Trossfrau / Landsknecht / Cranach Patterns

Here is a link to patterns that have been posted online, which, again, I didn't want to lose in the shuffle of online links.  I hope these will help other people too!

Historical Patterns - Saxon Dress/Cranach 16th c. Germany or Trossfrau, and a set of pdfs on smocking and pleatwork.

Drinking Flask, Part 4

I stumbled upon two other flasks to add to this collection of specimens.  These are by Hans Sebald Beham.  Unfortunately, since they are engravings, there is a decided lack of color in the flasks to help determine their material make-up.

A Fool and a Lady Fool, circa 1540, Hans Sebald Beham

Apostles Series, St Jacobus, circa 1545-50, Hans Sebald Beham

These representations have feet similar to the Romanian example, which leads me to wonder if the earlier period wooden flasks were made without feet and the feet became more prevalent as time progressed.  I also wonder if these flasks were common enough in usage, at least for travel, to be taken for granted in artwork?

Another thought, could it be a powder flask instead of a drinking flask?  Doing a little research on powder flasks indicates that this would be somewhat unlikely, especially since jesters and saints were less likely to carry an object intended for warfare.

As I was attempting to find more artwork to put in this post, I realized that Larsdatter.com has a page devoted to Costrels, Flasks, and Canteens. (Fabulous collection of images, by the way, on so many different subjects, but I digress.)  Most of the images on this page which relate to Germanic flasks all appear to be metal or ceramic, yet Meister Bertram's are colored as if to indicate wood, though ceramic or terracotta could also explain the color.

Another thought, most of the images showing a flask maker indicate flasks were made of metal (the Mendel Hausbuch shows at least 6).  I cannot seem to find one showing some other method for making flasks.  Granted, that doesn't mean they weren't made in other ways, but for now, it seems odd that the only method I can find currently is anvil treated metal.  So I started thinking, what about metal covered in leather?  Would that account for these pale brown flasks?  Perhaps.

In any case, more of the pale brown variety are shown below:

St John the Baptist and St Jodocus, circa 1425-35, Unknown Germanic Artist

The Flight into Egypt (Detail), circa 1500-02, Jörg Breu the Elder

Including one that is a metal flask covered in tooled leather!

Leather-covered Metal Flask, 1501-15, Tyrol (?)

As my husband likes to work metal upon occasion, I may have to ask his opinion on the likelihood of acquiring one of these...

Meister Bertram's Altars

While researching flasks, I found myself returning to Meister Bertram (von Minden / Hamburg) who was alive supposedly circa 1345 to 1415.  Most images I am able to find online refer to one particular piece, the Grabow Altarpiece (1383) in St Petri (or Peter) church, Hamburg.  It is an altarpiece containing 45 scenes of the Apocalypse currently being housed at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.  On accident, I found a German book published in 1905 concerning Meister Bertram, Meister Bertram: Tätig in Hamburg.  This book contains black and white images of the Grabow Altar, the Buxtehuder Altar, the Harvestehuder Altar, the Londoner Altar, and rather detailed reproductions of the sculptures within the Grabow Altar.

Grabow Altar, interior showing sculptures, 1383

Grabow Altar, exterior (back of first image is my assumption), 1383

Left Wing, outside

Left Wing, inside

Right Wing, inside

Right Wing, outside

Drinking Flask, Part 3

And, of course, how it always happens, start to look at one image and something new pokes out at you.  As I was glancing over "bags", I found another flasche from an earlier period which is bringing me back to the wooden flask idea.

