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Taoist Manuscript
Part of a Taoist manuscript, ink on silk, 2nd century BCE, Han Dynasty, unearthed from Mawangdui tomb 3, Chansha, Hunan Province, China.
Hunan Province Museum.
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The Weapons of an English Medieval Knight
The weapons of an English medieval knight in combat included the long sword, wooden lance with an iron tip, metal-headed mace, battle-axe, and dagger. Trained since childhood and practised at tournaments, the skilled knight could inflict...
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The Daily Life of Medieval Nuns
Monasteries were an ever-present feature of the Medieval landscape and perhaps more than half were devoted solely to women. The rules and lifestyle within a nunnery were very similar to those in a male monastery. Nuns took vows of chastity...
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Food in an English Medieval Castle
If one was looking to enjoy a fine meal in the medieval world then the best place to find a handsomely laid dinner table was in the local castle. There, in the magnificent Great Hall, feasts were regularly served for the local lord and his...
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Medieval Climate Anomaly in the Americas
To climatologists, the period of seven to twelve centuries ago was known as a "Climate Anomaly" or a "Warm Period" (800-1300 CE). To archaeologists, it was a time of great change, a period when cultural patterns were put into place that lasted...
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A Medieval Christmas
Christmas was one of the highlights of the medieval calendar, not only for the rich but also for the peasantry. For the longest holiday of the year, typically the full twelve days of Christmas, people stopped work, homes were decorated and...
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Trade in Medieval Europe
Trade and commerce in the medieval world developed to such an extent that even relatively small communities had access to weekly markets and, perhaps a day's travel away, larger but less frequent fairs, where the full range of consumer goods...
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King Arthur, English Manuscript
Miniature of King Arthur, holding a spear and a shield emblazoned with the Virgin and Child. 14th-century CE manuscript from England. Peter of Langtoft and others: Drawings with various inscriptions, distichs and poems (ff. 1-9v), verse...
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Earliest Abbasid Era Manuscript
This 13th Century CE Arabic manuscript is the earliest manuscript from the Abbasid era (750-1258 CE). The Abbasids initiated a cascade of translation activities to preserve and further aggrandize western and eastern knowledge. Part of the...
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Visiting The Ruins of Lisbon’s Ancient and Medieval Past
Visiting the vibrant and colorful city of Lisbon, on the banks of the river Tagus and the edge of the Atlantic Ocean, what is most showcased is one episode of the city's and country's glorious past: Lisbon as the capital of the Portuguese...