By examining art printed from woodblocks spanning five centuries, Blair Hedges, a professor of biology at Penn State University, has identified the species responsible for making the ever-present wormholes in European printed art since the Renaissance.
To read more about this discovery: http://science.psu.edu/news-and-events/2012-news/Hedges11-2012
Many thanks to Anne Scott for forwarding this fascinating news item.
Popes and the Papacy in early modern English culture: An interdisciplinary conference
The University of Sussex
June 24-26, 2013
Confirmed speakers include: Peter Lake, Susannah Monta, and Alison Shell
Proposals are welcome for individual papers or panels on any subject associated with the theme of the conference. Topics may include:
Politics and Texts in Late Carolingian Europe, c. 870–1000)
St Andrews Institute of Mediaeval Studies
8-9 July, 2013
We are pleased to announce a call for papers for a two-day conference entitled ‘Politics and Texts in Late Carolingian Europe, c. 870–1000’, hosted by the St Andrews Institute of Mediaeval Studies. This conference will explore the relationship between political authority and textual production in the later Carolingian world.
In recent years, there has been substantial re-evaluation of traditional methodological approaches to all kinds of early medieval texts, from narrative histories to documentary sources. Historians have increasingly taken stock of the interdependence of textual aspects such as audience, reception, dissemination, authorial agenda and the relationships between cultural and political elites. This reappraisal has inspired renewed interest in earlier Carolingian political history. However, the so-called ‘post-Carolingian’ world of the tenth century has yet to be thoroughly investigated on the same terms. How did texts produced in the late ninth- and tenth-century political climate differ from those of the preceding century? Is it possible to refashion the traditional political narrative of late Carolingian fragmentation and decline by reassessing the foundations on which this very narrative has been constructed? Our intention is to draw together recent work on the theme of political discourse in the written sources of this period. We hope to provide an international forum for established academics, early career researchers and postgraduate students working on political culture and the functions of texts in the late Carolingian world.
Eight invited academics will offer papers on the conference themes. We invite proposals from postgraduate and postdoctoral scholars for 20-minute papers on any topic related to the interaction between politics and texts in this period.
The conference will include lunches, refreshments, wine reception, and an optional conference meal. We expect to be able to contribute towards speakers’ accommodation and travel expenses.
Please send abstracts of no more than 250 words to either of the conference organisers, Roberta Cimino (rc495@st-andrews.ac.uk) or Ed Roberts (ecr32@st-andrews.ac.uk). The deadline for submission is 1st February 2013.
“Adaptation and Appropriation”
8th International Conference of the Tudor Symposium
Northumbria University
3-4 July, 2013
Confirmed Speakers: Adam Hansen (Northumbria University), Mike Pincombe (Newcastle University), Cathy Shrank (University of Sheffield)
How do adaptations fit texts to new cultural circumstances? What gains or losses are involved in transformations from page to stage or screen? What are the politics of appropriating the past? Do adaptations encourage creativity or suppress it? What is the role of publishers, readers, and the state in promoting or restricting appropriations of the classics? These questions are as relevant today as they were 500 years ago. Adaptations of Shakespeare and his contemporaries and appropriations of the Tudor past are a major feature of our culture, but Tudor literature was equally characterised by a vigorous appropriation of its classical and medieval pasts. Yet, questions of adaptation and appropriation in Tudor England and in our own time (and in the many periods in between) continue to be studied separately in disciplines with their own scholarly traditions and theories. This conference aims to bring together scholars working in a variety of fields to encourage dialogue between different perspectives and methodologies.
We invite proposals for papers that consider any aspects of the appropriation of past cultures and texts in Tudor England (1485-1603) and of Tudor texts and culture from the sixteenth century to the present in all media. This might include the techniques and processes of literary adaptation; the political uses of texts from history; the appropriation of the prestige of Tudor literature and culture in novels, on television, and in musical lyrics; literary tradition and originality; parody and spoofs; the representation of the Tudors in contemporary novels and television drama; changing ideas about plagiarism, fidelity, and originality; the role of patronage and the publishing and film industries in shaping attitudes towards the past; questions of literary value and canon formation; censorship and the involvement of the state in the representation and reproduction of the past. We particularly welcome papers that reflect on the processes of adaptation and appropriation and different methodologies.
Topics might include (but are not limited to):
Please send proposals (100 words) by 22 March 2013 to Fred Schurink (fred.schurink@northumbria.ac.uk) or Monika Smialkowska (monika.smialkowska@northumbria.ac.uk).
The Lichtenberg-Kolleg invites applications for up to 7 Junior Research Fellowships.