St Peter (Grabow) Altarpiece: Rest on the Flight into Egypt (c. 1379-83) from Kunsthalle, Hamburg by Meister Bertram

St Peter (Grabow) Altarpiece: Nativity (c. 1379-83) from Kunsthalle, Hamburg by Meister Bertram

Here is another flasche which looks similar to the one from Luna (Moon) and her children of the Children of the Planets series by Meister Hausbuch (c 1475-85).  Though I believe the detail from this flasche is not impossible with leather by any means, I find that after watching the turned wooden flask from Romania (See: Drinking Flasks, Part 2), I'm tending in my reasoning toward the wooden construction over the leather.  Most leather flasks which I have been able to find show their stitching on the outside of the bottle, not sewn as if to hide the workmanship.  In addition, Hamburg, where these were produced, is in the far northern area of Germany, which removes it from the supposition that it was a neighbor to Romania, which would have made cross-utilization the only factor.

Hopefully I can find more examples over time to help support this premise.

Drinking Flasks, Part 2

I was reminded recently of a YouTube video I found at one point concerning a traditional Romanian drinking flask manufacture.  A gentleman by the name of Ion Constantin demonstrates the construction of a wooden flask on a pole lathe which is very similar to the flask from my original Drinking Flasks post, minus the legs, which leads me to wonder if wooden drinking flasks were more common in period than what we give them credit. It is also possible that the wooden flask falls into that category of "unique to that culture" which happens quite frequently as well.  In either case, it's a fascinating line of research, if somewhat limited in information.

Very Basic Basketry Research

There are so many terms used for baskets or in basket making that I get a little confused sometimes, therefore, I wanted to try sorting it all out, especially as it relates to Germanic baskets.


Materials:

According to Jackie B at SCABasketry, willow (German: Weide) was a very traditional Germanic basket material, as well as hazel (German: Haselnuss).  So this is where I started when I tried to determine what traditional Germanic basket materials may have been.  I'm afraid this is my current "shot in the dark", especially since I am not an expert in the study of plant life by any stretch of the imagination.

Wicker:  I've seen the term used in relation to baskets and furniture, but it didn't mean quite what I thought it meant.  Falling back on dictionary.com I came up with - a slender, pliant twig; osier; withe.  I always thought it referred to another type of material, but it's really the shape of the material.  Willow is what is normally identified as falling into this category, or, as dictionary.com indicated, osier, another type of willow.

Style: [I may not have the proper pictures with the proper techniques.  These are all guesstimates on my part.]

Stake and Strand

"Stake and strand baskets are woven in much the same way as textiles, but without the aid of a loom.  The warp and weft, which may be of different materials and widths, are interlaced at right angles to produce a fabric.  The warp elements remain passive, while the weft passes actively over and under them, one row at a time.  Many European willow baskets are of stake and strand construction..."  - The Grove Encyclopedia of Decorative Arts, Vol 1 by Gordon Campbell

Saint Elizabeth Clothes the Poory and Tends to the Sick by an Unknown German Master, c. 1390s

"Knitting Madonna" from the right wing of the Buxtehude Altar by Meister Bertram of Minden, c. 1400-1410

Adoration of the Magi by Unknown German Master, c. 1420 (top: bread basket)

The Magician by Hieronymus Bosch, Duchy of Brabent, c. 1475-1480

Plaiting

"Plaited baskets are made with two or more sets of elements, usually all of the same material and width; there is no distinction between warp and weft, all elements being equally active." -  The Grove Encyclopedia of Decorative Arts, Vol 1

Garden of Paradise by Master of the Upper Rhine, c. 1410 (left side: fruit basket)

Leather Worker from Mendel Hausbuch I, c. 1425 (chair seat)

Virgin and Child with Saints Barbara and Dorothea / Dorothy by Master ES, c. 1450s, most likely Upper Rhine

Saint Eligius in His Workshop by Master of Balaam, c. 1450 (far left: work basket)

Detail from Saint Luke Painting the Virgin by Derick Baegert, c. 1470

Christ Nailed to the Cross, Ecce Homo, Nuremberg, Germany, c. 1520, MS M 896, fol 1r

Ribbed

"Rib baskets, which tend to be oval in shape, are woven over a rigid framework.  They seem to be of European origin..." - The Grove Encyclopedia of Decorative Arts, Vol 1

I'm not quite certain to what this refers, therefore, I'm leaving it alone for now.


