Explore 686 Medieval Collections - Atlas Obscura
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Michelangelo Caetani's cross-section of Hell, 1855.
maps

Mapping Dante's Inferno, One Circle of Hell at a Time

A topography of torment.
Anika Burgess July 13, 2017
A 16th-century German woodcut depicting the uselessness of chastity belts. (They can have more than one key.)
medieval

Everything You've Heard About Chastity Belts Is a Lie

Including their very existence.
Sarah Laskow July 12, 2017
Charles I, c. 1635-1636
objects of intrigue

The Glamorous Pearl Earring King Charles I Wore to His Execution

Since childhood, he refused to part with it.
Michael Waters July 6, 2017
The Golden Gate of Kyiv, as it stands today.
Kyiv, Ukraine

Golden Gate of Kyiv

A reconstructed medieval gateway that was the magnificent entrance to the capital city dating back to 1037.
One of the kilns.
medieval

Found: A Remarkable Trove of Medieval Pottery

Thousands of pieces of pottery were hiding under one town's Memorial Hall.
Sarah Laskow June 26, 2017
Gainsborough Old Hall
Gainsborough, England

Gainsborough Old Hall

A medieval relic whose great hall once hosted Mayflower pilgrims, one of Henry VIII’s ill-fated wives, and plenty of royal intrigue.
The edge of the universe, as depicted in a 19th century book.
astronomy

Medieval Scholars Believed in the Possibility of Parallel Universes

A 13th-century conflict between faith and science ultimately led to a surprising outcome: a medieval multiverse theory.
Sarah Laskow June 20, 2017
The courtyard in the main complex.
Tatev, Armenia

Gavazan Column at Tatev Monastery

Centuries before the modern seismograph, Armenian monks measured quakes with this tilting pillar.
Reverend Bob Wilkes points the way.
maps

The Delightful English Tradition of Beating Parish Boundaries With Sticks

Or, why you may have seen 40 branch-wielding people in Oxford shouting "Mark, mark!"
Emily Cleaver June 6, 2017
An illustration of Gilles de Rais disposing of a woman's corpse.
medieval

The Modern Movement to Exonerate a Notorious Medieval Serial Killer

Gilles de Rais inspired the tale of Bluebeard. But was he really a murderer?
Sonya Vatomsky June 2, 2017
The Finestrella sul Canale (Canal Window)
Bologna, Italy

Finestrella di Via Piella

A small window on Via Piella offers a lovely and rare peek at Bologna's lost canals.
Interior of Grianán
County Donegal, Ireland

Grianán of Aileach

You can see three Irish counties from this Neolithic hillside fort, once the seat of the Kingdom of Ailech.
Illustrations from John of Arderne's medical treatise <em>Mirror of Phlebotomy & Practice of Surgery</em>.
medieval

The Strange and Grotesque Doodles in the Margins of Medieval Books

When the edges take center stage.
Anika Burgess May 9, 2017
The mural on Hasenhaus.
Vienna, Austria

Wolf and Cow Playing Backgammon Mural

A silly medieval mural preserved on the side of a Viennese house.
Bukit Cina, Malacca's Chinese cemetery.
Malacca, Malaysia

Bukit Cina (Chinese Hill)

The largest Chinese cemetery in the world outside of China dates back to the 15th century.
Tapestry reproduction and restored fireplace.
Tattershall, England

Fireplaces of Tattershall Castle

The near loss of the stately fireplaces at this medieval castle spawned some of Britain's most crucial historic preservation laws.
Habsburg Castle from the vineyard on the east side.
Habsburg, Switzerland

Schloss Habsburg (Habsburg Castle)

An 11th-century fortress home to one of the most influential royal houses in medieval Europe.
The grave of Gelert, just outside of the village of Beddgelert in northwest Wales.
Caernarfon, Wales

Gelert's Grave

A tiny village in Wales claims the name of a noble medieval hound slain for a crime he didn't commit.