
But the so-called Dark Ages also gave us the first universities, eyeglasses, and mechanical clocks, proving that the Middle Ages were home to a vibrant scientific culture. Soaring Gothic cathedrals, violent crusades, the Black Death: these are the dramatic forces that shaped the medieval era.

Yellowstone Park via Gardiner Gateway no.An illuminating guide to the scientific and technological achievements of the Middle Ages through the life of a crusading astronomer-monk.An enthralling story of the struggles and successes of an ordinary man and an extraordinary time, The Light Ages conjures up a vivid picture of the medieval world as we have never seen it before. On our way, we encounter a remarkable cast of characters: the clock-building English abbot with leprosy, the French craftsman-turned-spy and the Persian polymath who founded the world's most advanced observatory. We travel the length and breadth of England, from Saint Albans to Tynemouth, and venture far beyond the shores of Britain. Following the traces of his life, we learn to see the natural world through Brother John's eyes: navigating by the stars, multiplying Roman numerals, curing disease and telling the time with an astrolabe. In this book, we walk the path of medieval science with a real-life guide, a fourteenth-century monk named John of Westwyk - inventor, astrologer, crusader - who was educated in England's grandest monastery and exiled to a clifftop priory.

They gave us the first universities, the first eyeglasses and the first mechanical clocks as medieval thinkers sought to understand the world around them, from the passing of the seasons to the stars in the sky.

Book excerpt: Chosen as a Book of the Year by The Times, Daily Telegraph, TLS, BBC History Magazine and Tablet 'Compulsive, brilliantly clear and superbly well-written, it's a charismatic evocation of another world' Ian Mortimer, author of The Time Traveller's Guide to Medieval England The Middle Ages were a time of wonder. This book was released on with total page 416 pages. Book Synopsis The Light Ages by : Seb Falkĭownload or read book The Light Ages written by Seb Falk and published by Penguin UK.
