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

Medieval Studies Commencement 2022

Join us to celebrate our graduates!Friday, May 27, Celebratory Reception4:30–6:00pm, 125 Hans Bethe HouseSaturday, May 28, Ceremony10:00–11:30am, 258 Goldwin Smith Hall (English Lounge)

Medieval Studies lecture announcement

Reconstruction and Repossession in Rome’s Early Medieval Charitable HostelsGregor Kalas (University of Tennessee, Knoxville)Tuesday, May 3 | 4:45 ESTGuerlac Room, AD White HouseRome's xenodochia, or hostels for foreigners, operated as charities sponsored by aristocrats prior to the year 600 CE. This...

MSSC 2022 Consuming the Middle Ages Poster

2022 MSSC: Consuming the Middle Ages

The 2022 Medieval Studies Student Colloquium, "Consuming the Middle Ages," will be held virtually on Zoom on Saturday, April 23rd, starting at 10:30 AM EDT. Our keynote speaker is Dr. Cord Whitaker (Associate Professor of English, Wellesley College), speaking at 3 PM EDT on The “Ubermensch” and the ...

Randle publishes in Bright Lights

Second-year Medieval Studies graduate student Ryan Randle has published a provocative piece, “Medieval Arthuriana Was Always Scary, but Not in the Way You’d Think: On Sir Gawain and The Green Knight,” in the Bright Lights Film Journal. Highlighting the oft forgotten terrors of sexual violence in med...

Wolff publishes in Weed Science

Fourth-year Medieval Studies PhD candidate Alice Wolff is lead author of an article recently published in Weed Science (Cambridge University Press), “In the Ruins: The Neglected Link between Archaeology and Weed Science.” Alice and her co-authors chart new interdisciplinary avenues for research at t...

participants at a 2019 Cornell summer workshop on historical music notation examining medieval musical sources from the Kroch Library's Rare and Manuscript Collections

Giving Day, 16 March, 2022

Please help the Cornell Medieval Studies Program do even more by supporting us today – it’s quick and easy. Just visit this link on March 16 to make your gift. Every little bit helps! Diex vos sait, sæl og blessuð, السلام عليكم, and hello from the Medieval Studies Program at Cornell University! It’s...

Spring 2022 Graduate Student Roundtable Schedule

Please join us at the Medieval Studies Graduate Student Roundtable this semester! The Roundtable is a community space where everyone's voice and presence are valued whether or not they have expertise on the topic being presented. It is both a space for graduate students to receive feedback on their ...

Consuming the Middle Ages: An MSSC Lecture Series

Consuming the Middle Ages: An MSSC Lecture Series8 February, 4:45pmWan-Chuan Kao, Washington and Lee University“Premodern Logistics and Racial Fugitivity”Zoom registration link: https://cornell.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUld-qhqT0oGdPlpV3S7hfyPu6jt07YLAAY 22 February, 4:45pm, ZoomJamie Kreiner, Univ...

More News

50 Years of Medieval Studies at Cornell

In 2016, the Medieval Studies Program celebrated its 50th anniversary. Founding faculty member, Alice Colby-Hall, noted that "Cornell’s medievalists and their students are as enthusiastic as ever and still discover groundbreaking connections between the different disciplines within the field".

Current Program Director, David Powers, added, "program faculty study the medieval period from wide-ranging perspectives in an effort to better understand the human condition. Many of the issues we explore in medieval studies resonate with issues that confront modern society."

Click here to read more about our 50th anniversary celebration.