The Newberry Library Center for Renaissance Studies in Chicago, Illinois recently announced that it has received a $775,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to fund a series of eight vernacular paleography institutes. The institutes will train scholars and graduate students from various academic disciplines to read handwriting from the late medieval period through the 17th century. Separate institutes will concentrate on French, Italian, Spanish and English. This is actually the second series of paleography institutes the Mellon Foundation has funded. The first series started in 2008 and concludes this summer. The second series will begin next year and run through 2012.
The institutes give researchers the skills necessary to utilize a broad spectrum of primary sources such as letters, diaries, accounting records, court documents and royal decrees. Carla Zecher, Director of the Newberry’s Center for Renaissance Studies, says, “The ancient letterforms and abbreviations used are so different from modern letters that they often appear indecipherable to the untrained eye. Thus, today’s scholars who wish to tap into these rich troves of very old source material need special training. And until recently, acquiring such training has been all but impossible on this side of the Atlantic.” 117 scholars from U.S. universities and museums have been trained in the first series of institutes. The new Mellon grant will allow another 120 researchers to attend the workshops.
While the Newberry Library administers the institutes, the actual workshops are taught at five research libraries throughout the U.S. The participating institutions are The Newberry Library in Chicago, IL, The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., The Huntington Library in San Marino, CA, The Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles, CA, and The Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas in Austin, TX. A complete list of workshops sorted by year is included at the end of the article.
Each institute will enroll 15 participants. Advanced graduate students and junior faculty at U.S. colleges and universities receive priority consideration. Applications will also be accepted from advanced graduate students and junior faculty at Canadian institutions, professional staff of U.S. and Canadian libraries and museums, and from qualified independent scholars. Applicants must possess advanced language skills. Scholars selected for the institutes will receive a stipend to help cover the cost of attending.
Complete information about the paleography institutes is available at The Newberry Library Center for Renaissance Studies website.
List of Paleography Institutes by Year
2009
Huntington Library (San Marino, CA) - Mellon Summer Institute in Spanish Paleography
Getty Research Institute (Los Angeles, CA) - Mellon Summer Institute in Italian Paleography
2010
Folger Shakespeare Library (Washington, DC) - Mellon Summer Institute in English Paleography
Newberry Library (Chicago, IL) - Mellon Summer Institute in French Paleography
2011
Newberry Library (Chicago, IL) - Mellon Summer Institute in Italian Paleography
Harry Ransom Center (Austin, TX) - Mellon Summer Institute in Spanish Paleography
2012
Huntington Library (San Marino, CA) - Mellon Summer Institute in English Paleography
Newberry Library (Chicago, IL) - Mellon Summer Institute in French Paleography
