A Medieval Manuscript
Topic: The Ancient to the Modern World
This is the student activity 1 of 1 of the A Medieval calendar learning activity.
Task No. 1
The medieval calendar of life
Complete the attached activity sheet.
Task No. 2
Question on the source
In which months do the seasons occur in the northern hemisphere?
- Winter
- Spring
- Summer
- Autumn
- Do the activities shown in The Book of Hours correspond to the seasons?
- What is ‘scything’?
- What is a pilgrimage and where would medieval people go to do this?
- What are ‘acorns’? For what were they used in medieval times?
- At the top of each page the month is given, then the list of days below it. Why is each day named after a saint?
- Use books and the Internet to find out why this religious book shows signs of the Zodiac.
- Would peasants have followed this calendar? Why or why not?
- How useful is a Book of Hours as a source of information about daily life in medieval times? Explain.
- How reliable is the information in a Book of Hours about daily life in medieval times? Explain.