Artifacts from Medieval Europe

374 Pages·2015·5.05 MB·English

by  James B. Tschen-Emmons

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James B. Tschen-Emmons

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Tschen-Emmons, James B.
Artifacts from medieval Europe / James B. Tschen-Emmons.
pages cm. — (Daily life through artifacts) Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-61069-621-0 (hardback) — ISBN 978-1-61069-622-7 (ebook) 1. Europe—Antiquities. 2.
Archaeology, Medieval—Europe. 3. Material culture—Europe—History—To 1500. 4. Europe—History—
476-1492—Sources. 5. Civilization, Medieval—Sources. I. Title.
D125.T73 2015
940.1—dc23 2014031194

ISBN: 978-1-61069-621-0
EISBN: 978-1-61069-622-7

19 18 17 16 15 1 2 3 4 5

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CONTENTS
Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction
How to Evaluate Artifacts
Chronology of Events
AGRICULTURE AND ANIMAL HUSBANDRY
Butter Keg
Horse Collar
Plow
Sheepfold
ARMOR, WEAPONS, AND TOOLS
Arming Sword
Hounskull Helmet
Scabbard Chape
Spurs
Trebuchet
ART AND ARCHITECTURE
Flying Buttress
Gargoyle
Medieval Barn
Stained Glass
Tapestry
COMMUNICATION AND BUSINESS
Charter
City Seal
Money Bag
Printing Press
DOMESTIC ITEMS
Brassiere
Comb
Cradle
Garderobe
Loom
Penannular Brooch
Poulaine
Tunic
ENTERTAINMENT
Bone Ice Skate
Chessboard
Citole
Dance
Tournaments
RELIGION
Icon
Jewish Cemetery, Prague
Misericord
Pilgrim’s Badge
Psalter
Q’uran
Reliquary
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Astrolabe
Clock
Eyeglasses
Mason’s Divider/Compass
TRANSPORTATION
Cog
Saddle
Viking Longboat

Select Bibliography
Index
PREFACE
Artifacts from Medieval Europe explores the history of forty-five artifacts that
cover most areas of medieval life, from games to dress, from jousting to dance,
from the peasant’s field to the noble’s castle. Most of the artifacts within this
volume date to the High Middle Ages, around 1100–1300 CE, but are
representative of many objects used both before and after this period and are
thus within the orbit of the time period we call the Middle Ages, roughly 500–
1500 CE. Unlike examinations of such cultures as Rome, where we have the
good fortune to possess sites such as Pompeii that froze first-century CE life in
time, the medieval period lacks any one site that preserves life in this way.
Moreover, Roman culture was far more homogenous than was medieval culture,
and thus even should we have such a treasure trove, it would be far less
representative than Pompeii for the Romans. Medieval life was local, varying
considerably from region to region, and while certain pan-European customs,
traditions, and institutions allow us to generalize, we can only do so with the
caveat that even major ideas like feudalism were not monolithic, but shaped by
local conditions, ideals, and history.
ORGANIZATION
The book is organized into two chief sections. In the first, there is an
Introduction that provides a brief examination of the period covered by the
artifacts within this volume. Since many of the artifact types were in use for
decades if not centuries, the Introduction covers in broad strokes the origins of
the Middle Ages from the transformation of Rome into new polities until around
1500, when the medieval world was quickly becoming the Early Modern world.
A Chronology of Events, which sets out selected dates and their significance,
provides further information about this history. Few, if any, of the individual
artifacts in this book were in constant use during the span of medieval history,
but each is representative of its type, and many objects had long histories.
Certain objects, such as the thirteenth-century reliquary of Giovanni Bove, for
example, were used both by early and medieval Christians as reminders and
conduits of divine grace; relics such as this helped the faithful approach a saint
to intercede, as they were tangible links to the saintly departed. The veneration
of relics and saints still exists in several Christian denominations today.
There is also an How to Evaluate Artifacts section that provides the reader
with tools to gain a greater appreciation for the artifacts that they will encounter
in the book and elsewhere. Artifacts, even when recognizable, require us to
interpret them. The hounskull helmet, for instance, a fourteenth-century helm, is
a piece of armor and recognizable as such, but there is much to learn from the
materials from which it was made, its size, its shape, where it was found, and
who—if we know—used it. Armor styles often tell us where something was
made and what sort of fighting a person did.
For each of the forty-five entries, there is an introduction, a description of the
artifact itself, and a section on its significance. Many of the artifacts are not well
known and will thus open up areas of history not covered in many other works.
Each entry also has a list of books, articles, and, where appropriate, web sources
for further information. To the extent possible, each entry covers the span of that
particular artifact’s use in the medieval world, from its first appearance to its
last, who used it, and why. One advantage of this approach is that one gains a
glimpse inside not only the general culture, but also individual lives. The
garderobe at Bodiam Castle, for example, is typical of its type and reveals much
about medieval sanitation, but the castle in which it was found tells us a lot about
Sir Edward Dalyngrigge, the lord who lived there, too.
Each entry explains and expands upon the cultural significance of the artifact
depicted. Artifacts are divided into thematic categories and together provide a
composite look at daily life in medieval Europe. The categories are as follows:
• Agriculture and Animal Husbandry
• Armor, Weapons, and Tools
• Art and Architecture
• Communication and Business
• Domestic Items