Gabriele Passabì
@gabpassabi.bsky.social
Medievalist. Manuscripts enthusiast. Film addict.
PhD | University of Cambridge
Research fellowships at PIMS (Toronto), SISMEL (Florence), and Trier University (Germany).
PhD | University of Cambridge
Research fellowships at PIMS (Toronto), SISMEL (Florence), and Trier University (Germany).
Pinned
Gabriele Passabì
@gabpassabi.bsky.social
· Sep 23
The much-anticipated news is now here. I am very excited to announce that my book, soon out with York Medieval Press, is now available for pre-order! Hats off to @boydellandbrewer.bsky.social and the awesome Mont-Saint-Michel design team for the cover!
boydellandbrewer.com/book/robert-...
boydellandbrewer.com/book/robert-...
This is (also) what happens when one stops making assumptions about a text and, especially, about who may have written it.
Oh wow! This is what happens when you're photographing MSS & don't capture the text in the inner gutter. 1st, here's the photograph (made about 100 yrs ago) of the Codex Salernitanus, f. 82ra. Although that big tear of the page is obvious, the inner gutter hasn't been fully captured in the photo.
November 20, 2025 at 2:06 PM
This is (also) what happens when one stops making assumptions about a text and, especially, about who may have written it.
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
The serpent head of the Oseberg Viking ship, carved in 820, and shown for the first time to the public in the Oslo Historical Museum
November 18, 2025 at 10:35 AM
The serpent head of the Oseberg Viking ship, carved in 820, and shown for the first time to the public in the Oslo Historical Museum
There is much to look forward to in the next issue of @parergon.bsky.social. I'm keeping my eyes peeled.
The next issue of @parergon.bsky.social is on its way, guest-edited by me, @erinsebo.bsky.social and Cassandra Schilling. There's a great group of scholars here who collectively consider, from multiple perspectives, questions of how medieval England perceived its place in a wide and complex world.
November 18, 2025 at 11:45 AM
There is much to look forward to in the next issue of @parergon.bsky.social. I'm keeping my eyes peeled.
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
🧪Hold on to your urine flasks, there are only a few weeks left to visit Curious Cures!
📍 Open until 6 December 2025 at the University Library
🔗Book your FREE ticket: https://loom.ly/kVqsPRY
Music by Vlad Bakutov from Pixabay
📍 Open until 6 December 2025 at the University Library
🔗Book your FREE ticket: https://loom.ly/kVqsPRY
Music by Vlad Bakutov from Pixabay
November 17, 2025 at 2:19 PM
🧪Hold on to your urine flasks, there are only a few weeks left to visit Curious Cures!
📍 Open until 6 December 2025 at the University Library
🔗Book your FREE ticket: https://loom.ly/kVqsPRY
Music by Vlad Bakutov from Pixabay
📍 Open until 6 December 2025 at the University Library
🔗Book your FREE ticket: https://loom.ly/kVqsPRY
Music by Vlad Bakutov from Pixabay
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
The golden age of diversity and democracy in Oz.
November 16, 2025 at 7:04 AM
The golden age of diversity and democracy in Oz.
Looks like an exciting read from @puc-ed.bsky.social. The Colloque de Cerisy always gathers stellar scholarship, and this book seems like it’s going to be a banger. Can’t wait to dive in.
#medievalsky
#medievalsky
November 15, 2025 at 1:07 PM
Looks like an exciting read from @puc-ed.bsky.social. The Colloque de Cerisy always gathers stellar scholarship, and this book seems like it’s going to be a banger. Can’t wait to dive in.
#medievalsky
#medievalsky
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
📣 Next week we are delighted to host a book launch for Local Priests in the Latin West, 900-1050, by Alice Hicklin, Steffen Patzold, @jbwaagmeester.bsky.social & @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social, who will be joined by John Arnold, Julia Barrow & Conrad Leyser. Weds 19 Nov, 5.30pm, King's. All welcome!
Book Launch: Local Priests in the Latin West, 900-1050
Earlier Middle Ages Seminar- Session 3
www.history.ac.uk
November 14, 2025 at 10:14 AM
📣 Next week we are delighted to host a book launch for Local Priests in the Latin West, 900-1050, by Alice Hicklin, Steffen Patzold, @jbwaagmeester.bsky.social & @pseudo-isidore.bsky.social, who will be joined by John Arnold, Julia Barrow & Conrad Leyser. Weds 19 Nov, 5.30pm, King's. All welcome!
Here is an example of what a politics of temporality looks like in practice and why it is relevant today. It's fascinating that modern Iranian nationalism, which once suppressed its pre-Islamic past, now celebrates the pagan king Shapur I as a national symbol.
theconversation.com/a-roman-empe...
theconversation.com/a-roman-empe...
A Roman emperor grovelling to a Persian king: the message behind a new statue in Tehran
The statue, titled Kneeling Before Iran, shows the emperor grovelling before Persian king Shapur I. Where did this imagery come from? And why now?
theconversation.com
November 13, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Here is an example of what a politics of temporality looks like in practice and why it is relevant today. It's fascinating that modern Iranian nationalism, which once suppressed its pre-Islamic past, now celebrates the pagan king Shapur I as a national symbol.
theconversation.com/a-roman-empe...
theconversation.com/a-roman-empe...
