🎂 Today, 19 June 2026, we celebrate 86 years of #DIAS! Since 1940, DIAS has brought together researchers to advance knowledge across fields from physics and cosmology to Celtic studies and geophysics Here's to 86 years of collaboration and curiosity - and to all the discoveries still to come! 🎉

Michael Whitby. Single-handedly channeling the rage every editor of a collective volume has ever felt throughout generations.

Viking-age gaming board (replica), from Ballinderry, Ireland. For the Viking war game ‘Hnefatafl’, the object of which is to drive the King piece into one of the corners. This replica at Roskilde Viking Ship Museum, Denmark. Original at National Museum of Ireland in Dublin. 📷 by me #Archaeology

For a short period, available here at @scs-dias.bsky.social for a sensational price: shop.dias.ie/product/prop...

Just listened to fascinating discussion by three ECRs on the process of turning their TCD History PhD theses into monographs - illuminating insights on practicalities, funding landscape, psychological barriers & publication process. Thank you, @leafandstream.bsky.social, Ronan & Niall! #MedievalSky

A 3,400 year old Ancient Egyptian ‘Senet’ game board with gaming pieces. Senet is one of the earliest known board games. Popular in ancient Egypt, it was associated with the soul’s journey through the underworld and was often placed in tombs. Brooklyn Museum 📷 by me #Archaeology

The Social History of a Medieval Fish Weir c.600-2020 by the always-worth-reading Tom Pickles. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

🚨 Only a week left to submit for our Celtic Studies student prizes: best PhD thesis, and best Scholarly article (by a pre-doc). Deadline 31st March. Regulations & info: celtologica.eu/gb/prizes/ #AcademicSky

Only managed 40 Mins at the protest this evening. Some people have been there all day. Pass the Occupied Territories Bill. Free Palestine 🇵🇸

NLI jam packed for launch of Lemass memoir by @ronanmcgreevy.bsky.social’

We're delighted to feature a post by Prof Tom Birkett of @ucc.ie on The Village Green! Tom writes about #Vikings and our modern ideas about them, and his new EU-funded project #norsemap fmrsi.wordpress.com/2026/03/13/t... #spéirgorm #blog #research

Scoláireacht bliana le fáil i Scoil an Léinn Cheiltigh 1 Year scholarship available in SCS @dias.ie Sonraí / Details: www.dias.ie/2026/03/06/v...

OTD in 1970, the first Women's Liberation Conference was held in Oxford. A watershed in the British feminist movement, attendees discussed equal pay, 24-hour childcare and free contraception. In this piece from the archive, Chandan Fraser shares her memories of the event.

Professor John Nightingale, iconic medievalist and Fellow of Magdalen, who taught me Einhard's Life of Charlemagne, retires this summer. So Oxford and Magdalen are recruiting. There is no better place to teach and research medieval history than this: in the footsteps of Karl Leyser.

Spring is here, so that must mean that the 7th UHI Institute for Northern Studies International St Magnus Conference is approaching fast. ➕ 15-17th April 2026 ➕ Venue: UHI Perth Register: tinyurl.com/yc4c2ufa

Last of the 3 vikingships in Oslo is now on the move to a new location within the new museum: www.nrk.no/ostfold/tune...

Oluf Rygh nn.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oluf_Rygh not only began that essential work Norske Gaardnavne, but also excavated in 1867 the #Tune #Viking #Ship (being moved to this week), the first of the three famous ships to be excavated. He was the first professor of archaeology in a Scandinavian university.

Famously, this inscribed stone not only bears a runic inscription, but it is also the only runic-og(h)am biscriptal stone in Ireland (more at O3D: ogham.celt.dias.ie/I-CLA-004). Contrary to a widespread belief, the ogham inscription does NOT contain the Norse name TORQRIM (Thórgrímr).

"Quest for Valhalla by #SCAdian Robert Cuthbert, AKA Rónán Fionn Ó’Dubain. In Norse fornyrðislag (Old Lore) meter. alliteration.net/poetry/quest-for-valhalla/ #alliterative #norse #poetry #poetrysky #poetrylovers #sca #bardic #poem

🗃️ jobs, jobs, jobs - and one for #medievalsky

New article out by Stephen Hewer et al on decolonising medieval Irish history www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... #history #medievalsky #ireland

And if you still haven't had your fill of #Orkneyingasaga #SagaoftheEarlsofOrkney (who has?), I'm doing a webinar on 4th March: www.mymagazinesub.co.uk/history-scot... (see also Niall Sharples on #Vikings in the #Hebrides on Thursday)

New book on pre-order - 'Royalty and Ritual: The Landscape of Power in Early Medieval Scotland and Europe' edited by Professor Alex Sanmark ( @thinkuhi.bsky.social Institute for Northern Studies), Dr Mark Hall, Professor Jane Geddes & Dr Oisin Plumb (UHI INS) tinyurl.com/2w43wrt5

Our next seminar on Monday 23 Feb. will be Dr Paddy Gleeson (QUB) speaking on 'Landscapes of kingship: governance, rule and territory in early medieval Ireland'. All welcome in-person / online www.qub.ac.uk/schools/Iris...

