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England

Archaeologists have discovered the foundations of a major medieval tannery at a former monastery in northern England.

New Research

Large Medieval Tannery Discovered at Monastic Abbey in England

A sizable community of monks made leather for paper and printing at the major industrial site

A plaster cast of a "ghost turnip" carving from Donegal, Ireland

When People Carved Turnips Instead of Pumpkins for Halloween

Revelers in Ireland transformed the root vegetables into lanterns designed to ward off dark spirits

Hans Holbein the Younger, Portrait of Simon George of Cornwall (detail), circa 1535–40

Hans Holbein’s Portraits Defined—and Immortalized—Tudor England’s Elite

An exhibition at the J. Paul Getty Museum features some of the painter’s most famous portraits of power players in Henry VIII’s court

The late princess of Wales lived at Althorp during her teenage years.

Archaeologists Are Excavating Princess Diana’s Childhood Home

Althorp has served as the seat of the Spencer family since the early 16th century

Illustration of Marie de France, poet who lived in England in the late 12th century

The Unheralded Women Scribes Who Brought Medieval Manuscripts to Life

A new book by scholar Mary Wellesley spotlights the anonymous artisans behind Europe’s richly illuminated volumes

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo's A Large Group of Punchinelli is expected to fetch more than $200,000 at auction.

Cool Finds

Rare 18th-Century Drawing by Rococo Artist Tiepolo Discovered in English Estate’s Attic

“Wrapped in bubble wrap” and forgotten, the artwork had collected dust in one of Weston Hall’s nine attics for decades

Rhodes left Oxford's Oriel College around $17 million in today's money.

Why a New Plaque Next to Oxford’s Cecil Rhodes Statue Is So Controversial

The sign identifies the 19th-century statesman as a “committed British colonialist”

The free online map highlights sites spanning prehistoric times to the modern era, including this Roman fort next to Hadrian's Wall.

This Interactive Map Lets Users Explore England’s Hidden Archaeological Landscape

A new online tool draws on more than 500,000 aerial photographs taken over the past 30 years

Abdulrazak Gurnah, 73, was awarded the 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday.

Abdulrazak Gurnah, Chronicler of Migrant Experience, Wins 2021 Nobel Prize in Literature

The Zanzibar-born author of ten novels tells richly detailed stories about people living “in the gulf between cultures and continents”

Dee may have bought the mirror in Bohemia (now part of the Czech Republic) in the 1580s.

Obsidian ‘Spirit Mirror’ Used by Elizabeth I’s Court Astrologer Has Aztec Origins

Tudor polymath John Dee used the artifact in his attempts to communicate with angels and apparitions

None

You Could Own the Landmark That Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh’s ‘Poohsticks Bridge’

Built in 1907, the structure—expected to sell for between $54,000 and $81,000—is newly rebuilt and restored

The white pipeclay Venus statuette before (right) and after (left) cleaning

Roman-Era Statue of Venus, Goddess of Love, Discovered in England

The seven-inch-tall figurine likely stood in a household shrine in what is now Gloucestershire some 1,800 years ago

In Six, Henry VIII's wives (top row, L to R: Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour; bottom row, L to R: Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr) reclaim their stories.

Based on a True Story

The True History Behind ‘Six,’ the Tudor Musical About Henry VIII’s Wives

The show’s creators, Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, reflect on the smash hit ahead of its Broadway premiere

The photographs show the "fossil" imprint of a wooden ship that rotted away long before the dig.

You Can Now Explore a Trove of Behind-the-Scenes Photos From the Famed Sutton Hoo Dig

Schoolteachers Mercie Lacks and Barbara Wagstaff captured the snapshots in August 1939

The letters "IMP" stand for imperator, meaning the tile maker was "supplying tiles fit for the emperor" or "on the emperor's demands."

Cool Finds

Tiles ‘Fit for the Emperor’ Found in Roman Ruins Beneath English Cricket Club

The objects, as well as an inscription at the site, suggest ties to Septimius Severus, who led campaigns nearby in the early third century C.E.

The pages were disposed of as scrap and pasted into an unrelated book.  

Cool Finds

Rediscovered Medieval Manuscript Offers New Twist on Arthurian Legend

The 13th-century pages, found by chance at a British library, show a different side of Merlin, the magician who advised Camelot’s king

The restoration project is expected to last two weeks.

Stonehenge Is Undergoing Repairs for the First Time in Decades

Threatened by erosion, outdated restorations and climate change, the monument’s megaliths are in need of extensive conservation

Joshua Reynolds, Portrait of Omai, circa 1776

The Polynesian ‘Prince’ Who Took 18th-Century England by Storm

A new nonfiction release revisits the life of Mai, the first Pacific Islander to visit Britain

The 4,000-year-old wooden coffin will go on display following extensive conservation work.

Cool Finds

Hollowed-Out, 4,000-Year-Old Tree Trunk Coffin Discovered in Golf Course Pond

The rare Bronze Age sarcophagus contained human remains, an ax and plant bedding

This CGI image shows what the church may have looked like when it was first built. Archaeologists found the church, which dates back to 1080, along with a small number of burials during construction of the HS2 railway system.

Cool Finds

Researchers Unearth a Nearly 900-Year-Old Church in England

Experts made the find ahead of construction of HS2, a controversial, high-speed railway system set to connect much of Great Britain

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