Funding Opportunity: ICMA Student Travel Grants (Deadline 27th March 2022)

The International Center of Medieval Art offers grants for graduate students in the early stages of their dissertation research, enabling beginning scholars to carry out foundational investigations at archives and sites. Winners will be granted $3,000, and if needed, officers of the ICMA will contact institutions and individuals who can help the awardees gain access to relevant material. Three grants are awarded per year, and they are designed to cover one month of travel.

The grants are primarily for students who have finished preliminary exams, and are in the process of refining dissertation topics. Students who have already submitted a proposal, but are still very early on in the process of their research, may also apply.  

All applicants must be ICMA members.

Applicants must submit:


1.  Outline of the thesis proposal in 800 words or less.

2.  Detailed outline of exactly which sites and/or archives are to be visited, which works will be consulted, and how this research relates to the proposed thesis topic. If you hope to see extremely rare materials or sites with restricted access, please be as clear as possible about contacts with custodians already made.

3.  Proposed budget (airfare, lodging, other travel, per diem). Please be precise and realistic. The total need not add up to $3,000 precisely. The goal is for reviewers to see how you will handle the expenses.

4.  Letter from the thesis advisor, clarifying the student’s preparedness for the research, the significance of the topic, and the relevance of the trip to the thesis.

5.  A curriculum vitae.                  

Upon return, the student will be required to submit a letter and financial report to the ICMA and a narrative to the student section of the Newsletter.

For complete details and to apply, click here.

Online Course: ‘Mosques in Sub-Saharan Africa’, The Aga Khan University, 23rd and 30th May 2022, 13:30 – 16:30 GMT

This two-day online course introduces participants to Muslim architecture in Sub-Saharan Africa. Following an introduction on Islamic architecture and mosques, the first session will explore mosques in West Africa, from the Sahara to the tropical forests. The second session will look at the mosques in East Africa, from the Nile valleys to the Swahili coast. This day will be based on Professor Stephane Pradines’ extensive knowledge and fieldwork in Egypt, Ethiopia and the Swahili coast.

This short course provides the basis for understanding and critically examining the development of Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa. It approaches architecture through building materials and African construction techniques, from earthen monuments to coral stone buildings. Two important themes will be developed: first, the diffusion of ideas, people and material cultures across the Sahara Desert; second, the role of Islam in the building of maritime regional identities, international trading networks and urbanisation of the Swahili coast.

Learning Outcomes

This course presents Muslim architecture in a very specific context: Sub-Saharan Africa during the Medieval and Modern Ages. Following this short course, participants will be able to:

• Differentiate between mosques in Sub-Saharan Africa from their counterparts in North Africa and the Middle East.

• Recognise the different types of African mosques by geographical areas and by chronological phases.

• Learn about the importance of cultural exchanges across the Sahara Desert and the Indian Ocean.

• Receive a methodological background on archaeology, history, and the history of architecture in Sub-Saharan Africa.

• Distinguish between different types of building materials and natural resources in Africa.

• Study the impact of the past to understand the political tensions in West Africa today.

Course Convenor

Stephane Pradines is an archaeologist and Professor of Islamic Art and Architecture at the Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations (AKU-ISMC) in London. Professor Pradines was the Director of the excavations of the Walls of Cairo (Egypt) and many other excavations in the Indian Ocean and East Africa. Currently, his main excavation project is at Lahore Fort in Pakistan. He is a specialist of Islamic archaeology in Sub-Saharan Africa, Indian Ocean medieval trade and Muslim material culture of war. Professor Pradines is the Founding Editor of the Journal of Material Cultures in the Muslim World (MCMW). He has published many articles and books on Swahili architecture, urbanism, and mosques. Professor Pradines is a mosque expert on the Indian Ocean region for UNESCO and the WMF. He has excavated several mosques in Ethiopia (Nora), Kenya (Gede), Tanzania (Songo Mnara, Sanje ya Kati and Kua) and the Maldives (Fandiyaaru and Bodha Miskiy, Koagannu, Hulhumeedhoo, Addu Atoll and Fenfushi, Ari Atoll). Professor Pradines’ latest book is Historic Mosques in Sub-Saharan Africa, from Timbuktu to Zanzibar, by Brill Publishers.

Date and Time

23 and 30 May 2022, 13:30 – 16:30 ( London Time).

Tickets and Booking

£75 professionals | £45 students, AKU alumni, and AKU and AKDN staff. Book soon: https://fal.cn/3l7QD

For African professionals and institutions, please enquire for further information by contacting: ismc.marketing@aku.edu.

Organiser

Aga Khan University’s Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations (AKU-ISMC), London.

*The course will be delivered via Zoom. Readings and further details will be provided later upon registration.

