MEDIEVAL CLUB: Shrovetide Festivities in the Middle Ages

Historian Anu Mänd explores the Shrovetide festivities of the Middle Ages.

While today we celebrate Shrove Tuesday as a single day, in the Middle Ages it was a roughly two-week-long period of festivities, featuring various ceremonies, games, and other forms of entertainment. The most detailed records pertain to the Shrovetide feasts of the merchants' Great Guild and the Brotherhood of Black Heads, while less is known about the festive customs of common folk. The lecture will explore the meaning of the term "Shrovetide," the duration and traditions of the celebrations, as well as the food and drinks associated with the occasion. It will also address the reasons why the joyful Shrovetide feasts gradually faded after the Reformation.

Anu Mänd (University of Tartu) is a historian and art historian whose research focuses on the cultural history of the medieval and early modern Baltic region, including the history of guilds and brotherhoods as well as festive traditions. This lecture is in estonian only.

Questions and information about the Medieval Club anne@folkart.ee