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
@kawulf.bsky.social wrote this piece in April. But if you haven't read it yet, take some time to do so now: scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/04/02/t...
The Humanities as Canary: Understanding this Crisis Now - The Scholarly Kitchen
The Humanities have always been the canary in the coal mine of the full knowledge industry. What information can help us understand this crisis and its implications?
scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org
November 12, 2025 at 4:52 PM
@kawulf.bsky.social wrote this piece in April. But if you haven't read it yet, take some time to do so now: scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2025/04/02/t...
Spent the morning at @theul.bsky.social with this remarkable volume from 12 c. Worcester. A fine example of medieval knowledge aggeagation for the community. It also comes with impressive decorations, which is always a plus.
November 12, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Spent the morning at @theul.bsky.social with this remarkable volume from 12 c. Worcester. A fine example of medieval knowledge aggeagation for the community. It also comes with impressive decorations, which is always a plus.
So… I just learned that the Vlad III Țepeș, also known to later legend as Dracula, may be buried in Naples, Italy.
1) Is this true or clickbait?
2) Should I be worried for Neapolitans?
A short🧵 between history and fiction.
1) Is this true or clickbait?
2) Should I be worried for Neapolitans?
A short🧵 between history and fiction.
November 10, 2025 at 6:20 PM
So… I just learned that the Vlad III Țepeș, also known to later legend as Dracula, may be buried in Naples, Italy.
1) Is this true or clickbait?
2) Should I be worried for Neapolitans?
A short🧵 between history and fiction.
1) Is this true or clickbait?
2) Should I be worried for Neapolitans?
A short🧵 between history and fiction.
What a piece. One of the best proofs that Cato was right when he said 'Rem tene verba sequentur'.
Also, next time they tell me that AI must be integrated into literally everything, I'll say that this is a "bathetically unscholarly corporate-sponsored piece of risible chaff".
Also, next time they tell me that AI must be integrated into literally everything, I'll say that this is a "bathetically unscholarly corporate-sponsored piece of risible chaff".
I havent read such a banger of an essay in a very long time. This is so well-written!
Maybe Don’t Talk to the New York Times About Zohran Mamdani
It’s remarkable, the people you’ll hear from. Teach for even a little while at an expensive institution—the term they tend to prefer is “elite”—and odds are that eventually someone who was a studen…
lithub.com
November 8, 2025 at 7:37 PM
What a piece. One of the best proofs that Cato was right when he said 'Rem tene verba sequentur'.
Also, next time they tell me that AI must be integrated into literally everything, I'll say that this is a "bathetically unscholarly corporate-sponsored piece of risible chaff".
Also, next time they tell me that AI must be integrated into literally everything, I'll say that this is a "bathetically unscholarly corporate-sponsored piece of risible chaff".
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
We're delighted to digitally contribute to @theul.bsky.social Curious Cures project
Curator James Freeman highlights some of way Middle English medical writings have survived to us:
specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk?p=30906
One more month to catch the physcial exhibition, do not miss it!
Curator James Freeman highlights some of way Middle English medical writings have survived to us:
specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk?p=30906
One more month to catch the physcial exhibition, do not miss it!
In their own words: medical writings in Middle English – Cambridge University Library Special Collections
specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk
November 7, 2025 at 9:34 AM
We're delighted to digitally contribute to @theul.bsky.social Curious Cures project
Curator James Freeman highlights some of way Middle English medical writings have survived to us:
specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk?p=30906
One more month to catch the physcial exhibition, do not miss it!
Curator James Freeman highlights some of way Middle English medical writings have survived to us:
specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk?p=30906
One more month to catch the physcial exhibition, do not miss it!
Proofs done. Book imminent. Panic level: yes.
November 5, 2025 at 4:40 PM
Proofs done. Book imminent. Panic level: yes.
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
Nothing to see here? Well, this is a slow moving 🧵 for #skystorians and others about #eyeglasses of the past, about how to read in the past, where to buy eyeglasses, and how to do with them in general. The hashtag is #HowToDoWithGlassesInThePast
Let's roll.
Let's roll.
October 27, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Nothing to see here? Well, this is a slow moving 🧵 for #skystorians and others about #eyeglasses of the past, about how to read in the past, where to buy eyeglasses, and how to do with them in general. The hashtag is #HowToDoWithGlassesInThePast
Let's roll.
Let's roll.
Can something be equally exciting and terrifying to watch? Yes.
Here's a video of the Bayeux Tapestry being carefully removed from its case and packed away. I had my heart in my mouth while watching. And yes, I do have nightmares about it crossing the channel! I had my heart in my mouth just watching this. www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7ys...
Extraction de la TAPISSERIE DE BAYEUX - 18 09 2025
YouTube video by Bayeux Museum
www.youtube.com
October 18, 2025 at 3:58 PM
Can something be equally exciting and terrifying to watch? Yes.
