Late Medieval

"sancta mulier nomine Mechtildis". Mechthild (von Magdeburg) und ihre Wahrnehmung als Religiose im Laufe der Jahrhunderte, in: Beginen. Eine religiöse Lebensform von Frauen in Geschichte und Gegenwart, hg. von Marco A. Sorace und Jörg Voigt (erscheint in der Reihe: Studien zur christlichen Religions- und Kulturgeschichte) (in Vorbereitung)

by Balázs J. Nemes

These:
Mechthild von Magdeburg macht Karriere - als Nonne (und Begine?) in Mittelalter und Früher Neuzeit, als... more These:
Mechthild von Magdeburg macht Karriere - als Nonne (und Begine?) in Mittelalter und Früher Neuzeit, als Begine (und Nonne!) in der Moderne

Der involvierte Leser. Immersive Lektürepraktiken in der spätmittelalterlichen Mystik-Rezeption, in: Immersion im Mittelalter, hg. von Hartmut Bleumer (Zeitschrift für Literaturwissenschaft und Linguistik 167, 2012) (in Druckvorbereitung)

by Balázs J. Nemes

The article approaches the immersive potential of Mechthild von Magdeburg's “Fließendes Licht“, dispensing the reader... more The article approaches the immersive potential of Mechthild von Magdeburg's “Fließendes Licht“, dispensing the reader from his role as a spectator and turning him into a participant, something which has frequently been claimed by the new German medieval studies. This particular kind of recipient is, certainly, an ideal-typical reader, a literary construct with the function to display the strategies of persuasion in “Fließendes Licht“ and the special literacy or the functional inclusion of the text. It should be all the more interesting to have a look at a specific historical recipient as this allows making the text's calculated aesthetic impacts plausible or outlining them with regard to the history of receptions. The instructions by Heinrich von Nördlingen from the first half of the 14th century, addressed to Margareta Ebner and the Dominican nuns of Maria Medingen near Dillingen, which told them how to incorporate and read „Fließendes Licht“ will be the centre of my analysis. This particular example and the recourse to circulating thoughts about the phenomenology of immersion shall show which requirements have to be fulfilled in a special religious context of reception to obtain the effect of immersion. Heinrich's directives are perfectly suitable for this line of questioning as they create the model of an involved reader, amounting to the requirement to get into the diegesis of the text and to identify with the literary figure.

Im Beitrag geht es um das in der neueren germanistisch-mediävistischen Forschung vielfach behauptete immersive Potential des „Fließenden Lichts“ Mechthilds von Magdeburg, den Leser seiner Rolle als Beobachter (spectator) zu entbinden und ihn zu einem Teilnehmer (participant) der textuell entworfenen virtuellen Realität zu machen. Freilich handelt es sich bei diesem Typ vom Rezipienten um einen idealtypischen Leser, ein literaturwissenschaftliches Figurenkonstrukt also, dessen Funktion darin besteht, die im „Fließenden Licht“ verfolgten Persuasionsstrategien und damit die besondere Literarizität bzw. funktionale Einbindung des Textes sichtbar zu machen. Umso interessanter dürfte es sein, den Blick auf einen konkreten historischen Rezipienten zu lenken, ermöglicht er doch, die von der Forschung beobachteten kalkuliert wirkungsästhetischen Effekte des Textes zu plausibilisieren bzw. rezeptionsgeschichtlich zu perspektivieren. Im Mittelpunkt meiner Untersuchung stehen die an Margareta Ebner und die Dominikanerinnen von Maria Medingen bei Dillingen gerichteten Anweisungen von Heinrich von Nördlingen aus der Mitte des 14. Jahrhunderts, wie sie das „Fließende Licht“ aufnehmen und lesen sollen. An diesem Fallbeispiel und im Rückgriff auf die kursierenden Überlegungen zur Phänomenologie der Immersion gilt es zu zeigen, welche Voraussetzungen speziell in einem religiösen Rezeptionskontext erfüllt werden müssen, damit es überhaupt zum Effekt der Immersion kommt. Heinrichs Direktiven eignen sich für diese Fragestellung insofern bestens, als sie das Modell des involvierten Lesers entwerfen, laufen sie doch auf die Forderung hinaus, sich in die Diegese des Textes zu begeben und sich mit der Textfigur zu identifizieren