Course: Introduction to Greek Paleography, London International Paleography School, University of London, 6th-7th June 2022, 10:00 – 17:00 GMT

This is an introductory course in Greek Palaeography, consisting of two parts. Part I is devoted to a brief survey of the earlier history of the Greek script covering evidence from early inscriptions, through majuscule papyri to manuscripts of the Byzantine period up to the ninth century, including the first examples of Greek minuscule.  Part II concentrates on the Greek minuscule from the ninth to the 15th century and the first printed books. The development of the Greek script will be examined with relation to political events and cultural movements which shaped it through the centuries. Participants will learn how to transcribe a text from a facsimile of a Greek manuscript and examine basic codicological and palaeographical aspects, including the layout of the text, the use of ligatures, nomina sacra, abbreviations and colophons. This course will include practical transcription exercises which can only be undertaken with a knowledge of Greek script and of the Greek language, ancient or modern.  However, students without Greek can be accepted on the understanding that they will remain passive during these exercises. 

To register, please click here.

Postdoctoral Fellowship: 2023 Postdoctoral Fellowships – Migration and Mobility, University of Tübingen (Deadline 31st March 2022)

The Centre for Advanced Studies “Migration and Mobility in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages” at the University of Tübingen, Germany invites applications for resident fellowships starting in 2023. The fellowships are available for a duration between one and twelve months.

The Centre for Advanced Studies, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), brings together scholars from a wide range of disciplines working on migration and mobility in Europe and the Mediterranean between 250 and 900 CE. The overall aim of the Centre is to explore new approaches to migration and mobility in this period and to set the scholarly debate in the field on a new footing.

Fellowships are available for scholars at all stages of their academic career who have completed their doctoral degree and established an independent research profile. Applicants should be engaged in a research project in any relevant discipline that is related to the Centre’s interests in migration and mobility in the period and area in question. The Centre also welcomes applications from scholars working on migration and mobility in the contemporary world whose research has a strong focus on theoretical and methodological issues.

Fellows are required to reside in Tübingen, where they pursue their own research project while also participating in the colloquia held at the Centre. For the duration of their stay fellows receive a stipend covering  accommodation, travel, and/or living expenses in accordance with their needs and the pertinent regulations of Tübingen University and the DFG.

Applications should include a CV, a research proposal for the project to be pursued at Tübingen (2000 words), an indication of the months the applicant would like to spend at the Centre and the kind of financial support they require. All materials should be sent in a single pdf document to luisa.luiz@uni-tuebingen.de by March 31, 2022.

Should you have any questions pertaining to the details of the fellowship program or the application, please contact the coordinator Thomas Kohl (Thomas.kohl@uni-tuebingen.de).

Lecture: ‘Crowning William the Conqueror: Archbishop Stigand and the Tiberius Psalter’ with Professor Sandy Heslop, Martindale Lecture 2022, University of East Anglia, 12th May 2022, 17:30 GMT (in person & online)

The Department of Art History & World Art Studies at UEA announces their annual Martindale Lecture 2022.

CROWNING WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR: ARCHBISHOP STIGAND AND THE TIBERIUS PSALTER
Prof Sandy Heslop (UEA)

Thursday 12 May 2022, 17:30 BST, Lecture Theatre 4, UEA (and online)

“1066 was a momentous year in English history: two invasions, two bloody battles, and two coronations. The trauma has been written into the national narrative ever since, but we rarely have much insight into the mentality of the individuals involved. The Tiberius Psalter offers an exception, illuminating the character and predicament of Archbishop Stigand of Canterbury, a leading player in the drama.”

The lecture will be followed by a drinks reception to toast Prof. Heslop on his retirement from the department. 

Registration is now open on EventBrite.

Lecture Series: Britain and the World in the Middle Ages: Image and Reality, Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, 7th April – 12th May 2022

The Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art announces their upcoming lecture series ‘Britain and the World in the Middle Ages: Image and Reality’. Lectures will be held every Thursday from 7th April to 12th May 2022.

From the announcement: ‘In the Middle Ages, the ‘British Isles’ were far from insular. These islands were, in fact, places of exchange, where art, ideas, rare materials and people came together from all over the world. This course examines Britain’s sense of place in that world, as well as its actual place in the world – in other words, image, and reality – by examining medieval images themselves. Each of the course’s lectures considers one of five critical themes in Britain’s global experience and imagination, through the exploration of works of medieval art.’

This series is convened by Jessica Berenbeim (University of Cambridge) and Lloyd de Beer (British Museum). Below is the list of lectures:

  • 7th April: Introduction by Jessica Berenbeim and Lloyd de Beer
  • 14th April: ‘Myth’ by Alixe Bovey
  • 21st April: ‘Maps’ by Alfred Hiatt
  • 28th April: ‘Metamorphosis’ by Tom Nickson
  • 5th May: ‘Movement’ by Amanda Luyster (Online only)
  • 12th May: ‘Museums’ by Rishan Majeed (Online only)

All lectures (apart from the final two) will take place at the Paul Mellon Centre and will also be livestreamed online. Registration is now open.

Scholarship: Medieval Academy/CARA Summer Scholarships 2022 (Deadline 1st April 2022)

The Medieval Academy/CARA Summer Scholarships support graduate students and and particularly promising undergraduate students participating in summer courses in medieval languages or manuscript studies. Applicants must be members of the Medieval Academy in good standing with at least one year of graduate school remaining and must demonstrate both the importance of the summer course to their program of study and their home institution’s inability to offer analogous coursework.