Video and audio recordings are now available of the Society's latest lecture (6 February): ‘Alike in Appearance but not in Scope’: Queens and the Making of Medieval Europe' with Professor Charles West (University of Edinburgh) bit.ly/46j42f5 @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social #Skystorians

Celtica XXXVII foilsithe / published! Seolfar Celtica XXXVII (2025) ar 19 Feabhra in DIAS Beidh an iris ar fáil ar líne as sin amach. Celtica XXXVII (2025) will be launched on 19 February at DIAS It will be available online from that date. www.dias.ie/celt/

An chéad léacht i sraith léachtaí an earraigh The first lecture in our spring series Pádraic Moran (Gaillimh/Galway) Sun, moon and stars in the Reichenauer Schulheft 5pm, 19 Feabhra/February DIAS, 10 Burlington Road www.dias.ie/celt/ @dias.ie

Recording on the way.

A lovely job opportunity for an ECR, a temporary lecturing position but it has built in research time too. Come work with us in Maynooth for a year! #medievalsky You can email/message me if you've any questions & I can point you in the right direction.

Really hoping this will be available as a recording later. Friday impossible date for me, in person or remotely - but looks unmissable.

Hybrid lecture by Prof Edmonds hca.ed.ac.uk/john-bannerm...

We’re thrilled to launch the BlueSky page for CONTACT 🧪We are using radiocarbon, isotopes, DNA & historical analysis to map the timeline of Norse expansion into North America. Follow along! A 5-year ERC-funded project @rug.nl #Norse #Archaeology #NorthAtlantic #Research

Happy St Brigid's weekend! To celebrate we bring you a journey through Europe w/Prof. Jean-Michel Picard, UCD. He has unreal stories of hunting down manuscripts (incl. Napoleon & nazis!) & helps us understand the appeal of Brigid in lands far from Kildare! #brigid open.spotify.com/episode/0Bl4...

New website by Jen, doctoral researcher at #Liverpool Uni. Alongside pt study Jen runs a music business & does freelance writing & PR. This page details her work on #trade #embargo and #vikings #medievalsky She has published in Forbes, Wall Street Journal & The Economist jenroberts.co.uk/researcher

'[I]n continuing to prevaricate, by maintaining trade relationships, and in refusing to call for a full boycott, divestment and sanctions against this genocidal state, our government runs the risk of standing accused of complicity, not neutrality.' www.thejournal.ie/readme/weapo...

For those interested in earliest days of Christian church in Ireland, I’m speaking on the baptism of the king of Tara’s daughters at the site symbolising Queen Medb’s authority over Connacht (Rathcroghan) at TCD Long Hub 28th Jan at 6:30 as part of St Brigit celebrations.

Birka grave #Bj581 continues to reverberate in scholarship (see e.g. the latest issue of Viking and Medieval Scandinavia, where it crops up in two articles). There are some very thoughtful reflections on how it all came about in this paper by Andreas Nyblom direct.mit.edu/books/oa-edi...

2 scoláireacht ar fáil i Scoil an Léinn Cheiltigh 2 scholarships available in the School of Celtic Studies Sprioc: 5 Eanáir 2026 Deadline: 5 January 2026 www.dias.ie/2025/12/05/v... @dias.ie

The Lewis Chessmen These 12th-century chess pieces are packed with personality, and have such charmingly expressive eyes! ♟️ 👀 From a large gaming hoard discovered on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland, in 1831. 📷 by me #FindsFriday #Archaeology

As long as there have been children, there have been toys. As it's the #LateLateToyShow we thought we'd share some of our favourite toys in the @nmireland.bsky.social Many toys through history copy adult life, like this wonderful toy boat and sword from Viking Dublin #archaeology #SpéirGhorm

Environmental DNA evidence of settlement in Iceland from c. 810 rather than the 870s - and much more besides. Summarised in the New Scientist but that's behind a paywall. Here's the original research. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

For those interested in thinking about rethinking periodization, especially the line between the Roman and early medieval periods in British history and archaeology; www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....