Who: noted medievalist Stephanie Cain Van D'Elden
What: Lecture
When: 7:00 p.m., Thursday, February 17, 2011
Where: University of Minnesota, Elmer L. Andersen Library, 222 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis
Contacts: Marlo Welshons, University of Minnesota Libraries, welsh066@umn.edu, 612-625-9148
Preston Smith, University News Service, smith@umn.edu, 612-625-0552

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL ( 01/24/2011 ) -- In a month focused on love and romance, noted medievalist Stephanie Cain Van D'Elden will examine one of the original love stories, the legend of Tristan and Isolde. On Thursday Feb. 17, Van D'Elden will present a sneak preview of her forthcoming book, which reveals the popularity and influence of the Tristan and Isolde romance during the Middle Ages through depictions of the tragic and often retold tale in wall paintings, tapestries, manuscripts, household objects, and more.

"The Pictures Tell the Story: Tristan and Isolde in Medieval Illustrations " will begin at 7 p.m. in the Elmer L. Andersen Library, 222 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis, and will be followed by a reception.

Stephanie Cain Van D'Elden received her bachelor's degree and PhD from the University of Minnesota. She has held administrative positions at the U in the Immigration History Research Center and the Department of Independent Study and has also been on the faculty of Hamline University, the College of St. Thomas, and the University of Southern California. Van D'Elden has published widely in medieval studies, Germanic literature, and the verse romances of Tristan and Isolde.

Presented by the Friends of the University of Minnesota Libraries and co-sponsored by the Center for Medieval Studies, the event is free and open to the public. Reservations requested by Thursday, February 10 at 612-624-9339 or stangret@umn.edu.