The Medieval Academy Blog

Virtual event 4/27 — Fragmentary Remains: Books of the Dead at Williams College

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Chris

The Chapin Library at Williams College invites you to attend a virtual event with Foy Scalf on April 27 from 3:00-4:30pm EDT.

Fragmentary Remains: Books of the Dead at Williams College
Register to receive the Zoom link: https://forms.gle/7rdy8sBF2t8rh6Zq8

In 1922 Alfred Clark Chapin purchased a small album filled with scraps of ancient Egyptian papyrus inscribed with the Book of the Dead. This album now resides in the Chapin Library at Williams College, along with a collection of inscribed linen mummy bandages. Together these material remains form an excellent corpus to exemplify the practice of fragmentology, both in terms of the modern methodology for tracing chains of provenance and potential digital restoration, but also in terms of Victorian collecting practices. Chapin’s modest album reveals the late eighteenth century predilection for pasting somewhat random scraps of papyrus together to present the illusion of more interesting—and thus more valuable—manuscripts. This presentation will open a discussion of these fragmentary remains by showing how a seemingly modest collection can be deconstructed, connected with other fragments around the globe, and ultimately reconstructed for the digital age.

Foy Scalf is a scholar, librarian, and humanist interested in the history of the ancient world, the methods of its study, and how to spread that knowledge. He is Research Associate; Head of Research Archives; and Head of the Integrated Database Project at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. He also acts as Principal Investigator for a corpus-based digital project known as OIDOO, the Oriental Institute Demotic Ostraca Online. He received his PhD in Egyptology from the University of Chicago with a dissertation examining funerary literature from Roman Egypt and identifying its origins in the oral traditions attested in graffiti from preceding centuries. He curated a special exhibit for the Oriental Institute Museum called “Book of the Dead: Becoming God in Ancient Egypt” and assembled a group of internationally-acclaimed scholars as editor of the accompanying catalog. In 2016, he was awarded the Archival Innovator Award by the Society of American Archivists for his role in the Oriental Institute’s Integrated Database Project.

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MAA Publication Subventions: Deadline May 1

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Chris

MAA Book Subventions: Apply by May 1

The Medieval Academy Book Subvention Program provides grants of up to $2,500 to university or other non-profit scholarly presses to support the publication of first books by Medieval Academy members. Click here for more information.

NEW: The Medieval Academy Inclusivity and Diversity Book Subvention Program provides subventions of up to $5,000 to university or other non-profit scholarly presses to support the publication of books concerning the study of inclusivity and diversity in the Middle Ages (broadly conceived) by Medieval Academy members. Click here for more information.

Applications for subventions will be accepted only from the publisher and only for books that have already been approved for publication. Eligible Medieval Academy members who wish to have their books considered for a subvention should ask their publishers to apply directly to the Academy, following the guidelines outlined on the relevant webpage. The deadline for proposals is 1 May 2021.

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Jobs for Medievalists

Posted on April 16, 2021 by Chris

The Bibliographical Society of America (BSA) seeks a new Editor or co-Editors of the Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America (PBSA). The Editor is responsible for the editorial direction of the journal, which serves to fulfill the mission of the BSA to foster the study of the material text.

The Editor oversees publication of four issues of PBSA each year and attends BSA meetings in New York annually during Bibliography Week. The Editor of PBSA works closely with the Managing/Reviews Editor and the production team at the University of Chicago Press, supervising the Managing/Reviews Editor.

The next Editor of PBSA will also work with the Council and Publications Committee toward reaching the goals outlined for the journal in the Society’s Equity Action Plan (EAP). As outlined in the EAP, the BSA seeks to broaden PBSA’s coverage to include works that represent a wider array of textual artifacts from diverse authors in English and in other languages and to address issues of equity related to the composition and role of the Editorial Board. We welcome applications from members of underrepresented groups who feel that their background and experience make them uniquely qualified for this work in collaboration with the Council and Publications Committee.

The Society has some flexibility in filling this position and welcomes candidates to apply on their own or as an editorial team of two (2) individuals. Candidates may be affiliated with an academic or research institution, or work independently in the humanities. The BSA is open to accommodating the various modes of professional life encountered in the search process.

Negotiations for compensation for the Editor, team, or a partnering institution by means of an agreement begin at $16,000.

Application instructions, a job description, and other details are available on the BSA website at https://bibsocamer.org/news/bsa-seeks-editor/.