Twining

"Twined baskets are woven using two or more wefts at once, crossing over each other at intervals between the warps." - The Grove Encyclopedia of Decorative Arts, Vol 1

This method appears to have been used most frequently in fence construction.

Grabow Altarpiece: Nativity by Meister Betram, 1383 (center and bottom: fencing)

Children of the Housebook: Venus and her Children by Meister des Hausbuch, c. 1475-1490 (bottom: fence)

Personal:

Without wanting to spend an arm and a leg on basket making supplies since I have no idea whether it is something I want to spend my time learning, I wanted to at least begin with something relatively easy to find and local... cattails.  [I have yet to figure out how to either identify or find willow (osiers) in my area, but I've been given to understand it is available, which would be the more ideal choice for weaving period baskets.  When I figure that out, I'll post something to that effect so that others can find willow as well.  Until then, I'm going to play with cattails.]

Cattails
   Typha latifolia (aka European bulrush) -- Broad-leaved cattail measures up to 1 inch wide or 2.5 cm and can grow to around 9 feet tall
   Typha augustifolia -- Narrow-leaved cattail measures up to 1/2 inch wide or 1.3 cm and around 3 feet tall.

Both of these are common to the Northern Hemisphere in the United States and Europe (I've seen pictures of them in Germany).  Near my home in Kansas, my daughter and I have found mostly the narrow-leafed variety, at least so far.  We're still searching for the longer variety.  We've found most of the cattails we've foraged from the side of the highways, in ditches by the roads, and along lakes and ponds.  It has been an interesting experience so far, but we're only beginning.  For now, we're waiting for the leaves to dry out, which I've been given to understand takes anywhere from 2-3 weeks.  Some sites say that it is easier to weave cattails when the leaves are still fresh, which is something we'll have to test.  There was another site (which I'm afraid I lost) that indicated the Irish flattened bulrushes for centuries, using them for curtains, baskets and other woven projects.



Further Information:

1. Basket Weaving Terms
2. Cattails (Typha Species)
3. How to Weave a Basket: A Primer - This particular page is more about styles than actually weaving a basket.
4. Traditional Techniques of Basketry
5. Wood in Use in the Middle Ages

First Municipal Laws of Augsburg, 21 Jun 1156

The following is transcribed from the original text in German and Latin as culled from Elenchus Fontium Historiae Urbanae, Vol 1 - Germany, Low Countries, Scandinavia by C.van de Kieft, J. F. Niermeyer and B. Diestelkamp, pgs. 116-120.  Some of the text has been Google translated [in bold] with more to be translated at a later date and time.  Also, if someone has a better grasp of translating Latin than Google translate, I would really appreciate any help making the translations more clear and accurate.

What I find most interesting is that of the 32 "laws" represented here, three of the laws mention beer [23, 25 & 29].  I would surmise, at least from this set of laws, that in the mid-12th century in Augsburg beer was a very popular drink and a defining area of easy corruption.  At any rate, now for the laws...



[116]

1156 Juni 21—Kaiser Friedrich I. bestätigt das in der Stadt Augsburg geltende Recht. Ältestes Augsburger Stadtrecht.

1156 June 21, Emperor Friedrich I confirmed the applicable law in the city of Augsburg. The oldest city of Augsburg law.

Original, Hauptstaatsarchiv München.

Edition: Chr. Meyer, Beiträge, S. 289-293. Keutgen, S. 90-92 Nr. 125; Altmann- 5 Bernheim, S. 403-405 Nr. 191.

