Predictive Moon Calendars

Welcome to my website, where you can explore and learn about “Lunary” texts and the French tradition of medieval prognostications based on the lunar cycle. My commentary and analysis will be accompanied by images of the Old French texts and others from contemporary manuscripts available in digital library collections.

*Chart of the lunar phases* *from a German manuscript*. BL Arundel 347. Nicholas of Lynn, Kalendarium cum figuris eclipsum, tabulis, canonibus, 14th century.

Like modern farmer’s almanacs and horoscopes, Lunary texts offered predictions about the timing of daily activities regarding health, illness, the birth of children, family and social relations, and a person’s livelihood. The advice was organized according to the thirty days of the moon’s monthly cycle.

*Decorated page of an English lunary.* BL Harley MS 2320, The Dayes of the Mone, early 15th century.

On this website, readers unfamiliar with French will be able to enjoy for the first time English translations and analyses of the Lunaries. Beautiful digital images of the Old French manuscripts accompany full transcriptions of the thirty-seven original texts which are annotated with glossaries and footnotes.

This is the culmination of a multi-year project during which I discovered, transcribed, translated into English, and annotated the original French texts . With generous awards from the National Endowment for the Humanities and Yale University, I have made them accessible for the first time in digital and fully-searchable form, for non-commercial use.

*Diagram of the Moon’s phases from a German manuscript.* London, BL Additional MS 17987. 1446

This website, which I researched and produced, will be an important resource for studying how a particular group of medieval prognostic texts intended to help people cope with life’s difficulties and worldly uncertainties. It will also provide an invaluable and new collection of primary material for social historians and students of medieval science, astrology and medicine.