THE SCENE: To the medieval mind, both the natural and human worlds were mere canvases upon which God painted pictures which gave hints as to his grant designs. In that sense, any strange occurrence that occurred anywhere was worthy of interest, in case it had any greater meaning.
THE TEXT: In that year certain portents appeared, namely comets. They were to be seen from the 15th day before the Kalends of November until the Kalends. Many men were terrified at seeing them, fearing either a terrible pestilence or at least a change in the kingdom; for prior to the death of King Henry many wondrous signs had appeared, so that out of doors, even though the sky was cloudless, the light of the sun was reduced almost to nothing, and seen from within-doors, through the windows of the house, it appeared blood-red. The hill also, whereon that lord of all was buried, is reported by rumor to have belched forth flames in many places.
Also, the left hand of a certain man which had been cut off with a knife was, after a lapse of a year, restored almost whole to him while he was asleep, and as a token of this miracle there was observed on his wrist a blood-red line at the point where the hand had been joined on. But a great flood did follow upon the appearance of the comets, and after the flood came a pestilence of the cattle.
– The Deeds of the Saxons, Widukind of Corvey, 10th Century AD
