I've written about mead and its popular perception for The Conversation. theconversation.com/the-truth-ab... Mildly concerned that by pointing out that the Vikings (probably) didn't drink (much) mead, I will have annoyed all the re-enactors, many of whom have swords oh dear.

I've written about mead and its popular perception for The Conversation. theconversation.com/the-truth-ab... Mildly concerned that by pointing out that the Vikings (probably) didn't drink (much) mead, I will have annoyed all the re-enactors, many of whom have swords oh dear.

This Wednesday (5/11/25) 17.30 UTC, we're delighted to welcome Dr Peter Jones (Plymouth), who will be speaking on William Morris's travel in Iceland. Free to attend in person in the IHR or online, but please register in advance. Details, abstract and registration: www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...

Just back from a little holiday in unwontedly sunny Pembrokeshire. Pentre Ifan looking so perfect here that even the inadequacies of my cheap phone camera don't detract!

A fabulous looking new book from Tonicha Upham exploring all the Arabic and Persian evidence on Rus burials and sacrifices, complete with translations! #medievalsky #vikings www.cambridge.org/core/element...

A piece in The Conversation, contextualising our results from the Bedale hoard theconversation.com/vikings-were... @unioxarchaeology.bsky.social @yorkmuseumstrust.bsky.social @bgs.ac.uk

Anglo-Saxons with West African roots: DNA analysis of 7th century burials reported in @antiquity.ac.uk today reveals long-distance connections reached across continents and cultures. Read about it @science.org:

Not too late to sign up for this excellent seminar on Wednesday! And we are very happy to welcome our wonderful speaker, @maggiepavleszek.bsky.social, to Bluesky. Come and hear all about her work!

For our next seminar, Maggie Pavleszek (York) will be speaking on '"Resolved into ashes": Norse Medievalism and Cremation in C19th Britain'. Weds 30/04, 17.30 GMT (online only). Free but please register to attend. Further details, abstract and registration at: www.history.ac.uk/events/resol...

And obviously, this is corrosive: it's not only friends and colleagues at Cardiff, it's - at this point - half of every contact, collaborator, people you know from conferences, library shelves, catalogues, a cuppa or a meeting. Friends. A whole sector of the economy being trashed in real time.

Wonderful to be able to welcome @themamoconf.bsky.social to Bluesky! MAMO London is coming up 24-26 June 2025 and the programme and details of how to register are at: themamo.org

For our next seminar, @craighambling.bsky.social will be speaking on 'How Real is Too Real? Public History and the Interpretation of Medieval Martial Arts'. Weds 12/03, 17.30 GMT in person at @ihr.bsky.social and online. Further details and registration at: www.history.ac.uk/events/how-r...

Attention, #UCU members in HE! We are bringing this motion to defend jobs and call off a ballot for IA over last years' pay to this Wednesday's emergency HEC. We will keep it open as long as we can but do not delay - sign and share today! 👇👇👇

Do you have a proposal for an innovative new seminar to join the IHR Research Seminar programme? We are looking for 3 fresh seminar series to launch in 2025-26. Applications are open now - deadline of 31 March. Full details of what we are looking for and how to apply here:

An exciting find by Duncan Wright and my colleague Ollie Creighton! news.exeter.ac.uk/faculty-of-h...

Just out: I'm interviewed here by Metal Hammer alongside Einar Selvik from Wardruna and JB Christofferson from Grand Magus about heavy metal's love affair with the Vikings. This was great fun to do! www.loudersound.com/features/why...

Really looking forward to @mareganlefay.bsky.social at the @ihrmedievalism.bsky.social next week. Still only just coping with writing 2025 as the date, though.

I'd never realised that these were the Lewis chessmen I wanted until this evening. At the rather wonderful Longleat Festival of Light.

Hwæt! For our next seminar Ian Felce (independent researcher) will speak on 'What? Beowulf and William Morris’s New Old English'. In-person at @ihr.bsky.social and online, 17.30 UTC, Weds 11/12/24. Free to attend and all welcome, but please register in advance at: www.history.ac.uk/events/what-...

Hello and welcome to all our new followers! We are a seminar group dedicated to discussion of the construction, use and appropriation of the Middle Ages in the post-medieval period. We meet on an approximately monthly basis during term times in-person at the University of London and online.

@tyguson.bsky.social's work is wonderful and this will be a great treat for those lucky enough to be there.

Now officially out next Thursday... #medievalsky

If you're new to #Bluesky and looking to develop your follower list, then the #StarterPacks have you covered. Search for what you're interested in - eg, 'Political Science' or 'Gender Studies' - then select a list that looks interesting & "Follow All". Easy! blueskydirectory.com/starter-pack...

Windswept Hove beach with the West Pier looking dramatic.