What a way to launch Project DEGE at UBC with a three-day deep dive into the digital edition of the Generale Historia in stunning Granada! Here are a few glimpses from the Gothic cathedral and the UNESCO-listed Albaycín, the maze-like old Arab quarters of Granada.
October 17, 2025 at 3:14 PM
What a way to launch Project DEGE at UBC with a three-day deep dive into the digital edition of the Generale Historia in stunning Granada! Here are a few glimpses from the Gothic cathedral and the UNESCO-listed Albaycín, the maze-like old Arab quarters of Granada.
Peter Thiel discusses One Piece and the Antichrist, thereby single-handedly enraging both One Piece and Christian eschatology experts. That's quite impressive.
October 12, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Peter Thiel discusses One Piece and the Antichrist, thereby single-handedly enraging both One Piece and Christian eschatology experts. That's quite impressive.
László Krasznahorkai wins a long overdue Nobel for Literature. Rosenbaum essay on Sátántangó is a great analysis of how the novel and Bela Tarr's 1994 film test how history, its moral implications, and the exp. of time can be told. Controversial opinion, but difficulty can be its own form of beauty.
Sátántangó (Film and Novel) as Faulknerian Reverie | Jonathan Rosenbaum
jonathanrosenbaum.net
October 9, 2025 at 3:45 PM
László Krasznahorkai wins a long overdue Nobel for Literature. Rosenbaum essay on Sátántangó is a great analysis of how the novel and Bela Tarr's 1994 film test how history, its moral implications, and the exp. of time can be told. Controversial opinion, but difficulty can be its own form of beauty.
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
MLGB is back!! Delighted that Medieval Libraries of Great Britain @bodleian.ox.ac.uk is now back online. We are also working had on plans for the next phase of the resource, enhancing & adding data & functionality. HUGE thanks to my colleagues for their hard & clever work mlgb.bodleian.ox.ac.uk
October 7, 2025 at 10:19 AM
MLGB is back!! Delighted that Medieval Libraries of Great Britain @bodleian.ox.ac.uk is now back online. We are also working had on plans for the next phase of the resource, enhancing & adding data & functionality. HUGE thanks to my colleagues for their hard & clever work mlgb.bodleian.ox.ac.uk
Today is the feast of St Francis, one of the most celebrated figures of the Christian tradition and a turning point in the medieval West. A radical and poet, a mystic yet deeply engaged with his society, now patron saint of Italy and of ecology. Here’s a look at some of the MSS associated with him.
October 4, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Today is the feast of St Francis, one of the most celebrated figures of the Christian tradition and a turning point in the medieval West. A radical and poet, a mystic yet deeply engaged with his society, now patron saint of Italy and of ecology. Here’s a look at some of the MSS associated with him.
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
We've updated our three BlueSky starter packs for historians.
Our principal list now includes details of 130+ societies and networks, based in the UK and Ireland, that advance the study, research and promotion of history go.bsky.app/AZaYQDd
Please let us know if there are gaps.
#Skystorians 1/2
Our principal list now includes details of 130+ societies and networks, based in the UK and Ireland, that advance the study, research and promotion of history go.bsky.app/AZaYQDd
Please let us know if there are gaps.
#Skystorians 1/2
October 3, 2025 at 8:37 AM
We've updated our three BlueSky starter packs for historians.
Our principal list now includes details of 130+ societies and networks, based in the UK and Ireland, that advance the study, research and promotion of history go.bsky.app/AZaYQDd
Please let us know if there are gaps.
#Skystorians 1/2
Our principal list now includes details of 130+ societies and networks, based in the UK and Ireland, that advance the study, research and promotion of history go.bsky.app/AZaYQDd
Please let us know if there are gaps.
#Skystorians 1/2
"If anything made her a little intimidating in later life, it was her absolute, uncompromising refusal to pretend to be anything she was not, or to like anything that she did not, for the sake of pleasing others. She was entirely unapologetic about being herself and about what mattered to her".
Dame Janet L. Nelson (28 March 1942 – 14 October 2024)
by Alice Rio (All Souls College, University of Oxford)
doi.org/10.1093/past...
by Alice Rio (All Souls College, University of Oxford)
doi.org/10.1093/past...
Dame Janet L. Nelson (28 March 1942 – 14 October 2024)*
Jinty Nelson left a strong mark of her presence in every institution that she was ever a part of, and there is none which does not regard its association w
doi.org
October 2, 2025 at 1:11 PM
"If anything made her a little intimidating in later life, it was her absolute, uncompromising refusal to pretend to be anything she was not, or to like anything that she did not, for the sake of pleasing others. She was entirely unapologetic about being herself and about what mattered to her".
Reposted by Gabriele Passabì
Hwæt! 🐉
Ever wondered what the epic poem Beowulf sounds like spoken in Old English?
#NationalPoetryDay
Ever wondered what the epic poem Beowulf sounds like spoken in Old English?
#NationalPoetryDay
October 2, 2025 at 12:23 PM
Hwæt! 🐉
Ever wondered what the epic poem Beowulf sounds like spoken in Old English?
#NationalPoetryDay
Ever wondered what the epic poem Beowulf sounds like spoken in Old English?
#NationalPoetryDay