I. In nomine sanctae et individuae trinitatis Fridericus divina favente clementia Romanorum imperator augustus. Notum sit omnibus Christi fidelibus tam presentibus quam futuris, qualiter Augusta civitas[1] tum neglegentia et imbecillitate episcoporum tum absentia et diuturna occupatione in longinquis partibus regum nimia enormitate juris turbata, sed precipue insolita et deo odiosa advocatorum intrinsecus et extrinsecus exactione vexata, tandem deo miserante et pio imperatore Friderico manum consolationis porrigente, Cunrado episcopo annuento jubare gloriosi juris est illustrata. Accidit namque quod predictus imperator, dum ante nominatam civitatem quadam vice intraret et quasi caliginosa oblivione sui juris fluctuantem et cecutientem inveniret, Cunradus episcopus cum universo ejusdem civitatis clero et populo se ei representaret et lacrimabilem querimoniam super hoc moveret, quod civitas nullo certo juris ordine vel termino fungeretur. Proinde pius et catholicus imperator utpote non solum armis ornatus sed etiam legibus ornatus eos ex communi consilio quo jure ex antiqua et legali institutione gubernari deberent pronunciare precepit.

At illi nichil novitatis excogitantes, nichil antiqua institutioni attentes jus advocatorum, urbis prefecti, civitatensium, omnium ordinum tocius civitatis, Adelgozo advocato et Cunrado prefecto presentibus et nichil contradicentibus, in curia Ratisponae[2] confirmatum, ut haec subscripta pagina testatur, promulgabant, et rex idipsum auctoritate sui privilegii confirmabat. Acta sunt haec anno MCLII.

II. Ex conscilio Ratisponensi, cui interfuit Heinricus tercius imperator cum multis regni obtimatibus, statutum hoc est.

1. quod et notum sit omnibus Christi fidelibus tam futuris quam presentibus qualiter Cunradus et Walterus Augustensis aecclesiae canonici et boni testimonii fratres pro obtinenda juris sui libertate ad regis curiam Ratisponae communi consilio fratrum urgente necessitate missi sunt aliisque etiam fratribus supervenientibus et ejusdem legationis verba confirmantibus, ut episcopi Hermanni et advocatorum prefatae aecclesiae dui seviens in predia fratrum injuria regia potestate principumque auctoritate [117] sedaretur ipsisque advocatis justitia, quam in Augusta, in Strubingen[3], in Gisenhusen[4] habere deberent, determinaretur.

2. Ad placitum enim cujuslibet Augustensis advocati pertinentes semel in anno, quando preceptum fuerit, omnes conveniant certis in locis, scilicet in Ettingen[5], in Strubingen[3], in Gisenhusen[4] ibique in servicium suum plus non exigant nisi duos modios tritici et duos porcos, tres urnas vini et medonis, decem urnas cervisiae et quinque modios avenae.

3. Ut autem ea, quae ad usus fratrum pertinent, minus distrahentur, subscripta omnia in usus advocatorum sunt deputata:
     tercia pars bannorum, satisfactio temeritatum, ita tamen, ut si qua dispendia res fratrum paciuntur, primum eis sua restituantur.

4. Wergelta[6] fratrum sit et manicipium pro mancipio.

5. Preterea si aliqua necessitate a preposito majore vel ab aliis Augustensis aecclesiae prelatis aut canonicis ad loca predicta vel in alia aliqua vocati fuerint, nichil a fratribus aut eorum colonis quasi sub justicia exigant, sed cum caritate hoc quod eis inpensum fuerit accipiant.

III. Justicia Augustensis civitatis haec est:
This is the justice in the city of Augsburg:

1. Quicumque violator urbanae pacis exstiterit, domino episcopo X talentis satisfacere debet
1. Whoever violates the citizens who have stood for peace, must satisfy the talents of the bishop, 10; 
        quae si non habuerit, corio et crinibus puniendus est.
        which, if he does not have, the skin and hair, is to be punished.

2. Episcopus ministerialium urbanorum et totius populi civitatis peticione prefectum unum tantum et monetarium dare debet.
2. Bishop of ministerial city and the people of the city, only one principal of a claim and must give a moneyer.

