
Photo: De Gruyter
18 December 2025|CSMC NewsMissing Evidence in the Study of Ancient Cultures
When it comes to the history of ancient cultures, we know that there is much we do not know. The new volume of ‘Studies in Manuscript Cultures’ explores the many forms and implications of missing evidence and examines how researchers can engage productively with these gaps when reconstructing the past.

Photo: CSMC
17 December 2025|CSMC NewsVacant Research Associate Position
The UWA Cluster of Excellence is looking for a doctoral researcher with a background in psychology, cognitive science, neuroscience, or a related field, to conduct an independent research project.

Photo: De Gruyter
16 December 2025|CSMC NewsAccumulating Notes
Everyday writings, often following no fixed plan, are likely to account for the majority of all handwritten production in human history. The new volume of ‘Studies in Manuscript Cultures’ explores how the practice of taking notes shapes written artefacts and vice versa.

Photo: ISCMI
15 December 2025|CSMC NewsMahdi Jampour Wins Award at ISCMI 2025
The CSMC Computer Scientist has won an Excellent Oral Presentation Award at the 12th IEEE International Conference on Soft Computing & Machine Intelligence (ISCMI) 2025, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Photo: STAATSBIBLIOTHEK ZU BERLIN - Preussischer Kulturbesitz Orientabteilung
12 December 2025|Logbook: The CSMC BlogToward a Bottom-Up History of the Silk Road
In the historiography of the Silk Road, Central Asian peoples such as the Uyghurs have so far played only a minor role. Wrongly so, argues historian Márton Vér. In his ERC project, he challenges Eurocentric and Sinocentric perspectives and turns the history of the complex supra-network on its head.

Photo: CSMC
11 December 2025|CSMC NewsRemembering Bruno Reudenbach
We are deeply saddened by the death of our colleague, Professor Dr Bruno Reudenbach (1952–2025). Bruno Reudenbach was one of the longest-standing members of the CSMC, having shaped and supported it since its very beginnings with great expertise, commitment, and passion.

Photo: Suganya Anandakichenin
10 December 2025|Logbook: The CSMC Blog‘What drew me in was the linguistic challenge’
‘Pearls and corals’ – the meaning of the Manipravalam language’s name is as poetic as the language itself is important to the history of South India. Still, it has hardly been researched. Suganya Anandakichenin has received a prestigious ERC Consolidator Grant to gain a better understanding of it.

Photo: Private/Erika Jakab
9 December 2025|CSMC NewsTwo CSMC Researchers Awarded ERC Consolidator Grants
Great success for two of our researchers: the Indologist Suganya Anandakichenin and Márton Ver, a historian specialising in Central Asia, have each been awarded the prestigious five-year grant to carry out ambitious research projects.
Videos
What is CSMC?
What does it mean to do research on written artefacts? Employing concrete examples, this film illustrates how researchers from disciplines such as Musicology, Computer Science, Ancient History, and X-Ray Physics work together at our centre to gain new insights into the history of writing. A long version is available as well.
Charting History: The Mobile Lab Explores the Fra Mauro Map
What untold stories lie within the very fabric of one of the world’s most famous maps? In early 2025, researchers from the CSMC Mobile Lab travelled to the Biblioteca Marciana in Venice to study the Fra Mauro Map up close. A captivating documentary captures both the scientific and logistical challenges of this journey.
Our Container Lab. Mission 1: Palm Leaf Profilers
This film takes a look behind the scenes of a multi-layered scientific endeavour: ‘Our Container Lab. Mission 1: Palm Leaf Profilers’ follows the laboratory containers and researchers of the CSMC on their journey to India, where they want to figure out the provenance of the historical palm-leaf manuscripts of Tamil Nadu.
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Contact

Photo: CSMC
University of Hamburg
Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures
Warburgstraße 26
20354 Hamburg, Germany
Phone: +49 40 42838 7127
Mail: manuscript-cultures@uni-hamburg.de







