Category Archives: Women

Wearing Anglo-Saxon saucer brooches

Posted on June 10, 2015 by Ruth

In my book, A Companion to Beowulf, there is an artist’s reconstruction of how the brooches and beads might have been worn. At Pannebaker Press’s website you can see a discussion of how we came to decisions about them, with … Continue reading →

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Gossip at the Council of Piacenza

Posted on March 13, 2014 by Ruth

We remember the Council of Clermont, in 1095, as the launchpad of the First Crusade. But in order to understand why the Crusade was called, we need to look at the Council of Piacenza, held earlier in the same year. … Continue reading →

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Kievan interlude

Posted on February 18, 2014 by Ruth

To take note of today’s news of fiery uprising in Kiev, I’m going to duck to one side of the Islamic developments I’ve been tracking, and instead look at Anne of Kiev, a Queen of France. Anne’s grandmother may have … Continue reading →

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Social change after the plague: the occult

Posted on September 20, 2013 by Ruth

In the world after the plague, the occult had a much larger role. It isn’t hard to argue that pagan magic had never entirely stopped when Europe became officially Christian; but there is also no question that “black” magic, power … Continue reading →

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14th century: evolution of the single-layer gown

Posted on June 26, 2013 by Ruth

Until about 1350, getting dressed meant putting on something colorful over a white linen gown. The design of the outer garment changed, but the basic idea was always the same, until the outer garment became more or less vestigial. The … Continue reading →

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13th to 15th centuries: ladies’ hair and hats

Posted on June 15, 2013 by Ruth

Until the 13th century, Northern European ladies’ hair had been styled fairly simply, usually in a long braid. By the middle of the 1200s, this was changing, and by the mid-1300s, upper-class hair was styled in fiendishly complicated ways. It … Continue reading →

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13th Century: Coif, Barbette and Wimple

Posted on June 9, 2013 by Ruth

As the Cyclas made its way into women’s fashion too, head coverings were changing very much from the 12th century’s hoods. While hoods were still much worn among many social classes (and continued to be worn for several centuries), men … Continue reading →

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13th century: peliçon and Persian coat

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Ruth

The basic notion of what it means to clothe oneself is far more conservative than fashions that come and go. Take the extreme example of how little has changed in the notion of a man getting dressed to go work … Continue reading →

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Tablet weaving

Posted on May 26, 2013 by Ruth

There was another kind of weaving that was generally done as a home craft. It didn’t produce swathes or bolts of fabric, but its importance can’t be downplayed. In tablet weaving, also called card weaving, the weaver’s quick hands produced … Continue reading →

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The peasant’s wife

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Ruth

The peasant’s wife had a pretty hard life. In addition to helping with a lot of field work as needed, she did a lot of everything else. Her most likely cause of death by accident was to fall into the … Continue reading →

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