This episode introduces approaches that museum curators take to bring a global Middle Ages to life for a range of audiences. We focus on the exhibition and publication, The Fantasy of the Middle Ages: An Epic Journey through Imaginary Medieval Worlds (Getty 2022) to address everything from the Grimm Brothers’ whimsical tales to Game of Thrones’ bloody battles, from The Lord of the Rings’ Middle-earth to Dungeons & Dragons’ mythical beasts, from Medieval Times to the Renaissance Faire to Disneyland. Transcending simply a fact-check of the medieval past, we aim to mobilize medievalisms in order to counter racist, misogynist, and homo/transphobic ideas perpetuated by popular culture.

This episode was contributed and hosted by Bryan C. Keene and Larisa Grollemond. Follow this link for more information about Bryan, Larisa, and their conversation: www.multiculturalmiddleages.com.