more work on smell, this time the papal Golden Rose, appears in the August issue of the prestigious Burlington Magazine, including the cover. August 2026 Vol. 168 | No. 1481
Joëlle
@realrollo-koster.bsky.social
Medieval historian , professor emerita of medieval history at the University of Rhode Island, specialist of the cultures of the Avignon papacy and the Great Western Schism. Interested in all things medieval.
My new article on the use of musk (fragrance) at the medieval papal court is out. storicamente.org/rollo-koster...
Musk at the Papal Court in the Middle Ages
Questo articolo indaga l’uso cerimoniale del muschio alla corte papale, concentrandosi sul suo ruolo nelle principali tradizioni liturgiche dal Medioevo alla prima età moderna. Il muschio, un aroma ra...
storicamente.org
My response to everything I read in April on the Avignon papacy ...and made my eyes roll... bsky.app/profile/medi...
Medievalist.net@medievalists.bsky.social · 3mo agoAvignon as Threat: How a Medieval Myth Became a Modern Weapon, by @realrollo-koster.bsky.social www.medievalists.net/2026/05/avig... #Papacy #history
My long view on pope vs king/president “Trump's clash with the pope reenacts a 1,000-year-old question: What happens when sacred and secular power collide?” theconversation.com/trumps-clash...
Trump’s clash with the pope reenacts a 1,000-year-old question: What happens when sacred and secular power collide?
From its earliest centuries, Christianity was bound up with politics, with frequent tensions between government power and religious authority.
theconversation.com
Starting a series on Medievalists.net to highlight the books that framed the new medieval historiography. I started with Marc Bloch's Feudal Society www.medievalists.net/2026/04/marc...
My girl was watching the news on Hungary's election....and then celebrated!
For anyone who has read about the Pentagon's use of the "Avignon Papacy" against the pope....THEY KNOW NOTHING ABOUT THE AVIGNON PAPACY. And the journalists reporting on it even less. I know about the Avignon papacy....and I am pissed that it is weaponized. newrepublic.com/post/208820/...
Pentagon Threatened the Pope After He Criticized Trump
It was so bad that Pope Leo changed his plans to travel to the U.S.
newrepublic.com
Why do I think Nazi architecture when I see this? and being French I should think Arc de Triomphe?
The only happy happy living in RI right now...never seen that much snow....
Notre Dame January 2019 and June 2025. From roughly the same spot across the Seine River. She is still standing. Thats the most important.
www.medievalists.net/2026/01/mont...
Montaillou to ICE: The Medieval Roots of Snitching - Medievalists.net
Historian Joëlle Rollo-Koster explores how denunciation and “snitching” helped power the medieval Inquisition, and why similar dynamics of reporting and surveillance still matter today.
medievalists.net
Now Sénanque...I have nothing recent from the Thoronet....
Continuing on the medieval potato, in today's "news world" why not! if we repeat an untruth long enough it becomes truth right? Here, the add for "Medieval Times..."
I am assuming the US is aware of this: www.franceinfo.fr/internet/elo...
L'enquête sur la plateforme X étendue à des "propos négationnistes" publiés par son IA, Grok
Dans la publication visée, Grok affirme notamment que les chambres à gaz du camp d'extermination nazi d'Auschwitz ont été "conçues pour la désinfection au Zyklon B contre le typhus (...) plutôt qu'à d...
franceinfo.fr
I was really looking forward to King and Conqueror...and then, episode 2, at around 28 minutes, appeared...the medieval potato...to accompany rabbit. Ragout de lapin aux pommes de terre à la manière de Flandre!
theconversation.com/la-surprenan...
La surprenante indépendance des femmes du Moyen Âge : ce que nous apprennent leurs testaments
Dans les villes européennes du début du Moyen Âge, les droits des femmes se sont étendus. Les testaments sont parmi les rares documents que les femmes ont quelquefois dicté elles-mêmes au notaire.
theconversation.com
Windows are the No. 1 human threat to birds – an ecologist shares some simple steps to reduce collisions theconversation.com/windows-are-...
Windows are the No. 1 human threat to birds – an ecologist shares some simple steps to reduce collisions
Cats aren’t the only bird hazard around your home. More than 1 billion birds die each year from hitting windows, often during migration.
theconversation.com
How Popes Died in the Middle Ages: Ritual, Power, and Performance, by @realrollo-koster.bsky.social www.medievalists.net/2025/05/pope... #Papacy #Medieval #History
How Popes Died in the Middle Ages: Ritual, Power, and Performance - Medievalists.net
What happened when a pope died in the Middle Ages? Behind the closed doors of Rome and Avignon, elaborate rituals unfolded—blending faith, politics, and performance to preserve the illusion that the…
medievalists.net
In the Middle Ages popes went to war. Today they hit the gym: www.ilmessaggero.it/en/the_pope_...
The Pope's Secret Workout Regimen
The health of Leo XIV? "For a man of his age, he has an exceptional physical condition, typical of someone who has never stopped playing sports, with an excellent ratio of muscle mass, bone mass, and....
ilmessaggero.it
Joëlle Rollo-Koster on Papal Elections www.medievalists.net/2022/07/chal... #Papacy #Popes #History
“Stop the Steal!”: Challenging an election, medieval style - Medievalists.net
Today, the United States and other democratic countries are dealing with fundamental challenges to their electoral systems. Can events from the year 1378 give us some insights into what is a…
medievalists.net
Having an absolute blast at the Armoury in Leeds. Worth a trip just for it.
Le pape François et l'amour des livres : une révolution silencieuse dans l’Église ? theconversation.com/le-pape-fran...
Le pape François et l'amour des livres : une révolution silencieuse dans l’Église ?
Le pape François a valorisé la pratique de la lecture comme outil d’émancipation et d’ouverture au monde, loin de toute prescription normative.
theconversation.com
At the airport, flying to Leeds, UK, to discuss conclave pillaging. This happened in Providence yesterday. www.providencejournal.com/story/news/p...
ICE activity at Rhode Island Hospital draws protesters. What we know.
A man in ICE custody was brought to the hospital, and the agency's presence drew a crowd of protesters.
providencejournal.com
My bit in the ProJo www.providencejournal.com/story/news/l...
'A shining and powerful example of the mercy of God': RI Catholics react to Pope Francis' death.
Rhode Islanders recall being touched by Pope Francis' advocacy for migrants and victims of the war in Gaza, and his openness to the modern era.
providencejournal.com