Michael Baizerman Author

  Since the end of March, I have been making progress with my galley proof for "The Enchanting Encounter with the East."  Before making corrections, I checked each unit using my new editorial program. I redesigned many paragraphs, and the list of amendments has topped 70 pages after finishing four units out of six. I imagine my editor will be discontented.  Next week, I will re-edit Unit V, which is the story of Prester John, and if all goes well, I will complete my task by the end of April.  Listeners liked my lecture    "The Saga about Humankind: the View on the Habitable World during the European Middle Ages and the Renaissance." Some of them asked where they could read the book. I directed them to my Academia page,  where they read 18 chapters of my second book (out of 29). The rest I will upload throughout this year.  I will continue to collaborate with the Institute of Integration concerning future lectures.  https://independent.academi...

I downloaded another chapter from the second book, "The Enchanting Encounter with the East", on my site  https://independent.academia.edu/BaizermanMichael    The extract tells about the location of Jerusalem on the European medieval mind maps.  Jerusalem on the Madaba Map  Courtesy:  http://www.ancientpages.com/2017/06/16/stunning-madaba-map-oldest-known-mosaic-built-of-two-million-stone-cubes/   Throughout the late Middle Ages, Jerusalem functioned as the center of the inhabited world on contemporary 'world maps'. The article discloses various aspects of this spiritual vision which only intensifies after the crusaders' exile from the Holy Land.  Pope Urban II launched the First Crusade. Saewulf and San Severino were the pilgrims who visited the Holy Land in the 12th and 15th centuries. They both shared the vision of Jerusalem as the navel of the world.  Sir John Mandeville is a fictitious author of a 14th-century t...

Image: The Fair Death of Prester John in a Mounting Battle Against Chinggis Khan  http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/ILLUMIN.ASP?Size=mid&IllID=46452 The following chapter ushers in a new metamorphose of Prester John's character. A powerful potentate functions as an underdog in his fight against the Mongols. The new episode is connected to the all-out war in the eastern steppes, in the course of which Chinggis Khan managed to unite 'felt-walled' nomads into an invincible army. Here goes an extract: “A clever fighter is one who not only wins but excels in winning with ease.” (-Sun Tzu)        The steppe is a swath of grasslands extending east and west for thousands of unbroken miles between Manchuria and Hungary. The poor soil unable to sustain peasants toiling in their allotments suffers from the scorching sun in mid-summer and freezing cold in mid-winter.       The Mongols were a mixed blend of pa...

I have crossed a Rubicon meaning that my second book is complete.  It includes 29 chapters, to say nothing about summing-ups at the end of each of its 6 units.  The manuscript comprises over 90 K words,  hundreds of notes, and more than 30 images. 'The Enchanting Encounter with the East" tells a story of inter-cultural relations between Latin West and the Far East related from the European point of view. The scenario occurred in the Late Middle Ages when the actual dialog between the two opposite ends of the 'human planet' had become possible due to the opportunities of the Pax Mongolica. However, many European literati were still holding outdated views on the world beyond Islam and were fed by false rumors about the latest developments on the eastern rim of the known world. These legends are passed through generations until they eventually recede, giving up to the outlook based on personal experience of travelers and distinction between the sacred and the p...

Image: Manuel I Komnenos Courtesy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manuel_I_Komnenos The following chapter investigates why the original Letter of Prester John gained so much popularity across the Latin Christendom. The extract belongs to Unit V of my ongoing book, The Enchanting Encounter with the East.  I'm currently working on Unit VI, the last section which will include five chapters: a general introduction about medieval journeys to the Far East and Inner Asia, John of Plano Carpini, William of Rubruck, John of Montecorvino and the bottom line.  Sorry for the long interruption in my updates. Here's a new extract:  Twenty years later, long after the dust of the Second Crusade disaster settled, a bizarre missive was circulating with lightning speed all over the Latin West. Directed to the leading European royal houses, it somehow skipped the most important of all: the Curia Romana. This letter of introduction was penned by the paramount emperor of ...

Image: The Khitans at the eagle hunt  Courtesy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khitan_people This chapter brings to light the life of Yelu Dashi, the first candidate on the role of Prester John. This Khitan prince, whose dynasty was ousted from power by a rival nomadic confederation, fled to Central Asia where he carved an empire. His outstanding victory over the Seljuk emperor caused the legend of Prester John to take root among the Latin crusaders. In their view, the confrontation with the Muslim host would qualify the opponent to be a Christian.  In reality, the Kara Khitai Empire combined the nomadic and sedentary segments who were loosely united by the imperial regime based on a standing army. The emperor declared the freedom of conscience and did not exaggerate in his demands of tribute and troops from the dependent populations.  The man, who embraced both the Buddhist and the nomadic cultures, had never dreamed of conquering the Near East ...

Dieric Bouts the Elder,  Meeting of Abraham and Melchizedek Courtesy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melchizedek#/media/File:Meeting_of_abraham_and_melchizadek.jpg This short chapter ushers in the era of Prester John, a priest-king of a gargantuan oriental realm and a potential crusader.  The fact that Otto of Freising included this tale into his account of the world history shows its immediate impact. Whether the writer took it as a fact or fiction, this yarn helped materialize the Crusaders' anxiety and expectations on the eve of the Second Crusade.  Here is a brief extract: Otto von Freising, a bishop and a prolific writer, didn't intend to amuse his readers with frivolous tales. His twelfth-century chronicle of world history features a battleground where the forces of good are pitted against the swarms of evil.  Nevertheless, he is the author who baptized our character and breathed life into his somber shadow.    ...

Thanks to the summer vacations, I've got plenty of free time on my hands.  I have started writing Unit V,  The Boots on the Ground: the Dogged Courtship after Elusive Prester John. I recount the well-known legend, trying to find out its historic core.  In the Prologue, I emphasize the distinct features of this character.  1. He is elusive; nobody knows his whereabouts. Besides, he is always in transit, attempting to carry out his ambitious plans. 2. He is a mix of reality and fiction. The value of this character for historians lies in the fact that the narrative taps into historical events, offering their garbled version.  3. He is long-lasting. Officially baptized in the twelfth century, he continued to gain supporters through the seventeenth century at least and because we pick up this topic again and again, he is still relevant to our time.  I also explain that Prester John's title, king-priest, has a Biblical origin. I allude ...

I have just published another chapter from my third book. This extract is devoted to the sailing uncharted waters of the Atlantic along the Moroccan water front. The merchants dropped in new ports where they heard the tall tales about the Rio del Oro (The River of Gold). This led to a tragic treasure hunt. Also, European gamblers believed that the realm of Prester John, the black Christian Emperor, lay in the headwaters of that waterway.  Read my article https://scriggler.com/DetailPost/Opinion/113133 I would appreciate any comments. Meanwhile, I will return to the Mongol invasion of Hungary, the theme of my second (ongoing) book. Image 1: The Catalan Atlas pays tribute to Jaume Ferrer, a Majorcan captain, who is crossing the uncharted waters of the Atlantic in an attempt to discover the River of Gold https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaume_Ferrer#/media/File:Jacme_ferrer.jpg