded in 1892 to further the study of the ‘medieval North’ and Old Norse studies. Today, it is one of the foremost academic societies for the study of the ‘Vikings’ in the world. You can access the website for the society…
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The Complaint Tablet of Ea-nasir
The British Museum is full of all sorts of things that shouldn’t be there. One less well-known example, beyond the Elgin Marbles and the Rosetta Stone, is an initially inconspious clay tablet, traditionally referred to as ‘The Complaint Tablet of Ea-nasir’. The tablet itself is made of clay, c.12cm by 5cm, and covered in cuneiform…
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Top 10 Viking Videogames
Learning about history comes in all forms of media, and that includes videogames. It shouldn’t all be reading books (although, if that’s your thing, I’ve got a good reading list for you here!). Videogames provide a much more casual way to explore historical contexts, along with mythology, and are becoming increasingly easily accessible. The list…
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The Franks Casket
One of the ‘Anglo-Saxon’ period‘s most impressive, and most complex, artefacts is the so-called ‘Franks Casket’. A lidded whalebone box, covered in intricate carvings and text, the casket appears to originate from an early eight-century Northumbrian context. But what was it used for, and what can it tell us? Finding the Casket The existence in…
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The British Museum’s Online Collection
There’s a lot in the British Museum that shouldn’t be there, ‘borrowed’ during England’s colonial past. One classic example is the Complaints Tablet of Ea-nasir, a wonderful piece of archaeological evidence now removed far from its original context. I’ve written before (here) about how the use of replicas might help us address some of the…
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Bayeux Tapestry Online
The Bayeux Tapestry (technically an embroidery not a tapestry) is one of our best accounts of the conquest of ‘Anglo-Saxon‘ England by the Normans in 1066. Running from the end of the reign of Edward the Confessor to the aftermath of the battle at Hastings, the work covers a massive 70 meters and is kept…
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The Viking World – Artefact Database
The Swedish History Museum in Stockholm hosts the world’s largest collection of Viking artefacts, which tell an impressive story of life, religion, and death in Viking-era Scandinavia. This has recently been digitized into an impressive free online collection that can be browsed on their website here. Each item is provided with an impressive amount of…
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Ibn Fadlan and the Rus
What can the writings of a traveller of the Caliphate tell us about the Rus, an elusive and largely invisible set of ‘Viking’ settlers in the east of Europe? Is his account to be taken seriously, or is it essentially a work of fiction? #ComissionsEarned (This post includes Amazon Affiliate links) – As an Amazon…