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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New Books from Program Faculty

Is Byzantine Studies a Colonialist Discipline?  Toward a Critical Historiography
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Is Byzantine Studies a Colonialist Discipline? Towards a Critical Historiography

Kuśiññe Kantwo: Elementary Lessons in Tocharian B
Book

Kuśiññe Kantwo: Elementary Lessons in Tocharian B

Medicine in the Talmud
Book

Medicine in the Talmud: Natural and Supernatural Therapies between Magic and Science

Sonorous Desert
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Sonorous Desert: What Deep Listening Taught Early Christian Monks—and What It Can Teach Us

The Byzantine Neighbourhood
Book

The Byzantine Neighbourhood

Veronica Franco in Diagogue by Marilyn Migiel
Book

Veronica Franco in Dialogue

Cover Violence and Risk in Medieval Iceland
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Violence and Risk in Medieval Iceland: This Spattered Isle

Trans Historical: Gender Plurality before the Modern
Book

Trans Historical Gender Plurality before the Modern

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