3. Item chori majoris et predictorum peticione de ipso choro plebanum dabit.
3. Also, a large choir and the choir of the said petition of the parish give.

Nunc de moneta dicamus:
Now let us speak of the coin:

4. Ex camera episcopi monetario X marce dabuntur et econtra monetarius singulis annis episcopo X talenta dabit et capellario quinque solidos.

5. Et si monetarius in falsitate deprehensus fuerit, quicquid habet publicari debet episcopo et manus ejus advocato.

6. Et quisquis absque monetarii permissione cambit argentum preter institutores civitatis, qui Coloniam[7] vadunt, quibus tantum ad decem marcas cambire est concessum, spoliat episcopi cameram.

7. Si quis monetam temerarie intraverit, carebit episcopi gracia, et si aliquem infra monetam leserit vel temerarie extraxerit, fregit cameram episcopi.

[118]
8.  Et si aliquis scienter injusta pondera habuerit, etiam spoliat cameram.


Nunc de justicia domini episcopi:
Now the justice of the bishop:

9.  De theloneo VI talenta dabuntur episcopo et quociens Auguste balneaverit duo cingula et ad mandatoum vestiri debent XII pauperes et capellario XL denarii.

10.  De curtilibus episcopop ad festivitatem sancti Michahelis IIII talenta dabuntur.

11.  Episcopus ducatum ingredientibus egredientibusque dabit.

12.  Quociens episcopus ex precepto regis pro ecclesiae suae necessitate curiam adierit, urbani X talenta ad stipendium ei dabunt, et quando Romam[8] ibit in expeditionem vel ad suam consecrationem, tunc justum est, quod civitateses praebeant ei subsidium prout apud eos peticione poterit obtinere.

13.  Apud quos injusti modii inventi fuerint episcopo XV solidos dabunt.

14.  Preterea omnis satisfactio in civitate bonis redimenda ad episcopi justiciam pertinet,
          excepta temeritate et injusticia et his etiam exceptis, qui morte plectendi sunt aut truncandi.


Et hec est urbana justicia:
And this is justice in the city:

15.  Si quis curtile annum et diem sine contradictione possederit, quod de cetero nullius impeticione respondeat, nisi hoc impetitor probaverit, quod causa hostilis necessitatis vel inopiae absens proclamare non potuerit vel quod nondum annos discretionis habuerit.
15. If anyone has got Curtilius year and a day without contradiction, that in future the answer is no impeachment, but it has attacked, that the cause of the scarcity or absence of necessity hostile to claim that he can not or do not yet have the years of discretion.

16  Item quicumque jus civitatis nactus est, nullus eum inpetere debet de jure proprietatis vel beneficii, nisi secundum urbanorum justiciam.
16. Also anyone who is, having got the right of the city, no one ought to be of the assault was delivered him by the right of the property or the benefit, of townspeople, except in accordance with justice.

17.  Item si censualis talem habet uxorem, quod filii ejus aecclesiae sunt, et censualem nummum dederit et ad tria legitima placita advocati venerit, ultra non est injuriandus, misi quod in fine vitae suae ad curiam optimum jumentum dabit et vestimenta, in quibus operari solebat, praeconi suo.
17. Also, if such a censual he has a wife, and that his sons are the church, and he has given a piece of owing a yearly rent, and to the pleas of the ordinances of the three, advocates, is come, he is no more injuriandus, I sent to the court that in the end of his life he will give the best beast and raiment, in which he was wont to work, the auctioneer their own.
          Et quisquis ei hanc justiciam infringit, episcopus ejus defensor erit, ut ubicumque census deciderit totum, quod habet, in episcopi potestate erit.
          And anyone who infringes upon him this justice, the bishop will be the defender of his, so that whenever he shall cut down the number of the whole, that he hath is in the power of the bishop will be.


