Merlin, Myrddin Wyllt, & the ‘Men of the North’

Tim Clarkson, Scotland's Merlin: A Medieval Legend and Its Dark Age Origins, John Donald, 2016. Amazon US $22 PB, $8 Kindle. Tim Clarkson's new book, Scotland's Merlin, was a lovely break from my usual plague reading. Merlin is one of the few Arthurian characters who can stand alone from the Arthurian corpus as the Welsh figure...

Filling the Gaps: Strathclyde and the Anglo-Saxons

Tim and I have been chatting about Strathclyde for longer than either of us would probably care to admit (even before his name was on the cover of any books!). So I was thrilled to tuck in with his latest book Strathclyde and the Anglo-Saxons in the Viking Age in the days running up to Christmas....

Captivated by the Cross

I've been captivated by this image since I found it earlier this week. It was taken by David W Coigach and posted at deviantART. Taken at Kirkcudbright, Dumfries and Galloway  (Southwest Scotland), this imagery seems so right for Heavenfield  with the ravens circling overhead. Ok, so I'll admit heavenfield didn't have a stone cross, which...

Heavenfield Round-up 8: A Long Delayed Edition

Where did the summer go? I can't believe that I haven't done one of these since July! Well, its time to clear out my reader and share some of the late summer/early autumn links that got my attention. Enjoy Curt Emanuel, the Medieval History Geek, is continuing his reading on Late Antique Christianity. He is...

The Makers of Scotland

Tim Clarkson, The Makers of Scotland: Picts, Romans, Gaels and Vikings. Edinburgh: John Donald, 2012. 224 pg. In his third book, Tim Clarkson takes on the first thousand years of recorded Scottish history. It's a huge task, but Tim was more than up to the challenge. I really enjoyed it. I tend to focus so...

Scotland’s Brave Princess

Merida is not a typical Disney princess. All this Scottish lass wants is to determine her own fate, to find love on her own time to who she wishes. None of the three goofball sons of the three other clans in Scotland appeal to her. There is no Prince Charming in this lot of awkward...