Call for papers--Dissemination of technical knowledge in the Middle Ages

Call for Papers
International Symposium
Craft treatises and handbooks: The Dissemination of technical
    knowledge in the Middle Ages
Cordoba
Oct 6-8, 2005

Throughout history, all human societies have provided themselves
with media and instruments to conserve and transmit their knowledge;
and in each era, Learning, in general, and each of its "skills" and
"techniques" in particular, have possessed specific media for their
dissemination. Although it is thought that during the Middle Ages
most craftsmen were illiterate and that knowledge of their trade
techniques, acquired empirically, was transmitted only by word of
mouth, actually medieval workers had written texts at their
disposal, which helped them to disseminate the new techniques and
convey them to other artisans.

The pressing technical exigency and professional qualification of
occupations such as the coin and gold and silver assayer, the cloth
and silk dyer, leather tanner or illuminator determined the need to
rely on handbooks and treatises, which permitted the knowledge and
propagation of the set of techniques used in each sector to be made
easier. For this, a technical literature emerged, which has been
conserved in the form of handwritten texts, more or less complete or
in a loose form, and of treatises which appeared in alchemy,
medicine, arithmetic and trading texts and other technical and
scientific activities of those times. And which form an ensemble of
inestimable value for a knowledge of the written culture of medieval
artisans and of the work techniques employed in the diverse trades
of the era.

This meeting aims to promote the study and analysis of these texts,
from the most complete ones to the briefest, from the miscellaneous
instructions from the Early Middle Ages books (dated between the 6th
and 12th centuries) to the specific handbooks of the Late Middle
Ages (13th to 15th centuries), in each of the artistic and
industrial sectors of which we have conserved examples.

The meeting will address the subject of the treatises and technical,
artistic and industrial handbooks in Medieval Europe and will be
structured in the following sessions:

    *   The diffusion and transmission of technical knowledge
    *   Treatises of the early Middle Ages(7th to 12th centuries)
    *   Texts and handbooks of the late Middle Ages(13th to 15th
        centuries)
    *   The role of texts in medieval technical innovation

Invited Speakers

    Robert Halleux
    Centre d'histoire des sciences et des techniques
    Universite de Liege, Belgique
    Les livres des recettes du haut moyen age

    Mark Clarke
    Instituut Collectie Nederland, Amsterdam
    Late medieval artists' recipes books (14th-15th centuries)

    Gabriella Pomaro
    Dipartimento di Studi sull Medioevo e il Rinascimento
    Universita di Firenze, Italia
    Variazioni testuali e codicologiche nei Ricettari tra XIV e XV
    sec.

    William Eamon
    Department of History
    New Mexico State University, USA
    Books of Secrets from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance

    Stefanos Kroustallis
    Departamento de Paleografia
    Universidad Complutense, Madrid
    El Codex Matritensis 19 y los tratados medievales de tecnologia
    artistica

    Lluis Cifuentes
    Departament de Filologia Catalana
    Universitat de Barcelona
    Un manual de tintoreria catalan del siglo XV

    G. M. Helms
    Independent researcher
    Italian Ranaissance Bronze Casting Technology: the written
    record

    Doris Oltrogge
    Institut fur Restaurierungs- und Konservierungswissenschaften
    Koln, Deutschland
    Treatises and workshop practice in 15th century Germany

    Dominique Cardon
    Departament d'Historie
    Universite de Lyon, France
    Le pratique de la teinture a la lumiere des manuscrits medievaux

    Cheryl Porter
    Independent reseacher
    Local traditions and the use of local products in a XV century
    English manuscript

    Catherine Verna
    Departament d'Histoire des Techniques
    Universite Paris VIII. Quand le notaire temoigne: techniques et
    circulations des savoirs tacites (XIIIe-Xve siecles)

    Ricardo Cordoba
    Departamento de Historia Medieval
    Universidad de Cordoba, Espana
    Medieval receipts on Leather Tanning

The Congress will take place between 6th and 8th October, 2005, the
final day being on a Saturday to facilitate their stay in Cordoba to
those attending it from other countries.

Invited speakers will have 45 minutes for their lecture, while the
Presentations will be read in 20 minutes. Each session will be
followed by 15 minutes of questions and comments on the subjects
dealt with.

Researchers interested in contributing a Presentation should send
the Symposium organization a summary of it with a maximum length of
30 lines, specifying its title, the name and surname(s) of the
author or authors, the centre and city of origin.

30 May, 2005, is deadline for presenting proposals.

The Congress organizers anticipate refunding part of the expenses
(journey or accommodation) of those taking part with a Presentation.

All those enrolled in the Congress (with a Presentation) will have
the right to a free lunch on the three working days and will receive
a copy of the Proceedings when they are published.

The Congress has the institutional support of the University of
Cordoba (UCO) and the Society for Medieval Studies (SEEM)

Those interested in sending a Presentation proposal should do so by
post or e-mail to:

    Ricardo Cordoba
    Facultad de Filosofia y Letras
    Universidad de Cordoba
    Area de Historia Medieval
    Plaza del Cardenal Salazar, 3
    14003 Cordoba, Espana
    +34 957218799
    Fax: +34 957218788
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                  Conservation DistList Instance 18:39
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