SIMS Visiting Research Fellow Seminar

The Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies is pleased to announce the following seminar to be given by our current Visiting Research Fellow, Dr. Aleksandra Bunčić.

Illuminating the Skies: Jews, Science and an Astronomical Anthology (LJS 57) in Medieval Catalonia

Thursday, October 27, 5:15-6:30 PM

Rm 625, 6th Floor, Kislak Center

 	
Astronomical anthology manuscript (Catalonia, ca. 1361), Lawrence J. Schoenberg Collection (LJS 57), Kislak Center, Unversity of Pennsylvania Libraries

This seminar explores the dissemination of scientific knowledge in medieval Spain through the lens of an extraordinary illuminated manuscript that is housed at the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies and catalogued as an astronomical anthology (LJS 57). Produced in the second half of the fourteenth century (c. 1361) in Catalonia, in Hebrew, this manuscript includes a collection of astronomical texts, a copy of a treatise on the calendar compiled for King Pedro IV of Aragon, works by the twelfth-century scientist Abraham Ibn Ezra, an introduction to astrology, and a Hebrew translation of Ptolemy's Almagest. By examining this manuscript's art historical, cultural, and local contexts, the seminar consider developments in book production, astronomical iconography, and the identities and roles of Jewish scientists in late medieval Spain. The manuscript will be on display throughout the seminar.

The seminar is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. For more information and to register, go to : http://www.library.upenn.edu/exhibits/illuminating.html

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Kress Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Index of Christian Art

The Index of Christian Art is pleased to invite applications for a one-year postdoctoral fellowship for AY 2017-2018, with the possibility of renewal contingent on satisfactory performance.

Funded by a generous grant from the Kress Foundation, the Kress Postdoctoral Fellow will collaborate with permanent research and professional staff to develop taxonomic and research enhancements for the Index’s redesigned online application, which is set to launch in fall 2017. Salary is $60,000 plus benefits for a 12-month appointment, with a $2,500 allowance provided for scholarly travel and research. The Fellow will enjoy research privileges at Princeton Libraries as well as opportunities to participate in the scholarly life of the Index and the Department of Art & Archaeology.

The successful candidate will have a specialization in medieval art from any area or period; broad familiarity with medieval images and texts; a sound grasp of current trends in medieval studies scholarship; and a committed interest in the potential of digital resources to enrich work in art history and related fields. Strong foreign language and visual skills, the ability to work both independently and collaboratively after initial training, and a willingness to learn new technologies are highly desirable; previous experience in digital humanities, teaching, and/or library work is advantageous. Applicants must have completed all requirements for the PhD, including dissertation defense, before the start of the fellowship. Preference will be given to those whose subject expertise complements that of current Index staff.

Applications will be reviewed beginning January 15 and will continue until the position is filled. Applicants must apply on line at https://jobs.princeton.edu/applicants/jsp/shared/Welcome_css.jsp, submitting a C.V., a cover letter, a research statement, and the names and contact information of three references. The position is subject to the University’s background check policy.

The Index of Christian Art. Since 1917, the Index of Christian Art (https://ica.princeton.edu/) has provided a unique resource for the study of medieval art. Its systematic descriptive and visual documentation of iconographic subjects, originally conceived as a print archive but now undergoing full digitization, permits researchers to analyze imagery produced in eastern and western Europe throughout the “long Middle Ages.”

Princeton University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

CFP: CAS Grad Conference on Alcohol in the Ancient World (Penn, Feb. 24-25, 2017)

Call for Papers

Center for Ancient Studies Graduate Conference: “Alcohol in the Ancient World”

Deadline for Submissions: December 1, 2016

Conference Date: February 24-25, 2017
Conference Location: Penn Museum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Host: Center for Ancient Studies, University of Pennsylvania

Organizer: Darren Ashby (NELC, University of Pennsylvania)
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Patrick McGovern (Penn Museum)

Penn’s Center for Ancient Studies invites proposals of papers from graduate students in any discipline who are engaged in the study of alcohol in the pre-modern world.

Beer, wine, and other fermented beverages have played an important role in the social, political, economic, and religious lives of humans for thousands of years. The embedded nature of alcohol in human societies makes it a productive locus for research on a wide range of topics. Possible subjects include the role of alcohol in:

    •    Production technologies and techniques
    •    Consumption practices and contexts
    •    Visual and literary culture
    •    Law
    •    Medicine
    •    The construction and negotiation of identity and gender
    •    Trade and political economy
    •    Ritual

Research on the prohibition of alcohol in pre-modern societies is also encouraged. Who is prohibited and why? When and where do these prohibitions apply? What do they entail? How are they enforced and how are they circumvented?

Applications should include a title and an abstract of no more than 250 words that summarizes the work, identifies the methodology, and states the primary conclusions. CAS encourages interdisciplinary research that utilizes multiple sources of evidence, including material culture, texts, iconography, experimental and ethnographic studies, and archaeometry.

Send all materials to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the subject heading CAS Abstract: APPLICANT NAME. Please include your affiliation in the body of the email. Deadline for abstracts is December 1, 2016. Applicants will be notified of the status of their paper by the middle of December.

The Center for Ancient Studies strives to bring together scholars from different disciplines engaged in the study of pre-modern cultures. Our Center aims to model an expansive and global vision of the study of the ancient world, spanning Greco-Roman cultures and the Near East but also pre-modern Asia, Africa, and the Americas. For more information see http://www.sas.upenn.edu/ancient/.

Charles IV Symposium at Penn, October 13-14, 2016

The Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies, the Centre for Medieval Literature (U of York and U of Southern Denmark), the Penn School of Arts and Sciences, the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, the Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, the Department of History, French and Francophone Studies, the Department of English, Italian Studies, and Comparative Literature

present

Charles IV:

An Emperor in Europe (1316–2016)

13-14 October, 2016

 Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts
University of Pennsylvania, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library, 6th floor
3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA

 This symposium commemorates the 700th anniversary of the birth of Charles IV, the Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia, the author of the Golden Bull, the “second Constantine,” the “Last Emperor,” the proponent of a Church Union, the founder of the first university in Central and Eastern Europe, a patron of all humanist scholars and artists, and “the father of the Czech nation.” The symposium brings together an international and interdisciplinary panel of scholars, who examine a number of aspects of Charles’s reign and ponder their implications for past and present (see attached program).

The symposium is free and open to the public. For more info and to register please go to:

http://www.library.upenn.edu/exhibits/charles_iv.html

Our Thanks

The DVMA would like to offer its sincere gratitude to the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries and the Princeton Index of Christian Art for their continued support of our programs.

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