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Seats Still Available for Rare Book School Courses

Posted on April 13, 2021 by Chris

The following classes are still accepting applications on a rolling basis:

–C-75c: Introduction to the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, taught by Cheryl Beredo, Joy Bivins, Michelle Commander, Tammi Lawson, Shola Lynch, and Michael Mery (6 hours)
–C-85a: Law Books: History and Connoisseurship, taught by Mike Widener, with Ryan Greenwood (22 hours) ALMOST FULL
–G-10b: Descriptive Bibliography: The Fundamentals, taught by David Whitesell (10 hours) ALMOST FULL
–G-65a: Forgeries, Facsimiles & Sophisticated Copies, taught by Nick Wilding (22 hours)
–G-85c: Why Black Bibliography Matters, taught by Kinohi Nishikawa (6 hours)
–H-90a: Teaching the History of the Book, taught by Michael F. Suarez, S.J. (22 hours)
–H-105a: The Bible and Histories of Reading, taught by Peter Stallybrass, with Lynne Farrington (22 hours)
–H-120b: Textual Connected Histories: Books and Reading in the Early Modern European World, taught by Roger Chartier and John H. Pollack (10 hours) ALMOST FULL
–H-170b: Spanish American Textual Technologies to 1700, taught by Hortensia Calvo, Christine Hernandez, and Rachel Stein (10 hours)
–H-180c: Six Degrees of Phillis Wheatley, taught by Tara Bynum (6 hours)
–H-185c: African American Print Cultures in the Nineteenth-Century United States, taught by Derrick R. Spires (6 hours)
–I-45b: The Photographic Book since 1843, taught by Richard Ovenden (10 hours)
–L-25a: Reference Sources for Researching Rare Books, taught by Joel Silver (22 hours) ALMOST FULL
–L-120a: Introduction to Audiovisual Archives Management, taught by Erica Titkemeyer and Steve Weiss (22 hours) ALMOST FULL
–L-125a: Scientific Analysis of the Book, taught by Raymond Clemens and Richard Hark (22 hours)
–M-100a: Fragmentology, taught by Lisa Fagin Davis (22 hours)

Apply soon, before classes are filled! If you have questions about the courses, please contact rbsprograms@virginia.edu.
With best regards,
The RBS Programs Team

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Schwarz Fellowship at the Gennadius Library for Research on Music

Posted on April 12, 2021 by Chris

Deadline: April 30, 2021

The Schwarz Fellowship for Research on Music supports research on music that
focuses on cultural interactions in the Mediterranean world broadly defined. The
fellowship aims to promote the study of interactions among Western European,
Byzantine, Islamic and Jewish cultures from the medieval to the modern period.

Eligibility: Career musicians, or researchers who are either currently PhD candidates or have received their PhD within the last 5 years.

Fields of Study: Musical composition; Music conducting; History of Music; Musicology; and related fields. Fellows will be expected to conduct a program of original research on a theme related to the collections of the Gennadius Library.

Terms: A stipend of $11,500 plus room, board, and waiver of School fees. Fellows are expected to be in residence at the School for the full academic year from early September to late May. A final report is due at the end of the award period, and the ASCSA expects that copies of all publications that result from research conducted as a Fellow of the ASCSA be contributed to the Gennadius Library. Fellows are expected to participate in the academic life of the School.

Application: Submit an online application form for the “Schwarz Fellowship at the Gennadius Library for Research on Music.” An application consists of a curriculum vitae, description of the proposed project (up to 750 words), and three letters of reference to be submitted online. Student applicants must submit transcripts. Scans of official transcripts are acceptable.

Link to online application: https://ascsa.submittable.com/submit/189405/schwarzfellowship-at-the-gennadius-library-for-research-on-music

Website: https://www.ascsa.edu.gr/research/gennadius-library/educational-programs/fellowships

Email: application@ascsa.org

The award will be announced by mid-June.

The American School of Classical Studies at Athens does not discriminate on the basis of race, age, sex, sexual orientation, color, religion, ethnic origin, or disability when considering admission to any form of membership or application for employment.

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Schwarz Fellowship at the Gennadius Library for Research on Urban Architecture

Posted on April 8, 2021 by Chris

Deadline: April 30, 2021

The Schwarz Fellowship for Research on Urban Architecture supports innovative and
cross-disciplinary research on architecture, urban planning, and the history of the built
environment in Greece from 1821 to the present.

Eligibility: Ph.D. candidates and recent Ph.D. holders within five years of receiving the degree. Open to all nationalities.