The stipend will be paid directly to the student and must be used to offset a portion of the tuition cost. The awards are contingent on acceptance into the program.

For more information and to apply, visit the scholarship page here.

Job Opportunity: Assistant Professor in Early Medieval History, Trinity College Dublin (Deadline 21st March 2022)

The Department of History, Trinity College Dublin, is seeking to appoint an Assistant Professor in Early Medieval History for one year from August 2022. The post-holder will maintain research and teaching interests in Early Medieval History, with demonstrable expertise and relevant publications within the period 400-1000. The successful applicant will contribute to the delivery of modules at all levels of the undergraduate curriculum, including supervision of BA dissertations, as well as the Medieval Studies MPhil programme. Within the undergraduate History programme, the holder of the post will coordinate one of the existing Freshman-level (first-year) modules. At Sophister level, the post-holder will develop and coordinate one or more advanced modules arising from their research interests. At MPhil level, the post-holder will teach either Medieval Latin or another module based on their research interests. Supervision of appropriate undergraduate and postgraduate dissertations is also expected. The post-holder will also undertake other teaching and administrative duties at the direction of the Head of Department.

To apply, visit the Trinity College job posting.

New Publication: ‘Brilliant Bodies: Fashioning Courtly Men in Early Renaissance Italy’ by Timothy McCall

From PSU Press:

‘Italian court culture of the fifteenth century was a golden age, gleaming with dazzling princes, splendid surfaces, and luminous images that separated the lords from the (literally) lackluster masses. In Brilliant Bodies, Timothy McCall describes and interprets the Renaissance glitterati—gorgeously dressed and adorned men—to reveal how charismatic bodies, in the palazzo and the piazza, seduced audiences and materialized power.

Fifteenth-century Italian courts put men on display. Here, men were peacocks, attracting attention with scintillating brocades, shining armor, sparkling jewels, and glistening swords, spurs, and sequins. McCall’s investigation of these spectacular masculinities challenges widely held assumptions about appropriate male display and adornment. Interpreting surviving objects, visual representations in a wide range of media, and a diverse array of primary textual sources, McCall argues that Renaissance masculine dress was a political phenomenon that fashioned power and patriarchal authority. Brilliant Bodies describes and recontextualizes the technical construction and cultural meanings of attire, casts a critical eye toward the complex and entangled relations between bodies and clothing, and explores the negotiations among makers, wearers, and materials.

This groundbreaking study of masculinity makes an important intervention in the history of male ornamentation and fashion by examining a period when the public display of splendid men not only supported but also constituted authority. It will appeal to specialists in art history and fashion history as well as scholars working at the intersections of gender and politics in quattrocento Italy.’

Timothy McCall is Associate Professor of Art History at Villanova University. He is a coeditor of Visual Cultures of Secrecy in Early Modern Europe and the forthcoming six-volume series A Cultural History of Luxury.

Table of Contents:

  • List of Illustrations
  • Acknowledgements
  • Introduction: Brilliant Bodies and Fashionable Men at Court
  • 1. Riddled with Gilt: Lords in Shining Armor and Shimmering Brocades
  • 2. “Ornado d’Oro e Giemme”: Brilliant Male Bodies Adorned
  • 3. The Contours of Renaissance Fashion
  • 4. Fair Princes: Blanched Beauty, Nobility, and Power
  • Epilogue: Black is the New Gold
  • Glossary
  • Notes
  • Bibliography
  • Index

To purchase, please visit PSU Press.

Lecture: IHR Seminar Europe 1150-1550: ‘Making Late Medieval Urban History “British”: Networks, Comparisons, and Scale, 3rd March 2022 17:30 GMT

The IHR Europe 1150-1550 seminar returns this Thursday 3rd March at 5.30 pm. Dr Eliza Hartrich (UEA) will speak on ‘Making Late Medieval Urban History ‘British’: Networks, Comparisons, and Scale.’

‘Research into late medieval English towns over the last thirty years or so has demonstrated that no urban centre should be studied in isolation: as a site of exchange and administration, a town is inextricably linked to the countryside and to other urban centres. This paper considers, however, the methodological, conceptual, and practical questions that arise when attempting to ‘scale up’ urban history to encompass multiple towns over an extended geographic area: in this case, when constructing a history of towns in Britain and Ireland between 1350 and 1500. Did insular towns operate within a shared political and economic framework in this period, or do attempts at a ‘British’ urban history impose anachronistic identities on the past and obscure other influences on urban experiences?’

This seminar will take place in hybrid form. Those meeting in person should assemble at UCL Cruciform LT2. It will also be possible to join the meeting online Please register online here. (The online form will prompt you to specify whether you are attending in person or online). Those attending in person should wear face coverings for the talk.

Please send any enquiries to Andrew.Jotischky@rhul.ac.uk or emily.corran@ucl.ac.uk