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1:40 The heavy plough. 3:02 Eyeglasses. 4:28 Rotating three-field system. 6:02 Windmill post. 7:31 Magnetic compass. 9:00 Trebuchet. 11:10 Flying buttress. 13:13 Astrolabe. 15:15 Clockwork. 18:09 Gothic rose window. 10 Medieval Inventions So Advanced We Still Can't Beat Them | 22:54 Medieval Wisdom | 56.9K subscribers | 143,125 views | August 21, 2025

Dr Karel Fraaije travels back in time to explore a hidden treasure from the English Middle Ages: the Hereford World Map. This enormous artwork shows what thirteenth-century scholars from England thought our planet looks like.The document is dotted with ancient legends, biblical sites, and a great number of presumptions about strange and distant places. The mapmakers even proposed that some people on the edges of the known world had faces in their chests.The video concludes with debunking a common myth about the middle ages: contrary to modern popular opinion, medieval mapmakers did not believe that the world was flat. This...

The fourteenth-century Icelandic Edwardsaga chronicles the life of Edward the Confessor, the last Anglo-Saxon king of England (reigned 1042–1066). It also describes how, in the years after the Norman Conquest in 1066 -- when William the Conqueror invaded England and was crowned king -- 350 ships carrying English warriors set out for Constantinople. There, the Byzantine emperor employed the Anglo-Saxons as members of the Varangian Guard, an elite unit of foreign soldiers that served as his personal army. Such was their loyalty, says the Edwardsaga, that the emperor deeded them land six days' sailing north of Constantinople. There, presumably on...

Archaeologist Greer Jarrett at Lund University in Sweden has been sailing in the footsteps of Vikings for three years. He can now show that the Vikings sailed farther away from Scandinavia, and took routes farther from land, than was previously believed to have been possible. In his latest study, he has found evidence of a decentralised network of ports, located on islands and peninsulas, which probably played a central role in trade and travel in the Viking era. Traveling in the wake of the Vikings | 5:35 Lund University | 29.4K subscribers | 18,547 views | May 20, 2025 From...

Recent research into the famous wreck of the Danish-Norwegian ship Gribshunden has revealed new details about the artillery and armament of medieval seagoing vessels, according to a statement released by Lund University. Gribshunden was built in the 1480s and became the royal flagship of King Hans of Denmark and Norway. The monarch used the vessel much like a floating castle and personally sailed on it frequently -- not only for exploration but to solidify his grasp of his kingdom. The ship mysteriously sank in 1495 off the coast of Ronneby, Sweden. It is often considered the best-preserved wreck from the...

According to a statement released by The National Museum of Denmark, a small figurine long-hidden in its collections has recently been rediscovered and is providing new information about Viking Age fashions. The exquisitely carved, one-inch-tall object was whittled out of expensive walrus ivory and likely served as a gaming piece for a Viking Age game resembling chess. It was first discovered in a burial in Viken in 1797 and has been in the National Museum's storerooms for more than 200 years. However, it recently caught the attention of curator Peter Pentz, who was struck by the figurine's realistic features. Although...

Viking warriors filed deep grooves in their teeth, and they likely had to smile broadly to show them off, according to new finds in four major Viking Age cemeteries in Sweden. Caroline Arcini of Sweden's National Heritage Board analyzed 557 skeletons of men, women and children from between 800 and 1050 A.D. They discovered that 22 of the men bore deep, horizontal grooves across the upper front teeth. "The marks are traces of deliberate dental modifications ... they are so well-made that most likely they were filed by a person of great skill," Arcini wrote in the current issue of...

These two brooches were part of a small hoard discovered along with a gold arm ring in southwestern Jutland, Denmark. Dated to the Viking Age (A.D. 793 to 1066), the brooches are decorated with ornamental wire bent into delicate shapes.Each gold brooch measures about 3.3 inches (8.5 centimeters) in diameter and weighs between 2.1 to 2.6 ounces (60 to 75 grams), according to a 1994 study by Lene Frandsen, curator at the Varde Museum. The designs on the brooches include examples of both Norse and Christian art, according to the National Museum of Denmark, where the accessories are on display.One...

The Herald Scotland reports that prior to the construction of a new housing development in Guardbridge, Fife, archaeological excavations uncovered traces of some 10,000 years of local history. The historic village takes its name from a sixteenth-century bridge that led pilgrims across the River Eden to St. Andrews, but a team from GUARD Archaeology recently unearthed evidence that the site was a hotspot of human occupation far earlier than that. During the Upper Paleolithic period, some of Scotland's first inhabitants made flint tools at the site. Later, early Neolithic farmers left many pits across the area, which contained burnt cereal...