Fields of Study: Includes Architectural and Urban Design, History of Architecture, History of the City, Historical Geography, and related fields. Projects should incorporate the holdings of the Gennadius Library (maps, topographical plans, landscapes etc.) and other appropriate resources of the American School of Classical Studies.

Application: Submit an online application form for the “Schwarz Fellowship at the Gennadius for Research on Urban Architecture.” An application consists of a curriculum vitae, description of the proposed project (up to 750 words), and three letters of reference to be submitted online. Student applicants must submit transcripts. Scans of official transcripts are acceptable.

Link to online application: https://ascsa.submittable.com/submit/189403/schwarzfellowship-at-the-gennadius-for-research-on-urban-architecture

Website: https://www.ascsa.edu.gr/research/gennadius-library/educational-programs/fellowships

Email: application@ascsa.org

The award will be announced by mid-June.

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Call for Papers – Once and Future English

Posted on April 7, 2021 by Chris

The Once and Future English conference will be held March 10-12, 2022 at the University of Notre Dame London Global Gateway in Trafalgar Square (http://sites.nd.edu/once-and-future-english/).

This conference begins with the notion that English is today used by about 1.5 billion people, less than a third of whom speak it as their first language. This minority-majority reversal has significantly impacted the grammatical characteristics of English, the demographics of the Anglophone population, the domains in which English is used, and attitudes towards the language, which has been described both as a venue for increased global communication and as a cultural and economic predator. The history of the language is being rewritten as well, from one defined by conventional periodization and the triumph of English as a Germanic language, to one that has reoriented the historical and contemporary significance of the language’s traditional homelands. The Once and Future English asks the question: How will English’s present and past look to future speakers?

Plenary Speakers: Anne Curzan, University of Michigan; Seth Lerer, University of California – San Diego; Lynda Mugglestone, University of Oxford

Abstracts are invited for 20-minute papers on any of the following threads: mutual intelligibility; written and spoken language; the impact of language contact; historical periodization; social and cultural consequences of the spread of English; the definition of English and of Anglophone speech communities; resistance to the spread of English; the status of English in relation to other languages; the relative status of current varieties of English; L2 speakers and the future of English; grammatical changes in progress; written standards; and English language historiography.

Interested speakers should send a 300-word abstract, including names and affiliations, to onceandfutureenglish@nd.edu.

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Call for Papers – From Fragment to Whole: Interpreting Medieval Manuscript Fragments

Posted on April 7, 2021 by Chris

From Fragment to Whole: Interpreting Medieval Manuscript Fragments, 16 (online)-17(f2f) Sept., 2021

Hosted by the Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Bristol, this conference is devoted to the study of manuscript fragments, and what these fragments can tell us about lost books, medieval and post-medieval book history, and textual history.

Please send a brief abstract to cms-publicity@bristol.ac.uk by 31 May 2021, indicating interest in online or in person event. Further information about the conference will be made available at www.bristol.ac.uk/medieval

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MAA News – From the President

Posted on April 6, 2021 by Chris

Dear Colleagues,

As my term as President of the Medieval Academy of America is coming to a close, I look back at a year that was challenging in many respects. You all know what these challenges were and are. Our Executive Director Lisa Fagin Davis and I have addressed many of them in our columns and direct messages to you. We started new initiatives and offered a number of targeted webinars (all archived on our website) in response to some of these challenges. All of us also had to reinvent ourselves as virtual beings for this past year and probably for many months to come. Everything – teaching, research, communicating, just doing our jobs and caring for our families – became more difficult. But all this time you never lost sight of what matters, so at this moment I want to focus on the positive aspects of our profession. Yes, Medieval Studies are embattled, yes, we seem to be an endangered species, but we also are extremely resilient, productive, and versatile. Take a look at the fantastic program of the upcoming MAA annual meeting, take a look at the Kalamazoo and Leeds programs, and you can see the enthusiasm, curiosity, and persistence that keep us medievalists going. It’s impossible to give even a sampling of the variety of topics we see here and of the wide range of perspectives that you have adopted in order to explore and understand the many centuries that make up the middle ages. The latest issue of Speculum alone has over seventy book reviews, testifying not only to the creativity of the book authors but also to the generosity of the reviewers, who take their colleagues’ work seriously and help us choose among the hundreds of titles that appear every year. For our time is limited. This has become clear to me like never before during this pandemic. I am looking forward to seeing many of your virtual selves at the annual meeting next week and then in person at UVA in 2022.

Renate Blumenfeld-Kosinski
President, Medieval Academy of America