Ostkamp, S., 2009, The world upside down. Secular badges and the iconography of the Late Medieval Period: ordinary pins with multiple meanings, Journal of Archaeology in the Low Countries 1.2, 107-125.

by Journal of Archaeology in the Low Countries

Thanks to the use of metal detectors vast numbers of Late Medieval pilgrim and secular badges have been found in the... more Thanks to the use of metal detectors vast numbers of Late Medieval pilgrim and secular badges have been found in the Netherlands. The secular badges give us a glimpse into the worldview of Late Medieval ordinary people. The decorative motifs on the badges and on simple knife handles, ceramic plates and other examples of Late Medieval material culture reveal a picture which can also be found in miniatures
in (sometimes famous) Books of Hours. They show that both the elite and the common man availed themselves of a comparable iconography. Besides the amulet function of the badges another meaning is found in the co-existence of comparable religious examples. An obvious explanation can be found in the popular Late Medieval theme of the inversion of the world and its natural order: the world upside down. This was commonly expressed in the representation depicted with or as an anti-image. By contrasting the most holy with the most profane, Late Medieval people emphasized the negative aspects of sins. Both
positive and negative symbols set an example for a lifestyle of chastity. Contemporary standards and values were principally based on the omnipresent Catholic belief system. The secular badges often represent sinners, who in pursuing brief earthly pleasures were seen as serving the devil instead of focussing
on an eternal life by the side of Christ and his saints. In this respect we may even doubt our interpretation of these badges as items of secular meaning. That the images are almost blasphemous indicates the absolute sway of religion in the medieval world, where even striking secular images served a religious function. The provenance of these finds are urban and rural domestic contexts as well as monasteries and
castles. This reveals the importance of chastity to all ranks in Late Medieval society. It is clear that this phenomenon is not typically urban, as sometimes suggested by written sources.

Troubleyn, L., Kinnaer, F., Ervynck, A., Beeckmans, L., Caluwé, D., Cooremans, B., De Buyser, F., Deforce, K., Desender, K., Lentacker, A., Moens, J., Van Bulck, G., Van Dijck, M., Van Neer, V., & W. Wouters, 2009, Consumption patterns and living conditions inside Het Steen, the late medieval prison of Malines (Mechelen, Belgium)Liesbeth Troubleyn, Frank Kinnaer, Anton Ervynck, Luk Beeckmans, Danielle Caluwé, Brigitte Cooremans, Frans De Buyser, Koen Deforce, Konjev Desender, An Lentacker, Jan Moens, Gaston Van Bulck, Maarten Van Dijck, Wim Van Neer, Werner Wouters: Consumption patterns and living conditions inside Het Steen, the late medieval prison of Malines (Mechelen, Belgium), Journal of Archaeology in the Low Countries 1.2, 5-47.

by Journal of Archaeology in the Low Countries

Excavations at the Main Square (Grote Markt) of Malines (Mechelen, Belgium) have unearthed the building remains of a... more Excavations at the Main Square (Grote Markt) of Malines (Mechelen, Belgium) have unearthed the building remains of a tower, arguably identifiable as the former town prison: Het Steen. When this assumption is followed, the contents of the fills of two cesspits dug out in the cellars of the building illustrate aspects of daily life within the early 14th-century prison. An integrated approach of all find categories, together with the historical context available, illuminates aspects of the material culture of the users of the cesspits, their consumption patterns and the living conditions within the building.

Las actas del cabildo catedralicio como fuente para la historia del poder en una urbe medieval: El caso de Oviedo en el siglo XV

by Néstor Vigil Montes

Les Médicis et la France de 1450 à 1600

by Marc H. Smith

Colloque franco-italien Les Médicis et la France, château de Blois, 25 septembre 1999.

