2016 Mellon Summer Institute in Italian Paleography
at the Newberry Library
Application deadline: March 1
Institute: Monday, June 27-Friday, July 15, 2016
Apply online: https://www.newberry.org/06272016-2016-mellon-summer-institute-italian-paleography
9 am to noon, Mondays through Fridays, plus three mandatary afternoon sessions (to be announced). No meeting on July 4.
Directed by Maddalena Signorini, Università degli Studi di Roma
This three-week institute will offer intensive training in the accurate reading and transcription of handwritten Italian vernacular texts from the late medieval though the early modern periods. The instruction is intended to enable scholars in various fields of specialization to acquire the skills to work with primary sources. While the major emphasis is on paleographical skills, the course offers an introduction to materials and techniques, and considers the history of scripts within the larger historical, literary, intellectual, and social contexts of Italy. Participants receive an introduction to a wide range of types of writing and documents from literary to legal, notarial, official, ecclesiastical, business, and family documents. The course offers an overview of the system of Italian archives-public, ecclesiastical, and private. Participants also have the opportunity to work with original texts, using manuscripts and documents in the collections of the Newberry Library.
Eligibility: The institute will enroll 15 participants by competitive application. First consideration will be given to advanced PhD students and junior faculty at U.S. colleges and universities, but applications are also accepted from advanced PhD students and junior faculty at Canadian institutions, from professional staff of U.S. and Canadian libraries and museums, and from qualified independent scholars.
Prerequisite: This graduate-level course is taught entirely in Italian; advanced language skills are required.
Award: All successful applicants will receive a stipend of $950; non-local participants will receive an additional $2,500 to help defray the costs of travel, housing, and food. There are no fees associated with the institute.
Notification: We will notify all applicants by April 1 whether they have been accepted as a participant, placed on an alternate list, or declined. Invited participants will have until April 15 to confirm whether or not they will attend.