Ever wondered why this Church (knowlton) was plonked into a Henge? Whilst you might think the answer is obvious, what was found 2 miles away could reveal all! Knowlton Church... Explained by a discovery 2 miles away! | 9:45 Paul Whitewick | 197K subscribers | 132,486 views | July 20, 2025

Vox News Albania reports that Kosovan Minister of Culture Hajrulla Çeku announced that a team of archaeologists uncovered a rare mosaic inscription linked with the Byzantine emperor Justinian I (reigned a.d. 527–565) at the site of Ulpiana. This find comes two years after the discovery of another inscription from the same time period. Ulpiana was a major urban center in the Roman province of Dardania and flourished from the first to the sixth century a.d. The city was flattened by an earthquake around a.d. 518 but was rebuilt by Justinian, a native of the area, during his reign. The first...

Welcome to Episode 5 of "Battles That Shaped Time: Turning Points in Warfare" In the summer of 955 AD, the fate of Europe balanced on a single battlefield -- the Lechfeld. For over 50 years, the Magyars had ravaged the continent, undefeated and unstoppable. But on this day, Emperor Otto I would gamble everything -- not just on steel, but on the fury of the skies. As a summer storm turned rivers into raging traps and mud swallowed armies whole, the battlefield became a crucible of destiny. This is the story of the day Europe's future was forged in thunder,...

When the Bedale hoard was first discovered by metal detectorists in 2012, it was immediately recognized as one of the most significant assemblages of Viking-era silver objects and jewelry that had ever been found in England. Dating to the late ninth or early tenth century, the collection consists of 29 silver ingots and several elaborate neck rings, among other items. According to a statement released by the University of Oxford, a recent study of the origins of the Bedale silver is shedding new light on the international scope and far-reaching extent of Viking trade. Researchers led by Oxford archaeologist Jane...

A 38-year-old man from the Bay Area, who went by at least three aliases, managed to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of rare historical Chinese manuscripts dating back to the 13th century from the University of California, Los Angeles’ library, federal officials announced. In a U.S. Department of Justice news release, federal prosecutors allege that Jeffrey Ying, who also went by the names Jason Wang, Alan Fujimori and Austin Cheng, stole the manuscripts between Dec. 2024 and July 2025. Because of their value and rarity, UCLA does not keep the books in regular circulation, requiring a reservation to...

For centuries, its origins were shrouded in mystery. But a forgotten cemetery near Lake Issyk Kul in Kyrgyzstan has revealed stunning new evidence. In this documentary-style deep dive, we explore how 800-year-old graves, ancient inscriptions, and cutting-edge DNA analysis led scientists to pinpoint the true birthplace of the plague that killed tens of millions across Europe, Asia, and North Africa. Learn how a single strain of Yersinia pestis, preserved in the teeth of medieval plague victims, was identified as the ancestral source of the Black Death. Discover how trade routes, climate change, and human mobility allowed a microscopic killer to...

A burial in southeastern Turkey revealed a 35‑square‑meter mosaic with a Greek inscription, marking one of the most significant archaeological discoveries in the region. While preparing a grave in the rural Özbilek neighborhood of Diyarbakır’s Ergani district, locals uncovered the mosaic, which experts believe dates to the late Roman or early Byzantine period. Discovery made during a routine burial The find features elaborate geometric patterns and two striking elements: a six-line inscription in ancient Greek and a Star of David enclosing a Christian cross. Museum officials say this combination of Jewish and Christian iconography is exceptionally rare and could shed...

The Irish Times reports that archaeologists from the University of Galway have uncovered a fortress belonging to a noble Medieval family near the shores of Galway Bay. Since preliminary investigation the 1940s, Rathgurreen Ringfort in Maree was suspected of being a high-status settlement during the Middle Ages, which recent archaeological work confirmed, but the team also found evidence that the site may be 1,000 older than previously expected. The 330-foot diameter fort may have been founded as early as the Iron Age in fifth century a.d., before it grew into a major medieval site centuries later and was the seat...

While America grapples with its own dark past of slavery, a massive chapter of history gets buried by academics who fixate on Western guilt. Justin Marozzi’s eye-opening book, Captives and Companions, shines a light on the Islamic world’s slave trade, spanning over a millennium with unmatched scale and savagery. This isn’t ancient news, but it is a wake-up call for historians. Marozzi estimates that from the 7th century to the 20th, up to 17 million Africans and Europeans were enslaved in Muslim lands, dwarfing the transatlantic trade’s 11-15 million.

Imagine yourself in a 13th-century North African prison where you are being held for refusing to renounce your Catholic faith. Conditions are cruel, and you are losing hope of seeing your family again. You wonder if it wouldn’t be so bad to convert to Islam. Then an angel in white appears at your cell with the jailor, who unlocks the door. All at once, you are free to return to your home in Spain. The angel is a monk from the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy (also known as the Order of Mercy or the Mercedarians), who...

Historian Dr Tom Asbridge reveals the extraordinary life of William Marshall, the celebrated medieval knight often hailed as "the greatest knight in the world" and his incredible journey from humble origins and a childhood as a royal hostage to becoming a regent of England who fought alongside four kings. Marshall's unwavering loyalty and unparalleled chivalry didn't just save lives on the battlefield but also saved the English royal line from French conquest and played a pivotal role in the shaping of Magna Carta. His story is a testament to how one man's prowess and honor could dramatically alter the course...