De justicia advocati:
Advocates of justice:

18.  Advocatus tria legitima placita Augustae in omni anno habere debet,
[119]   et tunc nullum debet facere judicium, nisi urbanorum justicia et nunquam judicandi causa Augustam veniet, nisi vocatus, exceptis suis tribus legitimis placitis.

19.  Ad justiciam advocati pertinet temeritas injusticia monomachia.

20.  Et ad tria placita illa quilibet carnifex ad servicium advocati duos tantum denarios dabit et quilibet panifex unum denarium tantum.
          Bannorum tabernariorum duae partes episcopo, tercia autem pars advocato erit ad illa tria placita,
          et de quolibet modio, in quibus est sal, dimidiam denariatam habebit ad servicium advocatus.


Nunc etiam de prefecti justiciam dicemus:
Now also been placed in charge of the justice to say:

21.  Urbis prefectus cottidie in judicio sedere debet secundum urbanorum justiciam.
21.   Every day the prefect of the city is to sit in judgment and should be referred to as justice.

22.  Et semper in unoquoque mense precipiet deconqui probaticios panes secundum judicium frigide aquae;
22. And always in the order each month deconqui probaticios bread according to the judgment of cold water;
          et quicumque panifex hos panes vilicaverit, prefecto quinque solidos dabit, et si secundo fecerit, iterum prefecto quinque solidos, et si tercio urbanorum justicia cute et crinibus punietur et tunc abjurabit penitus deconqui panes in civitate.
          and all these BAKER vilicaverit bread, will give a course of five shillings, and if he does, again, the principal of five shillings, and a third of city shall be punished by a justice of the skin and hair, and then completely abjurabit deconqui bread in the city.

23.  Et quando tabernarius vilem facit cervisiam vel etiam dat injustam mensuram, supradicto ordine punietur, et insuper cadem cervisia destrue [tur vel pauperibus gratis] erogetur.
23. And when the tavern has a cheap beer, or even an unjust measure, shall be punished by the said order, and the same beer down, [that are poor or free of charge] should be paid.

24.  Unusquisque panifex ad nativitatem domini IIII denarios prefecto dabit et ad pascha IIII, in depositione carnium gallinam.
24. BAKER 4 pence each to the Nativity of the Lord will give the governor and to the 4, deposition in the chicken meat.

25.  Et de quolibet potu empticio prefecto denariata dabitur et preconibus potus cervisiae.
25. And of course pence each drink purchased will be given commendation and drink beer.

26.  Prefectus ad festivitatem sancti Michahelis dabit duobus carnificibus XXVI denarios,
26.  Entry to the feast of St. Michael, two butchers will give 26 pence,
          econtra idem ad festivitatem beati Martini prefecto bovinam carnem XXXII denrios valentem dabunt et insuper unusquisquie carnifex ad nativitatem domini prefectum cum daubus scapulis visitabit.
          On the other hand the same to the governor of the feast of St. Martin 32 denrios value of red meat and will also unusquisquie butcher to the principal of Nativity of the Lord will visit with the shoulders and daub.

27.  Prefectus etiam ad festum sancti Michahelis cuilibet salsuciario VI nummos dabit,
27. Entry is also the feast of St Michael, give money to any salsuciario 6,
          e converso quilibet eorum ad festum sancti Martini prefecto VI bovina capita cum omni jure dabit.
          each of them the other way around to the governor of the feast of St Martin, he will give it all right with the 6 red heads.

28.  Et si aliquis in civitate captus fuerit vel pro pace violata vel etiam si cuiquam reddere deet, salsuciarii eum custodire debent.
28. And if a person has been arrested in the city or for breach of peace or even anyone to Bolton, salsuciarii should keep him. [I cannot figure out where "Bolton" came out of any of that.]

29.  Episcopus tabernam suam tribus talentis reget, et qui eam habet singulis annis ei tribuet XXX solidos et in unaquaque septimana urnam cervisiae.
29. Bishop to his shop three talents will rule, and that it has every year to give 30 shillings a week and in each jar of beer.