Actes non publiés Actes non publiés

Mihailo Popović - Johannes Preiser-Kapeller, With Satellite and Facebook to Byzantium. New Methods at the Institute for Byzantine Studies [in German]

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

Pre-Print from: Akademie Intakt 2011

Das Institut für Byzanzforschung (IBF) der ÖAW stellt weltweit eines der wichtigsten Zentren für die Erforschung des... more Das Institut für Byzanzforschung (IBF) der ÖAW stellt weltweit eines der wichtigsten Zentren für die Erforschung des Byzantinischen Reiches und des östlichen Mittelmeerraumes als Übergangsregion zwischen Europa, Asien und Afrika von der Spätantike bis in die Frühe Neuzeit (300-1500) dar. Dieser einzigartige Status wurde zuletzt im Juni 2011 durch eine hochkarätig besetzte internationale Evaluierungskommission bestätigt, die unter anderem festhielt: „[…] no other research institute in the world has such long-term projects or provides such a service“. Besonders hervorgehoben wurden dabei aber auch die „modern approaches“, die in den letzten Jahren am IBF für die Erforschung der mittelalterlichen Welt erprobt wurden. Zwei dieser innovativen Ansätze im Bereich der Historischen Geographie (Historical Geographic Information Systems – HGIS) und der Textedition und Proposopographie (Soziale Netzwerkanalyse – SNA) sollen hier kurz vorgestellt werden.

Möglichkeiten und Grenzen der Analyse mittelalterlicher sozialer Netzwerke am Beispiel der spätbyzantinischen Kirche und Gesellschaft (Possibilities and limits of the analysis of medieval social networks on the example of Late Byzantine Church and Society)

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

Paper for a lecture at the Oberseminar für mittelalterliche Geschichte, Friedrich-Schiller-University of Jena (Germany), November 17th, 2011, Dept. of Medieval History; the slides for the presentation you find here:
http://oeaw.academia.edu/JohannesPreiserKapeller/Talks/60893/_In_the_Holy_Spirit_beloved_brothers._Possibilities_and_limits_of_Social_Network_Analysis_for_research_on_the_Late_Byzantine_church_and_society_in_German_

Contents:

- Einige Grundlagen der (Historischen) Sozialen Netzwerkanalyse

- Vom historischen... more Contents:

- Einige Grundlagen der (Historischen) Sozialen Netzwerkanalyse

- Vom historischen Dokument zum Netzwerk

- Das Individuum im Zentrum – Ego-Netzwerke in Byzanz

- Die Verflechtungen innerhalb einer Institution – Netzwerke der Interaktion in der Synode von Konstantinopel und ihre zeitliche Dynamik

- Die Ungleichverteilung von Netzwerkverbindungen – das Geflecht der spätbyzantinischen Aristokratie
-
Ein kurzer Ausblick: die Erfassung des Raumes – der geographische Aspekt von Netzwerken

- Zusammenfassung

Eine neue Handschrift zur Überlieferung des "Fließenden Lichts der Gottheit" und seiner lateinischen Übersetzung, in: Zeitschrift für deutsches Altertum und deutsche Literatur (in Vorbereitung)

by Balázs J. Nemes

zusammen mit Beate Braun-Niehr (Berlin) and Catherine Squires (Moskau)

Der geplante Aufsatz sieht folgende Arbeitsteilung vor:
- Beate Braun-Niehr: Vorstellung der Handschrift in ihrer... more Der geplante Aufsatz sieht folgende Arbeitsteilung vor:
- Beate Braun-Niehr: Vorstellung der Handschrift in ihrer Gesamtheit, Begründung der Datierung auf das 4. Viertel des 15. Jahrhunderts und der Lokalisierung in die Kartause in Erfurt.
- Catherine Squires: sprachliche Analyse (Leitfrage: handelt es sich um einen weiteren Textzeugen der von Basel unabhängigen mitteldeutschen Texttradition?).
- Balázs J. Nemes: text- und überlieferungsgeschichtliche Einordnung, die Kartause in Erfurt als Ort der Mechthild-Überlieferung und -Rezeption im 15. Jahrhundert

Archaeological Excavations at Bawtry Masonic Hall, South Yorkshire, July 2010: the cemetery of the medieval hospital of St Mary Magdalene

by Lauren McIntyre

Co-authored with Prof. D. M. Hadley, 2010, The University of Sheffield. Unpublished interim report.

