Scribbling Through History is a three-day workshop devoted to the relationships between graffiti, individual expression and social interactions, from ancient times until the present day. The conference will take place at The Ertegun House, University of Oxford, between 23-25 September 2013.
Although many primary studies of such inscriptions have been carried out, this explanatory workshop will for the first time address historical graffiti in a holistic manner as a specific cultural practice and as an anthropological object that illuminates these key aspects of human experience. By fostering cross-regional, diachronic and integrative approaches, the workshop will develop new frameworks and agenda for this research.
Participants :
Roger Bagnall (Ancient History, New York University) – Solemnity and Play: the Mentality of the Smyrna Graffiti’
Paul Bertrand (Medieval History, Université de Louvain) – Graffiti and ordinary writing in the Middle Ages
Alain Delattre (Coptic, Greek, Papyrology, Université Libre de Bruxelles) – Local cults, pilgrimages and religious life. Christian inscriptions in the Theban Mountain
Glen Dudbridge (Chinese literature and culture, Oxford University) – Verses on walls in medieval China’
Elizabeth Frood (Egyptology, Oxford University) – Temple Graffiti in Ancient Egypt and Karnak.
Susanna Gebhardt (Early Modern England, Université de Genève) – Early Modern Wall-Writing
Omur Harmansah (Western Asian Archaeology, Brown University) – Miraculous Image and The Living Rock: Event and Deep Time at Anatolian Rock Reliefs’
Frédéric Imbert (Epigraphie arabe et islamique, Université d’Aix en Provence) – Islamic graffiti in Arabia during the two first centuries of Islam’
Cornelia Kleinitz (African Archaeology) – Writing and image making practices in the Meroitic world: contextualizing the graffiti of Musawwarat es Sufra, Sudan
Michael MacDonald (Ancient Arabia, Syria and Jordan, Oxford University) – The Nabataean and Ancient North Arabian graffiti: their use, function and distribution
Hana Navratilova (Egyptology, Metropolitan Museum of Arts) – Visitors graffiti in Ancient Egypt and the Memphite necropoleis
Elisabeth Olton (Maya history, University of New Mexico) – A Witness to History: Classic Maya Graffiti from Tikal, Guatemala
Richard Salomon (Ancient India, University of Washington) – Pilgrims, sailors and calligraphers: graffiti in the Indian world and beyond’. NB: R. Salomon will also (and separately) present his reflexion about pioneers’ graffiti in North America.
Karen Stern (Jews history in the Graeco-Roman world, Brooklyn College) – Methods to their madness? Deciphering mortuary graffiti of ancient Jews and their Levantine neighbours
Pierre Tallet (Egyptology, Université de Paris-Sorbonne) – Desert inscriptions in Ancient Egypt: the example of Sinai
Chairs and Discussants:
Prof. John Baines (Egyptology)
Dr. Jennifer Baird (Roman Archaeology)
Dr. Fredrik Hagen (Egyptology)
Dr. Christian Jacob (Anthropology)
Dr. Bryan Ward-Perkins (Late Roman History)
Scribbling through History will take place between 23-25 September 2013, at Ertegun House, 37A St Giles, Oxford, OX1 3LD [map]. The registration fee for attendees is £50, with coffee, lunch, and afternoon tea are provided for all participants. To register your interest and apply for a place, please address graffitioxford@gmail.com before 15 September 2013.
Support for the conference has been kindly provided by The John Fell OUP Research Fund, the Budge Fund (University College), the Faculty of Oriental Studies, the Ertegun House, and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (UMR 8167 – Orient & Méditerranée/Mondes Pharaoniques).
To apply for a place, please address graffitioxford@gmail.com.
For further information please address the organiser, Chloé Ragazzoli (chloe.ragazzoli@orinst.ox.ac.uk), or the conference secretary, Charles Draper (charles.draper@queens.ox.ac.uk).
L'Agenda des Médiévistes 