[120]
30.  Quocienscumque episcopus ad curiam vel … in expeditionem vel ad consecrationem ibit, prefectus ei duas cirotecas et pilleum et insuper suum sibsidium dabit.
30. Every time the bishop or to the court ... to the campaign or the consecration of the will, appointed him two pair of gloves and cap, and also give his sibsidium.

31.  Si universalis querimonia domino episcopo fuerit facta ex culpa de advocato vel etiam de prefecto et post legitimas inducias satisfacere neglexerint, potestate sua illos privabit.
31. If the bishop of the complaint has been made by the fault of the attorney or the principal of and after the law failed to satisfy the delay, its power to deprive them.

32.  Si quis Augustensium civium spoliatus fuerit extra civitatem, spoliator, si civitatem intraverit, secundum urbanorum justiciam in presenti antequam exeat satisfacere debet. ...
32. If any one has been stripped out of the city of Augsburg, the spoiler, if you enter the city, according to the present before it comes out in the townspeople, and justice must satisfy.  ...

[1] Augsburg.  [2] Regensburg.  [3] Straubing.  [4] Geisenhausen.  [5] Eitingen.  [6] Wergeld = Sühnezahlung für Totschlag oder Verletzung.  [7] Köln.  [8] Rom.

Getting the Wrinkles Out

I ran into something interesting the other day that got me to thinking, which of the various slab irons or clothes presses would have been period for my persona?  Not that I generally prefer doing this particular kind of housework, but I know that during period, they had to have had something (uh oh, assumptions alert!).  Keeping wrinkles out of clothing, no matter how good of a housewife you are, doesn't happen on its own.  So I did some digging and this is what I've come up with so far.

My first stop was at a site called the History of Ironing (go figure), which had a lot of information on various names (linen smoothers, mangle boards, screw presses, etc.) and types (glass, wood, iron, marble, soapstone, etc.) of items used for ironing, but they centered mostly on the British Isles.  A link on their site had me looking at various Italian irons, such as this one from the 15th century.

Then I found a site that showed English linen smoothers made of glass, which was very interesting and from approximately the 16th century.  This PDF file also had me going a bit further back in history and traveling to the North.  There I found Norse ironing boards from the Viking era made of whalebone [Glass Smoother and Whalebone Ironing Board held in the University of Bergen Museum].  So glass smoothers had been available during the Viking era, then presumably the next time we see them is in the 16th century.  To me that is quite a historical gap.  Was the knowledge lost and re-found?  Have there been glass pieces found in archaeological digs which were misclassified?  In any case, I haven't found much else to explain the gap, but I suppose stranger things have happened.

Next, I found a lady's site on Clothing Care, which states:

Many people consider the iron to be a modern invention but versions of tools used to flatten and de-crumple clothes have been around for centuries. Vikings from Scandinavia had early irons made of glass and roughly mushroom-shaped by about the tenth century. These were also called linen smoothers. The smoother was warmed in steam before it was rubbed across the clothing.

According to historians of domestic household appliances, it was during the 1300s that the tool we recognise as an iron first appeared in Europe. It was comprised of a flat piece of iron with a metal handle attached. The flatiron was held over or in a fire until it was heated, when it was picked up by the handle with a padded holder. A thin cloth was placed between the iron and the garment in order not to dirty the clothing whilst the ironing process took place.

In the fifteenth century, an improvement to the flatiron was introduced in the form of a box which could hold coals to retain radiant heat for longer than the old method of placing the flat iron in the fire. The hot box, also known as the slug or box iron, was constructed from a hollow metal box with a handle. Heating elements such as coals or hot metal inserts were placed inside. Both the flatiron and hot box were used for several hundred years.

