CSMCCentre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures

What does a single library on Rhodes reveal about Ottoman book culture, manuscript transmission, and the intertwined histories of Greeks and Turks? Two richly researched volumes combine codicology, archival work, and cultural history to address this question.

A mini‑conference at DH2026 brings together scholars of ancient and medieval cultures, museum professionals, librarians, curators, educators, and technical experts exploring how digital methods transform the study of the distant past. The Call for Papers is now open.

Interest in Ajami in West Africa is growing. During a recent field trip to Senegal, Dmitry Bondarev and his Ajami Lab team initiated new collaborative projects, identifying manuscripts, mapping collections and establishing further partnerships.

Applications are now open for the 2026 round of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellowships, one of the European Commission’s key programs supporting interdisciplinary research and international scientific exchange.

The award for the best dissertation on any aspect of manuscript studies goes to two researchers this year: Jake Benson and Eugene Matanky both convinced the jury with their works in Persian Studies and Jewish Philosophy, respectively.

With five ‘Concepts and Methods Units’, UWA restructured itself at the beginning of its new funding phase. The ancient historian Kaja Harter-Uibopuu heads one of these groups, which focuses on the central UWA topic of ‘Material Choices’. Here she explains what she aims to achieve with this group.

The CSMC and the École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), a constituent college of Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (PSL), have long maintained close academic ties. With the recent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding, this partnership has now been placed on a formal and sustainable foundation.