In July 2010 an excavation was undertaken in the car park of the Masonic hall at Bawtry, South Yorkshire as part of a... more In July 2010 an excavation was undertaken in the car park of the Masonic hall at Bawtry, South Yorkshire as part of a field school run by the Department of Archaeology, University of Sheffield, with support from Wessex Archaeology (Sheffield). The Masonic hall was the chapel of the medieval hospital of Bawtry, and the principal aim of the field school was to throw new light on the hospital and on the cemetery that was associated with it, which had been identified during excavations in 2006 and 2007. During the 2010 excavation, eighteen graves were identified, and subsequent analysis of both the articulated and disarticulated skeletal remains identified a minimum number of fifty three individuals. It was demonstrated that the cemetery served a broad cross-section of the population, which was relatively healthy. A radiocarbon date is awaited from one of the skeletons, but at this stage all of the evidence indicates that the burials were all of later medieval date. A small number of medieval artefacts were recovered, including a 13th-century coin, a copper-alloy plate (of a type used in medieval medicinal cures for damaged or infected joints) and the copper-alloy ferrule from the end of a walking stick. The remains of a late medieval wall were encountered running eastwards from the east wall of the Masonic hall; this wall was either the remains of a boundary wall or of a building, and it appears to be perpetuated into the 19th century, when a wall in a similar location is depicted on images of the chapel.

(Not so) Distant Mirrors: a complex macro-comparison of polities and political, economic and religious systems in the crisis of the 14th century

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

Paper for the International Conference "THE ANGEVIN DYNASTY (14TH CENTURY)" in Targoviste (Romania), October 21st-23rd 2011.
Slides here: http://oeaw.academia.edu/JohannesPreiserKapeller/Talks/58247/_Not_so_Distant_Mirrors_a_complex_macro-comparison_of_polities_and_political_economic_and_religious_systems_in_the_crisis_of_the_14th_century

In the “calamitous” 14th century, as Barbara Tuchman called it in her classic „A Distant Mirror“ (1978) , the medieval... more In the “calamitous” 14th century, as Barbara Tuchman called it in her classic „A Distant Mirror“ (1978) , the medieval world entered a period of severe crisis in demography, economy, politics and religion. This crisis took hold in all regions, ranging from China in the East to England in the West. Even before the catastrophic pandemic of the Black Death (1346-1352), deteriorating climatic conditions had ended the period of demographic and economic expansion that began in the 10th century.
The local and regional impacts and consequences of these general potentially crisis-laden conditions may have differed; outcomes ranged from actual societal collapse to the emergence of powerful new polities – while Byzantium´s power dwindled away, Hungary entered a period of strong rulership and external power in the reign of Louis I of Anjou (1342-1382), for instance. But these conditions provide a framework for global perspective on this period and allow us to use the 14th century-crisis as a field of “natural experiments of history”, as Jared Diamond and James A. Robinson have called them ; accordingly, we analyse how similar crisis phenomena influenced the development of societies with different (or similar) traditions, religions, institutions, geographies or ecologies.
In order to be able to capture the local variations and complexities, we adopt concepts and tools provided by the field of complexity science. Mono-causal or linear explanations are inadequate for the analysis and the description of crisis, transformation or collapse of pre-modern polities. Within this framework, complex systems are understood as large networks of individual components, whose interactions at the microscopic level produce “complex” changing patterns of behaviour of the whole system on the macroscopic level. In the last decades, historians and social scientists who became interested in complexity theory tried to use its concepts and terminology for the conceptualisation and description of phenomena in their own fields, but often only in a “metaphoric” way. Less frequently, though, historians have tried to make use of the mathematical foundations of complexity theory or of quantitative tools provided by this field. Recent scholarship has implemented some of these tools especially for the construction of macro-models of socio-economic development. While these studies help us construct analytical tools for the macro-level of our own research, they run the same risk as earlier scholarship of neglecting complex variations at the local and regional levels.
Therefore, we combine complexity theory with the analytical framework of „systems theory“ developed by the German sociologist Niklas Luhmann in order to capture the interveawements between politics, economy and religion within a polity and with the political, economic and ecological environment. In addition, we employ the methods and tools of network analysis, which allow us to capture, analyse and model linkages and cause-effect correlations in society, economy, politics and religion on the macro- and micro-level down to groups and individuals.
Overall, as a complement to earlier studies our analytical
approach shall allow us to capture the “diversité véritable” of our period without losing track of essential commonalities (the “strange parallels”, as Victor Liebermann has called them in his remarkable study on Southeast Asia in Global Context, 2009 ) of this “first world crisis” across all cultures and societies. The scientic value of this approach will be demonstrated for some specific cases.