Unfortunately, this didn't quite give me much to go on to help my Germanic research.  Then I went at this from another angle... the mangling board and roller.  According to An Encyclopaedia of the History of Technology by Ian McNeil, 1990, pg 932:

During the sixteenth century the mangling board and roller came into general use.  The idea spread from Holland, Denmark and northern Germany; the word mangle derives from the Dutch and Middle High German mangelen, which itself stemmed from the ancient Greek word for an 'engine of war': indeed, the later box mangle resembled a might weapon.  The material was wrapped round the roller (itself about 50cm (1ft 8in) long), which was placed upon a flat table.  The mangling board (a flat piece of wood about 6cm (2ft 2in) long and 8cm (3in) wide, with a handle on top) and then passed backwards and forwards over the roller until the fabric was smoothed.  This method produced quite a high standard of pressing and was in use until well into the nineteenth century.

Unfortunately, there isn't a bibliography to indicate where *this* information was derived and I have yet to be able to find a representation of a mangelbrett (mangling board) from the 16th century.  Most of the images I find on Bildindex are from the 17th century or later, but by this point they were rather ornately carved.

Here's a little more history behind the Mangle Board.

I haven't quite exhausted this subject (I hope), but I have run to the end of my proverbial rope for today.

Germanic Laws

For quite some time I've been searching, usually in vain, for the laws of the various Germanic cities and territories during the Middle Ages.  I've been persistent in my desire for the actual laws (or as close as I can get) and not settle for another's interpretation of the laws or some vague reference to a "law they claim existed" without a reference to make the claim plausible.  [Terrible, I know. :P]  It has been a challenging struggle which I have attempted to ignore when frustration would creep over me at the lack of anything viable.  Yet, on Sunday, I hit pay dirt!

I found a book published in 1967 which contains many of the ordinances and municipal laws that were passed during the period 590 - 1254 for various cities all over Germany.  Some of these laws and ordinances were passed by the Holy Roman Emperor and some were codified by the local magistrates and burghars.  I'm sure the book is far from completely comprehensive, but it's better than anything I've found to date.  Unfortunately, there are a few drawbacks...

1. The book is in German (not that much of a problem) and Latin (a little more of a problem... 6 months of Latin in Junior High won't get me through this, but Google's translation feature might at least help).
2. I have only found the book online through Google, which means I have limited access to the 639 pages that fill the covers.
3. Going to booksellers only proves I will never own the book, as the initial costs I'm finding for it are in the $249-463 range. [For only 1 volume, no less!]
4. The closest libraries I can find that store this book... are in Europe. *sigh*

But...!  I will use Google books to get out of it what I can while I can with what is available.

Oh, yes, and before I forget, here's the book reference in case someone else has access to one of the limited number of libraries in France and Switzerland that carry it and also because I don't want to lose the reference either. :D

Elenchus Fontium Historiae Urbanae, Vol 1, Germany, Low Countries, Scandinavia by C.van de Kieft, J. F. Niermeyer, B. Diestelkamp, 1967.

The Research Bug Bites Again

It's safe to say I haven't been posting much recently, but life has a way of changing in unexpected ways.  First and foremost, I haven't lost my "research" bug for the Holy Roman Empire... it's simply expanded somewhat with next to no reflection in this blog.  Let me preface this by saying, I found Pintrest not that long ago and I've been using it to organize many of the images I've been finding online (as well as some of the images I found during my research that I can't find online anymore).  It will take a massive amount of time and effort to put everything I *want* to put up there, but for now, I've started and I will continue to add images (hopefully more often than not).  Therefore, I wanted to put a link on my blog for what I've been doing over there, because it may help other people as well.  I must put in a minor warning though... My Pintrest page covers the entire SCA period for the Holy Roman Empire, but, that's it.  Nothing is there other than my research into the Germanic peoples from 600-1600.

My Germanic Pintrest

I hope what I've pulled together will be of service to others researching the Germanic cultures.  Enjoy!