Opening its doors in 1737 Göttingen quickly established itself as one of Europe’s leading Enlightenment universities. Named after one of the most important and versatile representatives of the Göttingen Enlightenment, the Lichtenberg-Kolleg is an interdisciplinary research institute with a strong focus not only on the Enlightenment(s), but also on “bridges” between the human and natural sciences and on issues of religion and modernity.
For the period January 2014 to July 2015 we are inviting junior scholars to join one of the research teams for the study of either:
Furthermore, the Lichtenberg-Kolleg is announcing additional Junior Research Fellowships for the study of “Religious Toleration in the Modern World: Theory and Practice.” In cooperation with the Herzog August Library Wolfenbüttel and in the spirit of its famous librarian Lessing, we are inviting applications to join a research group of up to 6 Junior Research Fellows.
The University of Göttingen is an equal opportunities employer and places particular emphasis on fostering career opportunities for women. Qualified women are therefore strongly encouraged to apply as they are underrepresented in this field. Disabled persons with equivalent aptitude will be favoured.
All Fellowships are open to candidates who have received a doctorate within the last 5 years.
The deadline for applications is 3rd March 2013.
Comitatus: A Journal of Medieval and Renaissance Studies, published annually under the auspices of the UCLA Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, invites the submission of articles by graduate students and recent PhDs in any field of medieval and Renaissance studies.
Submission deadline for Volume 44 (2013): 1 February 2013.
Submission guidelines can be found at the journal website: http://www.cmrs.ucla.edu/publications/comitatus.html
Submissions should be sent as e-mail attachments to Dr. Blair Sullivan: sullivan@humnet.ucla.edu.
The Comitatus editorial board will make its final selections by early May 2013.
A few festival/markets announcements which may be of interest to members:
Abbey Medieval Festival
Medieval Banquet: Saturday, 29 June
Medieval Tournament: 6 & 7 July, 2013
Caboolture, Country Valleys, QLD
The Abbey Medieval Festival, is Australia’s largest medieval festival that commences with the Abbey Medieval Banquet.
For full details about the Abbey Medieval festival, visit the following website: http://abbeytournament.com/
Ironfest
April 20 and 21, 2013
Lithgow, NSW
Held annually in Lithgow on the closest weekend to Anzac Day, Ironfest brings together artists, designer/makers, blacksmiths, performers of all kinds, musicians, historical re-enactors and machine enthusiasts & hobbyists from all over Australia, and the world.
For full details about Ironfest, visit the following website: http://www.ironfest.net/
Manakau Medieval Market
Levin Showgrounds
9 February 2013 (Always held on the second Saturday in February)
Every year around 20,000 people flock to the Levin Showgrounds for the Medieval Market. Come along and savour the wares of the food sellers, watch the authentic knights in battle and enjoy a beautiful summer’s day relaxing and having fun.
Ye Olde Manakau Medieval Market Charitable Association was set up 19 years ago so the funds raised can be used by ye merry villagers and needy guilds in the shire. Money raised by the Market Day is distributed back to the community as charitable grants.
The Medieval Market is held at the Levin Showgrounds which are 80 minutes drive North of Wellington and 40 minutes South of Palmerston North.
For full details, visit the Medieval Market website: http://www.medievalmarket.co.nz
Global Defoe: His Times and His Contemporaries
Third Biennial Meeting of the Defoe Society
Normal, Illinois
August 9-10, 2013
The third biennial meeting of the Defoe Society, will be held from August 9-10, 2013 at the Normal Marriott Hotel and Conference Center in Normal, Illinois. The theme for the meeting is “Global Defoe: His Times & His Contemporaries.” The following is a list of proposed panel sessions. Paper proposals will also be considered which are centred on Defoe and his contemporaries but do not fit with the panel topics:
Individual CFP notices for each panel session can be found at the Global Defoe CFP website: http://english.illinoisstate.edu/digitaldefoe/defoesociety/cfp.html
Please send all abstracts for all panels to Sharon Alker at: alkersr@whitman.edu. Abstracts are due by February 15th, 2013.
We are seeking essays on Elizabethan, Jacobean, and Caroline drama by theater-poets other than Shakespeare for a special issue of Shakespeare Quarterly entitled “Not Shakespeare,” edited by Lars Engle and David Schalkwyk, which will appear in summer 2014. To be considered for this issue, all essays must be received by 1 September 2013.
Submission guidelines are available here (http://www.folger.edu/Content/About-Us/Publications/Shakespeare-Quarterly/Contributor-Guidelines.cfm), or contact Mimi Godfrey (mgodfrey@folger.edu).