Neues vom ‘Beluga Schiff’ – ein Bremer Klinkerwrack aus dem 15. Jahrhundert

by Daniel Zwick

published in 'Nachrichtenblatt Arbeitskreis Unterwasserarchäologie' 16, 2010.

In this report new findings and interpretations on the late medieval Beluga Ship are presented, which was discovered... more In this report new findings and interpretations on the late medieval Beluga Ship are presented, which was discovered 2007 in Bremen, Germany. Particularly new dendrological results have shed an interesting light on the inconspicuous remains, which samples fall into two groups: an earlier of high quality timber cut in Livonia in the course of the 14th century, and a group of locally cut timber, dating into the second quarter of the 15th century. The first are interpreted here as imported timber and the latter as subsequent repairs, which were carried out locally before the ship was eventually scrapped on Bremen's historical shipbuilding site, the „Teerhof “, literally 'tar yard'. With an entirely clinker-built hull with iron rivets, cleft planks and wool caulking, it bears several characteristics that are reminiscent of Scandinavian shipbuilding.

Calculating the Synod? New quantitative and qualitative approaches for the analysis of the Patriarchate and the Synod of Constantinople in the 14th century

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

Paper for the 22nd International Congress of Byzantine Studies in Sofia (Bulgaria), August 2011. Slides online in the "Talks"-section of my academia.edu-website: http://oeaw.academia.edu/JohannesPreiserKapeller/Talks/51244/Calculating_the_Synod_New_quantitative_and_qualitative_approaches_for_the_analysis_of_the_Patriarchate_and_the_Synod_of_Constantinople_in_the_14th_century

For the period between 1315 and 1402, the Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople (PRK) provides hundreds of... more For the period between 1315 and 1402, the Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople (PRK) provides hundreds of decisions of the Patriarch and the synodos endemusa on ecclesiastical and other matters of local relevance as well as of importance for the entire Byzantine commonwealth; a new edition of this unique source is a long-term project of the Institute for Byzantine Studies of the Austrian Academy of Sciences.  The relatively high density of evidence enables us also to use quantitative methods for the analysis of the Register and of the body of hierarchs in Constantinople and their decision-making. On a basic level, this was already done by Jean Darrouzès ; however, the documents from the PRK enable us to use even more sophisticated tools from contemporary social sciences and statistical analysis for the study of the synod and the entire Late Byzantine church.
The instruments of social network analysis for instance, which have already been used for the analysis of various communities and institutions in medieval history, but until now very seldom for the Byzantine period, allow us to re-construct the interactions and connections within the episcopacy, to visualise and to analyse them. We constructed a network model of the synodos endemusa for the period between 1379 and 1387 (Patriarchate of Neilos Kerameus) and were able to determine and quantify differences and similarities between the various hierarchs with regard to their importance and activity in this central body of decision-making.  In addition, network analysis allows us to study several characteristics of the entire network of the synod regarding the distribution of influence or the flow of information.
The source evidence from the Registers further enables us not only to re-construct the structure of personal ties, but also to model processes of decision making. For this aim, we combined network analytical models with tools from contemporary political sciences, especially game theory and social choice theory. A primary target of our research will be the re-construction of a dynamic network model of the synod on the basis of the entire source evidence from the Register for the Patriarchate for the period from 1315 to 1402. This will make it possible to visualise and analyse the development of one of the most important institutions of Late Byzantium for almost a century in an entirely new way.

