The arsenal and clothing of the man who killed 50 people in attacks on two mosques in Christchurch in 2019 were covered in symbols and writing, many of which were understood only by medieval historians.

Obsessions with medieval culture and literature have been repeated by white supremacists and neo-Nazis across the world and it is something that Daniel Anlezark, a historian and medieval literature expert from the University of Sydney, was hoping to more fully understand when he applied to the Australian Research Council for a Discovery grant.