A case of projectile trauma from the medieval Poulton Chapel, Cheshire, the United Kingdom

Excavations at the medieval cemetery of Poulton Chapel, Cheshire, have uncovered over 900 articulated human skeletal remains, with numbers predicted to reach as high as 1500 as excavations continue. The demographics of this archaeological site is typical of a medieval rural assemblage. However, SK535 provides a glimpse into some of the traumatic aspects of medieval life. The excavation of SK535 revealed a middle‐aged adult male around 168 cm in stature. His position of burial was typical of Christian burials with an east‐west orientation, but the positioning of his arms identified that this was not a typical burial. His right arm was flexed at the elbow crossing the thorax, whereas the left arm was in the extended position. This is different from the other arm positions observed at Poulton Chapel. A metal object, identified here as a Type M7 bodkin arrowhead, was recovered from underneath the right arm, from within the thorax. This arrowhead was potentially armour piercing, and the type was commonly used during the 12th–13th century. Radiocarbon dates obtained for SK535 coincide with the time of the use of this arrowhead. Following the initial assessment, the only other instance of trauma identified in SK535 was a healed transverse fracture to the right distal ulna. Due to the location of Poulton Chapel in Cheshire, SK535 could have been wounded by an arrow carrying the M7 bodkin during English‐Welsh border skirmishes, which occurred frequently during this time period. The demographic profile of this individual indicates a possible professional fighter of the medieval period; however, no firm skeletal evidence of occupation could be provided. Nonetheless, this case study not only highlights the violence experienced during the medieval period but also indicates the ability for the survival of some traumas

Giuditta e altre eroine bibliche tra Rinascimento e Barocco. Orizzonti di senso e di genere, variazioni, riscritture. Atti del Seminario di Studio (Padova, 10-11 dicembre 2007)

Il volume presenta l'attraversamento interdisciplinare del tema di Giuditta tra Quattro e Seicento. Sulla sua valenza figurativo-simbolica, sulla sua fruizione nell\u2019ambito dei diversi generi letterari in uno dei periodi cruciali della sua multiforme fortuna italiana hanno finito per interrogarsi pressoch\ue9 in esclusiva i relatori intervenuti (storici, musicologi, studiosi della letterarura e delle arti figurative), attraendo all\u2019eroina anche l\u2019accostamento alla serie delle altre figure bibliche che, a partire da Ester, in Italia e in Europa, tra Rinascimento e Barocco, con lei si accompagnarono. Un\u2019esplorazione a queste ultime dilatata, ma tutta incentrata sul duplice motivo della violenza e della seduzione di cui in primis Giuditta si fa nel contesto europeo esemplarmente latrice tra Sei e Novecento, \ue8 stata affidata al Colloque international et interdisciplinaire \uabEntre violence et s\ue9duction: Judith et autres h\ue9ro\uefnes bibliques dans l\u2019Europe des xive-xviiie si\ue8cles\ubb tenutosi a Parigi nei giorni 8-10 dicembre 2008, i cui Atti sono ora in corso di pubblicazione per le edizioni parigine del Centre Interuniversitaire de Recherche sur la Renaissance Italienne (CIRRI)

[Review] Beatrice Hanssen and Andrew Benjamin, ed. (2002) Walter Benjamin and romanticism

Review of: Hanssen, B., and Benjamin, A. (eds.), 2002. 'Walter Benjamin and Romanticism'. New York & London: Continuum