Medieval News

[dm]

The evidence for female Viking Warriors from the excavations of human remains of the period appears to be more wishfull thinking than anything else. Any archaeologist coming to that conclusion needs to question why grave goods were placed in a grave in the first place, their intended purpose and meanings to both the living and the dead. It was the living who placed grave goods with the dead and the reasons for doing so may now be lost for good.

If you look at some of the earlier Pagan Saxon burials you even see evidence for some small children to have had adult sized functional weapons buried with them but this does not mean that there were any children fighting in forces of the period but the living who buried these individuals were adding these items to imply status of the individual in the 'afterlife' and to show other living people the regard they placed upon the individual after death.

I wouldnt go as far as saying there were never any females fighting in Dark Age forces full stop but if they had been a common feature then the chronicle and saga writers of the day would have made great play upon this.

[janner]

Spoilt sport 

[Patrice]

The evidence for female Viking Warriors from the excavations of human remains of the period appears to be more wishfull thinking than anything else.

I agree. I know some tomb effigies of the 14th century where a lady is sculpted in full armour, with shield etc, it is mostly symbolic: a widow lady which owned an important title could appear in armour if needed to boost her soldiers' morale, but it did not mean she would fight.

[Arlequín]

Old English has the words cempestre (woman warrior) and gúðcwén (warrior queen), so the concept was familiar at least. We'll never know how common or uncommon such women actually were, due to our formerly mentioned lack of understanding of what motivated the placing of grave goods (other than the usual assumptions).

[Paul]

No such thing as females fighting in armour or as knights??
orden de la Hacha ??
http://www.heraldica.org/topics/orders/wom-kn.htm

The armigers?
http://www.adrianempire.org/documents/agenda/2007/2007Nov_IEW18_Prop.pdf
Loads more here;
http://www.lothene.org/women/women.html

[Arlequín]

I'm reminded of Terry Pratchett's 'Monstrous Regiment' where all the soldiers turned out to be women pretending to be men and hiding the fact from each other.

[Paul]

Fangs for the memory
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/history/9647904/Buried-with-a-stake-through-a-heart-the-medieval-vampire-burial.html

[Paul]

Richard III had a girlfriend
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/9643444/Hunt-for-Richard-III-womans-skeleton-found-by-archaeologists.html

[Paul]

Fake "medieval" stained glass
http://www.medievalists.net/2012/11/12/the-fake-medieval-images-in-canterbury-cathedral/

[Paul]

Fangs for the......
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2154837/Vampire-skeletons-unearthed-Bulgaria-iron-stakes-plunged-chests.html

[Captain Blood]

Viking troop carrier coming to the British Museum...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2012/dec/27/viking-ship-roskilde-british-museum

[OSHIROmodels]

That'll be worth going to see!

cheers

James

[janner]

Viking troop carrier coming to the British Museum...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2012/dec/27/viking-ship-roskilde-british-museum

Hopefully it'll inspire a 'proper' medieval exhibition, they have so much more stuff in storage 

[Little Odo]

Ooh! I am looking forward to seeing this when it hits the BM. As mentioned by others above, I hope it turns into a full-on exhibition like the Hadrian and Qing ones from a few years back.

[Paul]

Guédelon, A 13th century castle being built in france using the tools and methods of the time
http://www.guedelon.fr/index.php?lg=en
it´s got a lot further since I last looked