It is a popular misconception to think that the idea of chivalry and chivalric tournaments were entirely old-fashioned and viewed with scorn by the sixteenth century (too many overly literal readings of Don Quixote for that, I think). While the…
This piece by 19th century French painter Eugène Lami (1800-1890) is giving me MAJOR vibes of that one shot of the Lord of the Rings cast standing on the stairs… and I’m not mad about that. Lami was best known…
An alternate term for bastion forts or star forts, which became widespread in the sixteenth century. Its angular, star-shaped walls were designed in response to the evolution of canon and gunfire. The French term may be translated as the “Italian…
I appreciate the composition of this piece, but am finding it hard to independently verify the details. I believe it’s a preparatory – or unfinished? – piece by Belgian painter Hendrik Leys (1815-1869). Leys was well known for his historical…
If we’re friends in the real world – or are familiar with my odds and ends projects from my tabletop gaming blog – you’ll know that one of my White Whales for years now has been a historical TTRPG set…
When your parents make you and your siblings all take music lessons… and you all hate it. Or sports. Or summertime arts and crafts classes. Who else has been there? 😉 This piece is c. 1568 and attributed to the…
Ambroise Paré, born in 1510 in Laval, France, is widely regarded as one of the most influential surgeons of the sixteenth century. His pioneering work in battlefield medicine and surgical procedures revolutionized the way surgery was practiced and understood during…
Caspar Coolhaes (1536–1615) lived through one of the most turbulent eras in European history: the Reformation and the rise of Protestantism. Protestantism was a movement that emerged in the 16th century as a response to perceived corruption within the Catholic…
As a number of my friends in the SCA head to an archery-focused event today, I thought it would be fun to share this archery-themed piece from the late 15th century. Sure, it’s somewhat outside the time range I focus…
On the 13th of September, 1598, King Philip II of Spain breathed his last in the vast halls of El Escorial, the massive monastery-palace he had built near Madrid. He was 71 years old and had been suffering for months,…
