Roman Syria Mosaic depicting a rooster, AD 450–550 Gift of Professor and Mrs. Meyer Abrams Cornell University Johnson Museum of Art — Although many mosaics enriched the floors of Roman buildings, much like carpets, they were sometimes placed on walls as well. This mosaic is believed to have originated in an early Christian church in Homs, Syria. In Christian iconography, roosters symbolize Christ’s resurrection because they are the first to greet the dawn.

Studies spanning more than a millennium of languages and cultures

Medieval Studies Program

The Program in Medieval Studies combines the best aspects of an interdisciplinary program with the focused training required for academic careers in a variety of traditional disciplines. The program’s faculty members are drawn from nearly every humanities department at Cornell, offering expertise in disciplines and area studies spanning more than a millennium of languages and cultures—from Old and Middle English literature to Byzantine monuments, from Icelandic sagas to Andalusian architecture, from medieval Latin literature and philosophy to Islamic legal history.

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Medieval Studies News

MSSC 2025: Dissonance and Dysphoria

On Saturday, February 22, the 35th annual Medieval Studies Student Colloquium will take place at the A.D. White House on Cornell's Ithaca campus.

Medieval Studies Spring 2025 Roundtable

Please join us at the Medieval Studies Graduate Student Roundtable this semester!

Sarah LaVoy-Brunette, Ph.D. Candidate in Medieval Studies, publishes article in Speculum

The article, “Anglo-Saxonism and Indigenous Dispossession: Land-Grab Universities and the Emergence of Medieval Studies” is in Speculum's Centennial Issue (January 2025).

Ancient ship underbody, just a skeleton of wood

Manning honored for contributions to archaeology

Sturt Manning, received the P. E. MacAllister Field Archaeology Award at the Annual Meetings of the American Society of Overseas Research (ASOR) in Boston in November.

building with people walking next to it.

New student awards honor Medieval studies faculty

Medieval Studies has created new prizes for students. Submissions for both prizes are due Jan. 31 and will be judged by a faculty panel in the Medieval Studies Program.

Studies in the History of Gardens & Designed Landscapes

Alice Wolff, Ph.D. Candidate in Medieval Studies, publishes article in Studies in the History of Gardens and Designed Landscapes

Alice Wolff, current Medieval Studies graduate student, publishes her article "A thorny problem: defining weeds from the medieval to the present" in Studies in the History of Gardens and Designed Landscapes

Crowdfunding launch supports Ways of Knowing podcast at Cornell

A crowdfunding campaign launched Nov. 1 to support a Cornell-based season of "Ways of Knowing,” a new podcast created by The World According to Sound.