Register for a CSMC lecture series
Understanding Written Artefacts: Untold Stories
Lecture Series (hybrid format)
Convenors: Mariapaola Gritti and Martin-Jörg Schäfer
Since 2019, the Cluster of Excellence "Understanding Written Artefacts" at Universität Hamburg has investigated written artefacts (manuscripts, inscriptions, etc.) originating in different times – from the beginning of writing up until today – and in different regions of the world. Artefacts studied range at present from Mesopotamian clay tables to the graffiti sprayed on Hamburg’s walls. The lecture series presents this research and by doing so explores the geographical, cultural, and historical diversity of written artefacts and of writing as a human practice. At the same time, it raises the question of which aspects of written artefacts, of the historical contexts from which they stem, and of the social contexts in which they are used we have as of yet failed to consider or account for. Which creators and users of written artefacts and which types of artefacts have we deemed (un-)worthy of our attention? Whose perspectives on written artefacts have we incorporated into our research? What bodies of knowledge about written artefacts have we, instead, backgrounded? And what spoken and unspoken cultural and disciplinary norms have led to such marginalisations? With this lecture series we would like to begin telling some of the still-untold stories about writing and written artefacts that questions such as these bring into view.
The lecture series comprises talks in English and in German. It will be presented in hybrid format. We look forward to having you with us in the lecture hall, or alternatively on Zoom.
All lectures will be held on Mondays, 6:15 pm — 8:00 pm CET, at Erwin-Panofsky Hörsaal (ESA C), Hauptgebäude, Edmund-Siemers-Allee 1, and online (ZOOM)
| Date | Lecturer | Title |
| 23 October 2023 |
Konrad Hirschler Islamwissenschaft, Sprecher Exzellenzcluster „Understanding Written Artefacts“ / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Untold Stories: Was bedeutet Provenienz in der Forschung zu Schriftartefakten? |
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6 November 2023 |
Anastasia Poliakova Biochemistry, Cluster of Excellence “Understanding Written Artefacts” / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures & Hermann Behling Palynology and Climate Dynamics, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen |
The Kyzyl-Chin Valley: Dramatic Past and Unclear Future of a Unique Landscape and Unknown Rock Carving Site |
|
13 November 2023 In-person only (no Zoom session) |
Dmitry Bondarev & Darya Ogorodnikova African Studies, Cluster of Excellence “Understanding Written Artefacts” / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Timbuktu Libraries: Fake Ownerships, Alternative Histories |
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20 November 2023 The lecture will be given via Zoom but will also be shown in the lecture hall |
Philippa Sissis Kunstgeschichte, Exzellenzcluster „Understanding Written Artefacts“ / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Die Ausweitung des Archivs. Wie Künstler des Black Atlantic durch Schreiben Geschichte schaffen |
| 27 November 2023 |
Claudia Colini, Kyle Ann Huskin & Ivan Shevchuk Archaeometry, Cluster of Excellence “Understanding Written Artefacts” / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Forgotten Names, Lost Lives, Secret Identities: Difficulties and Ethical Dilemmas of Revealing Hidden Writing with Multispectral Imaging |
| 4 December 2023 |
Kaja Harter-Uibopuu Alte Geschichte, Exzellenzcluster „Understanding Written Artefacts“ / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Epigraphik im toten Winkel – tote Winkel in der Epigraphik: Beispiele aus der griechisch-römischen Antike |
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11 December 2023 In-person only (no Zoom session) |
Xiaomeng He
Sinology, Cluster of Excellence “Understanding Written Artefacts” / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Beyond Silence: Untold Stories of Looted Artefacts from Ancient China and Scholarly Ethical Complexities |
| 18 December 2023 |
Sanja Ewald Kulturanthropologie, Exzellenzcluster „Understanding Written Artefacts“ / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Die (fast) vergessene Hall of Fame – Das Projekt Alsen. Zur Speicherung von ephemeren Graffitischriftzügen im ehemaligen Zementwerk Itzehoe |
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8 January 2024 |
Martin Jörg Schäfer Neuere deutsche Literatur und Theaterforschung, Exzellenzcluster „Understanding Written Artefacts“ / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
„Ohrenbläser“, „Worteingeber“, „König der Echos“. Hamburger Souffleure, Souffleusen und Soufflierbücher, 1770-1820 |
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15 January 2024 |
Sebastian Schirrmeister Judaistik, Exzellenzcluster „Understanding Written Artefacts“ / Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures |
Reise(n) nach Jerusalem. Die verborgenen Wanderungen deutsch-jüdischer Archive |