Tag Archives : Medieval

Grenoble’s Old Bishop’s Palace: A Museum with Surprises


The Old Bishops’ Palace Museum, Musée de l’Ancien Évêché, Grenoble, France The history of the Isère Department is sweepingly and excellently looked at in the building that used to be home to the bishops of Grenoble.  The collection is not vast, but very well presented, and makes for a good starting point for further exploration of the city. The building…

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Dissected Layers: Grenoble Archaeological Museum


The Archaeological Museum of St Laurent, Musée archéologique Saint-Laurent, Grenoble, France Across the Isère river, in the quaint streets of the St Laurent quarter of Grenoble, is a fascinating little museum which serves as a heartening example of what can happen if you dig down under the buildings of cities with ancient origins. The museum is proud of the fact…

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The Old Museum in the Old Archbishops’ Palace


The Old Archbishops’ Palace, Narbonne, France The formidable Roman history of the French city of Narbonne was, until recently, covered in the Old Palace building by the cathedral.  It was a fitting home, but it is, sadly, no more.  Come 2020, the objects will be in their new home, the NarboVia museum.  This is not a bad thing, because while…

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The Museum of the Awesome Mr Gulbenkian


Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, Museu Calouste Gulbenkian, Lisbon, Portugal While America is littered with museums built around the varied collections of their millionaire founders, this sort of thing is much rarer in Europe.  The Armenian Calouste Gulbenkian, who made his fortune from oil, put his money to good use and amassed an amazing little collection of objects from across the ages which…

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The Glories of Glasgow Cathedral


Glasgow Cathedral, Glasgow, Scotland Every great city should have a great Cathedral.  Ideally, it should be basically medieval and have little or no distressing Victorian ‘renovation’. Helloooo Glasgow Cathedral! The High Kirk, or St Mungo’s Cathedral, was said to have been founded by St Kentigern (popularly known as Mungo) in the 6th/7th century.  Basically nothing survives from the earlier churches,…

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Avoiding the Jester in Bremgarten


In Bremgarten, Switzerland It’s not often that history geeks like me get to indulge their geekiness, and it’s really not often that we get to experience the past in a way that feels almost authentic.  Every year in the northern Swiss town of Bremgarten, people who are trained in the crafting skills of the Middle Ages come together to demonstrate…

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