Great stuff. Right up my street. Maybe we live on the same one? My goal is, through my posts, to show the pragmatism of medieval manuscripts. On the one hand, there are luxury manuscripts which are meant to be shown off, like you highlighted. Majestic books have impact on the illiterate in the era of transitional literacy. A medieval town's majestic law book would be presented and read aloud from the balcony of the town hall for the craftsmen to see and hear yearly. Pragmatic manuscripts, on the other hand, are for internal use and are instead undecorated and cloistered storage vessels. However, it is not a polarity. It is "fluid" as the postmodernists love to say. Even luxury manuscripts have a pragmatic side (they work to hold a social order together). Ironically, part of their pragmatism is in their majesty. Their beautiful appearance and illustrations interact with the vast majority who cannot read them, whereby they are included in the social order led by a tiny literate elite. My plan is to keep hammering this theme. Medievalists here love to upload images of only the most gorgeous manuscripts. I want to show the ugly, yet significant ones too. They make up the bulk of the tradition, and usually never see the light of day outside the archives.
I love your insights on the lawbooks there - I had great fun (and much drowning in pages) reading through the Yearbooks 1300-1500 and found them fascinating in so many ways. Of course, for this website I don't delve too much into law, but I did dedicate a post to highlighting one case I uncovered to do with necromancy here:
I am certainly guilty of sticking to beautiful manuscripts, but in a way you hit exactly as to why. The Middle Ages is wounded by a grim and gritty picture filled with greys and browns only in much popular culture, even today. Yet, in (I believe) reaction to this, we see heralded the great wonders of those centuries, mainly the things that catch our eyes. It's striking because it's difficult yet so very important to highlight the whole spectrum. Least of all, as you say, to break what is ultimately upholding an elitist narrative - of course Jean the Magnificent, Duke of Berry had beautiful art, but lest we forget he was by most accounts a horrid man as interested in pretty "collecting" people as much as objects, we lose sight of what we should be aiming for as historians: amplifying sources, contextualising and analysing them, and creating a holistic yet nuanced understanding of the past.
Great observations. I honestly forget the Middle Ages are in need of rehabilitation from the unfortunate designation of Humanists “the Dark Ages” which is undeniably as prevalent as it is inaccurate. I have heard ppl assert that all knowledge from the Classical Period was lost entirely! Still, even if I always will have a tiny readership, i am writing for other medievalists or at least people open or curious about the Middle Ages. I don’t want to have to explain that the printing press didn’t exist. There is a certain amount of foreknowledge expected out of my posts. At the same time, they take an introductory approach, giving an overview of some themes which even medievalists may not be familiar with, ie German language literature here in an anglophone space. I would be interested in your feedback regarding my approach with my posts, because sometimes it seems too unusual. Im not sure if even my ideal readers get what I am on about tbh.
In terms of Substack as a platform it's definitely more difficult to gain initial traction if you have a more complex angle. My coffee table post has been very popular but it covers off material I have assumed readers know.
Nevertheless, the audience you will start to build will appreciate your work with a closer dedication. Substack has a great community element and comments discussing this (like ours!) have shown its true strength for the angle you want.
And I perfectly get your work, and will be pleased to continue reading with interest!
I echo this! As I work on Early Medieval cosmology, I can't wait for your insights (though I loved the visual "treat" this morning as I read through your "coffee table" book post).
Great stuff. Right up my street. Maybe we live on the same one? My goal is, through my posts, to show the pragmatism of medieval manuscripts. On the one hand, there are luxury manuscripts which are meant to be shown off, like you highlighted. Majestic books have impact on the illiterate in the era of transitional literacy. A medieval town's majestic law book would be presented and read aloud from the balcony of the town hall for the craftsmen to see and hear yearly. Pragmatic manuscripts, on the other hand, are for internal use and are instead undecorated and cloistered storage vessels. However, it is not a polarity. It is "fluid" as the postmodernists love to say. Even luxury manuscripts have a pragmatic side (they work to hold a social order together). Ironically, part of their pragmatism is in their majesty. Their beautiful appearance and illustrations interact with the vast majority who cannot read them, whereby they are included in the social order led by a tiny literate elite. My plan is to keep hammering this theme. Medievalists here love to upload images of only the most gorgeous manuscripts. I want to show the ugly, yet significant ones too. They make up the bulk of the tradition, and usually never see the light of day outside the archives.
It seems we are neighbours of a sort Robert!
I love your insights on the lawbooks there - I had great fun (and much drowning in pages) reading through the Yearbooks 1300-1500 and found them fascinating in so many ways. Of course, for this website I don't delve too much into law, but I did dedicate a post to highlighting one case I uncovered to do with necromancy here:
https://medievalmarvelsmagic.substack.com/p/minicurio-saracens-head
I am certainly guilty of sticking to beautiful manuscripts, but in a way you hit exactly as to why. The Middle Ages is wounded by a grim and gritty picture filled with greys and browns only in much popular culture, even today. Yet, in (I believe) reaction to this, we see heralded the great wonders of those centuries, mainly the things that catch our eyes. It's striking because it's difficult yet so very important to highlight the whole spectrum. Least of all, as you say, to break what is ultimately upholding an elitist narrative - of course Jean the Magnificent, Duke of Berry had beautiful art, but lest we forget he was by most accounts a horrid man as interested in pretty "collecting" people as much as objects, we lose sight of what we should be aiming for as historians: amplifying sources, contextualising and analysing them, and creating a holistic yet nuanced understanding of the past.
Great observations. I honestly forget the Middle Ages are in need of rehabilitation from the unfortunate designation of Humanists “the Dark Ages” which is undeniably as prevalent as it is inaccurate. I have heard ppl assert that all knowledge from the Classical Period was lost entirely! Still, even if I always will have a tiny readership, i am writing for other medievalists or at least people open or curious about the Middle Ages. I don’t want to have to explain that the printing press didn’t exist. There is a certain amount of foreknowledge expected out of my posts. At the same time, they take an introductory approach, giving an overview of some themes which even medievalists may not be familiar with, ie German language literature here in an anglophone space. I would be interested in your feedback regarding my approach with my posts, because sometimes it seems too unusual. Im not sure if even my ideal readers get what I am on about tbh.
In terms of Substack as a platform it's definitely more difficult to gain initial traction if you have a more complex angle. My coffee table post has been very popular but it covers off material I have assumed readers know.
Nevertheless, the audience you will start to build will appreciate your work with a closer dedication. Substack has a great community element and comments discussing this (like ours!) have shown its true strength for the angle you want.
And I perfectly get your work, and will be pleased to continue reading with interest!
Looking forward to reading your post on cosmology! I am writing the book of cosmogony for my rpg setting and it can be a great source of inspiration!
I echo this! As I work on Early Medieval cosmology, I can't wait for your insights (though I loved the visual "treat" this morning as I read through your "coffee table" book post).
Sounds incredibly exciting! I'm drafting a bit at the moment. If you have any burning questions that pop up though, do send me a message in chat.