We made a Starter Pack of Centres (sorry, US followers) for Medieval Studies in the UK and beyond. Do let us know if you’d like to be added … go.bsky.app/PAQh2go

I've had a go at putting together a Medievalism starter pack - if you'd like to be added (or removed!), please do let me know :)

Summer Schools at the Institute of English Studies! Including palaeography and manuscript studies. Senate House, London 9- 13 June 2025 Deadline for submission/application: 25 May All info www.rensoc.org.uk/event/ies-su...

'Sector leaders expected more than 100 of the UK’s 140-odd universities to be making redundancies by the start of 2025, in what has been described as a “cataclysmic” situation where “everything is on the table”.'

There’s still time to sign up for our seminar exploring archival research in the heritage sector tomorrow (20th Nov). All info & sign up link below 👇 We’re so excited to partner with Oxford Heritage Partnerships for this event as part of the Heritage Pathway series @torchoxford2013.bsky.social

Interested in the #Gjellestad #Viking ship discovered a few years ago? Read all about its context in this special issue of the journal Viking. journals.uio.no/viking/issue...

I've begun a starter pack for people working in and/or talking about ancient epigraphy/inscriptions. Let me know if I've missed you! go.bsky.app/PmuQYDH

Please share with early career scholars working on the early medieval period who may be interested in spending a month in Rome in the academic year 2025-2026

Celebrated historian and broadcaster David Olusoga will deliver the inaugural National Humanities Lecture! The first of its kind, the lecture will make the case for the humanities and explore how new ideas are emerging. Find out more and book: www.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

Early career and student Norsists, vikingologists, medievalists, archaeologists - hey, even if you're doing later literature that thinks about early Nordic stuff - come submit to this conference! It's always a delight, and this year's theme rules! #medievalsky

This is an astonishing object, evidence for early ninth century Mercian interests, ambitions and connections. It's been suggested it was placed on an image screen; there's really nothing else like it. It's known as the 'Lechmere stone' & is in private ownership. Images from @AS_Corpus. #medievalsky

So here's a starter pack for languages, literatures, cultures and societies, very broadly defined. If you'd like to be added or removed, comment below or send a message go.bsky.app/TdEXaP2

Exciting PhD opportunities for ancient and medieval studies in the field of medical humanities here! #medievalsky #skystorians www.ucy.ac.cy/storypharm/v...

We've been sitting on this one for a bit, so very thrilled to see our Great Viking Survey out in the wild today. 🌊 Find it at vikingsurvey.org, and please do share far and wide - anyone is welcome to take part!

Two #LegalHistory and #CrimeHistory starter packs: from @sophiemhistory.bsky.social: From bsky.app/starter-pack... from @kfduggan.bsky.social: bsky.app/starter-pack... #History 🗃️

A FREE workshop aimed at a non-academic audience. Please share with those who might be interested www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/medieval-p...

Good to see institutions making their way over to Bluesky as it's that that will ultimately determine if this site succeeds. Has anyone done a starter pack of, say, UK universities or (useful for me!) UK history/archaeology departments?

This is pretty cool: The Museum Association has gathered in this starter pack all the museums, galleries, archives and libraries in the UK who are right here on Bluesky 🦋 go.bsky.app/9o1sRWp

We're extremely pleased to bring you our next seminar: @lawrencewarner.bsky.social will be presenting on 'Popular Gawain, 1955-70, from Maureen Duffy to Pentangle' at 17.30 GMT Weds 13/11/24 in-person at @ihr.bsky.social and online. Details and sign-up at: www.history.ac.uk/events/popul...

'Jinty belongs with the giants.' 👏👏👏 A beautiful tribute by @pstafford.bsky.social blog.royalhistsoc.org/2024/10/25/j...

Tomorrow, Wednesday 16/10/24, 17.30 BST, Dr Tonicha Upham on the first English translation of Ibn Fadlan, in-person at @ihr.bsky.social and online. Free to attend: please register at: www.history.ac.uk/events/awful...

Still plenty of places available on my short course on using Historical Maps in GIS! If you're keen to work with archival maps as sources, other rasters like LIDAR in historical work, or interested in history of cartography, please take a look! (NB. date changed!) www.history.ac.uk/events/using...

Very much looking forward to the first seminar in @ihrmedievalism.bsky.social's programme for this term. Tonicha Upham will be superb as ever on the western European 'discovery' in the nineteenth century of Ibn Fadlan's famous Arabic account of a Rus (?Viking?) funeral.

I'm really pleased with the line-up that we've put together for @ihrmedievalism.bsky.social this year. All free and either hybrid or fully online. Full details and links to sign up to attend at: www.history.ac.uk/seminars/int...

An excellent end at Sverd i Fjell to the MARRI symposium The Middle Ages in the 20th and 21st Centuries: Relevance, Reimagination, Inspiration at the Universityof Stavanger. A wonderful two days that has flown by. Thanks to all the speakers and huge congratulations to the organisers!