The Motif of the Apocalyptic Abyssinian I: Giving the Horn of Africa an eschatological meaning in mappae mundi after the fall of Acre 1291

The apocalyptic Abessinian: The Transfer of an early Islamic motif to Europe

My presentation deals mainly with the following questions:

  1. This is the first of five blog-posts going back to a paper at the International Congress at Leeds in 2017: I. Giving the Horn of Africa an eschatological meaning in mappae mundi after the fall of Acre 1291 II. The north-east edge of the world on medieval mapsIII. The “thin-legged Ethopian” in muslim sources IV. The interplay of Muslim and Christian traditions V. Conclusions

    How was the Christian eschatological anticipation of the End of the World expressed in medieval world maps?

  2. How could the Horn of Africa in medieval world maps became an eschatological area directed against Islam?
  3. How could an early Islamic apocalyptic motif find its way to anti-Islamic crusader prophecies?

The goal of my dissertation is to detect cartographic evidence in order to substantiate the notion of an apocalyptic area prevailing in the Horn of Africa. At the same time a critical examination of textual sources is undertaken in order to reconstruct the transfer of an apocalyptic early Islamic motif until its incorporation in Latin prophecies of the 5th crusade and its further embedding in the recuperatio literature after the loss of Acre. Continue reading The Motif of the Apocalyptic Abyssinian I: Giving the Horn of Africa an eschatological meaning in mappae mundi after the fall of Acre 1291

CfP Leeds 2018 – What ‘forgotten’ period? Reclaiming the Middle Ages for Africa

Call for Papers

What ‘forgotten’ period? Reclaiming the Middle Ages for Africa

International Medieval Congress
University of Leeds, UK, 2-5 July 2018

Africa has always been a nexus of trade routes, its history entangled with the continents that surround it: Europe, Asia, and America. These connections and interactions, whether productive or brutal, have been reasonably well documented for the classical period as well as from the onset of modern colonialism, but a chronological blank spot lingers on our historical memory. Why is it so difficult to remember the Middle Ages – their beginning, middle, and end – in and for Africa?

Continue reading CfP Leeds 2018 – What ‘forgotten’ period? Reclaiming the Middle Ages for Africa