braciatrix

Erfiøl: Beer and Burial in The Viking World

Various articles have been making the rounds of late about the apparent discovery of a female warrior grave in Birka, Sweden.[1] There is evidence, the researchers claim, that that woman interred was a ‘high ranking officer’ in the Viking Age and therefore extrapolate the idea that she was powerful because she had access to these masculine tools of violence.

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Witchcraft, Alewives, and Economics

I was finishing up a two week holiday in Bergen, Norway, when I decided to spend my last day checking out some of the historical sites in the city. The first on my list was Rosenkrantz tower, an imposing, largely Early Modern, but originally medieval, structure and one of a series of buildings on Bergenhus Fortress premises. The tours themselves were self-guided and this made me slightly nervous as I know that these older structures can be very confusing and its easy to get turned around. Especially with my exceedingly impressive penchant for getting lost in the simplest of locations. I had managed, just a week or so previous, to completely lose myself in the London Tube (Bank Station is now my sworn enemy).

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Pitch & Portion: How Medieval Brewsters Cheated Their Customers and Defied Regulations.

In the town of Leatherhead, Surrey beside the River Mole sits a medieval public house. Its white façade and inviting signage beckon passersby to come in to sample their cask real ale. But in addition serving traditional English beer, this specific edifice might also boast a particularly important role to the history of the brew itself.

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Hen Droppings and Rosary Beads: The Tunning of Elynour Rummyng

She breweth nappy ale, And maketh thereof pot-sale To travellers, to tinkers, To sweaters, to swinkers, And all good ale-drinkers, Sometime around 1517 John Skelton sat down and wrote one of the most well-known poems of the Early Modern era. A poet and priest, Skelton was accustomed to running in elite circles, from the royal […]

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Bagpipes

Rising high out of the landscape of Ludlow in England is the tower of Saint Laurence’s Church. Founded in the eleventh century by the recently arrived Normans, it has been rebuilt and added to several times in the past millennium. Here among the vaulted ceilings and beautiful stained glass work are 28 misericords dating from […]

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Ale and The Apocalypse

This is the first in a series of posts detailing the ways in which female brewers came to be pushed out of brewing and how contemporary attitudes of women in this industry shaped and aided this process. This post is to form an introduction and overview which the following series of posts will investigate in further depth. The next instalment is entitled ‘Bagpipes’ and details the depictions of alewives in art.

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Introducing Braciatrix

Like its name suggests, Braciatrix is particularly interested in the contributions of women to beer and brewing history. Inspired by the many amazing women of the modern industry, I decided to embark on a project curating the history of female brewers, consumers, and sellers of beer.