  See: http://www.oeaw.ac.at/byzanz/prk.htm.
  Cf. the tables in J. DARROUZÈS, Le registre synodal du patriarcat byzantin au XIVe siècle. Étude paléographique et diplomatique (Archives de l´Orient chrétien 12). Paris 1971, 344–388.
  Cf. J. PREISER-KAPELLER, Calculating the Synod? A network analysis of the synod and the episcopacy in the Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in the years 1379–1390, to be published in: Ch. GASTGEBER - E. MITSIOU – J. PREISER-KAPELLER (eds.), Das Patriarchatsregister von Konstantinopel. Eine zentrale Quelle zur Geschichte und Kirche im späten Byzanz (Veröffentlichungen zur Byzanzforschung). Vienna 2011. (Online-Version: http://www.oeaw.ac.at /byzanz/repository/Preiser_WorkingPapers_Calculating_II.pdf).

„Denn der Krieg umschließt uns von allen Seiten“. Vorboten und Nachwehen der Schlacht von Nikopolis 1396 im Sprengel des Patriarchats von Konstantinopel

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

published in: E. Mitsiou, M. Popović, J. Preiser-Kapeller and A. Simon, ed.), Emperor Sigismund and the Orthodox World (Veröffentlichungen zur Byzanzforschung 24). Vienna 2010, p. 107–125. (Working paper version provided on academia.edu)

Sive vincitur Hungaria… Das Osmanische Reich, das Königreich Ungarn und ihre Nachbarn in der Zeit des Matthias Corvinus im Machtvergleich im Urteil griechischer Quellen

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

published in: Ch. Gastgeber et al. (ed.), Matthias Corvinus und seine Zeit (see above, 1.6). Vienna 2011, p. 37–62. (Working paper version provided on academia.edu)

Management of Shortage. The Byzantine Church in the face of crisis and collapse, 1204-1453

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

Paper for the International Medieval Congress in Leeds, 2011
Session 602: "The Late Byzantine Empire: Crisis and Identity"
Tuesday 12 July 2011: 11.15-12.45
(Slide of the presentation are online in the "talks"-section of my academia.edu-website: http://oeaw.academia.edu/JohannesPreiserKapeller/Talks/47703/Management_of_Shortage._The_Byzantine_Church_in_the_face_of_crisis_and_collapse_1204-1453)

At a time when the Byzantine State was shaken by invasions, relative decline in terms of political and economic power... more At a time when the Byzantine State was shaken by invasions, relative decline in terms of political and economic power and internal unrest and finally ceased to exist, the Byzantine Church was able to maintain essential elements of its pastoral and institutional framework in (South)Eastern Europe and Asia Minor beyond the catastrophes of 1204 and 1453 despite the adverse effects these events of course also had on its followers and properties. The paper aims at analysing important aspects of this resilience of the Late Byzantine Church as religious community and ecclesiastical institution; therefore “classic” instruments of historical research will be combined with new methods of (socio)historical and systems research (modern statistical tools, network analysis, institutional and system analysis).

Conversion, Collaboration and Confrontation. Islam in the Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople (14th Century)

by Johannes Preiser-Kapeller

Working paper for a presentation at the IMC in Leeds, 2009.

The Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which contains many valuable documents of the period 1315-1402, is... more The Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, which contains many valuable documents of the period 1315-1402, is one of the most important sources for the (church) history of this time of renewed Muslim expansion at Byzantium's cost. In this paper it will be analyzed how Islam is being described in those documents in regard to the terminology and the framework of traditional Byzantine polemics. A further topic is the reaction of the Byzantine laymen but also of the lower and high clerics to the Islamic expansion - whether in form of confrontation, collaboration, or even conversion. (The slides for the presentation of the paper are in the talks section of my academia.edu-website).

Citter Carlo. Le trasformazioni dell’assetto topografico nei castelli e nelle città della Toscana meridionale fra la peste nera e i Medici: alcuni casi a confronto in Quasi 1500. Segni di “modernità” alla fine del Medioevo, ed. Antonio Alberti, Monica Baldassarri, Giuseppe Gattiglia. Atti del seminario di studi. Pisa, 2009. Pisa.

by Carlo Citter