Seventh Conference – Unique and Universal: Challenges for the Manuscript Librarian

Organized by: LIBER’s Manuscript Librarians Group and CERL Manuscripts Working Group

Speaker(s): Speaker(s):

The unique character of manuscripts and the universal content, the universal interest and the universal responsibility gave the frame and the opportunity for 14 colleagues to present their papers and to enter into discussion about their work and their ideas. All papers had in common a very practice-oriented approach. Thus the conference was very much dedicated to those themes which in all European Manuscript Departments are regarded as important for today’s works as well as for future developments.

Programme

The conference focused on these themes:

Wednesday 25 May

– 13.15: Registration

– 14.00: Helen Shenton (Librarian and College Archivist, Trinity College Dublin), Welcome.

Session 1: chair, Bernard Meehan

– 14.10: Commemoration
Estelle Gittins (Library TCD) – Ireland’s Decade of Commemoration: Marking 1916 in the Library of Trinity College Dublin

– 14.40-16.00: Post-digital Issues and Concerns

• Jennifer Edmond (TCD) – CENDARI: what next?
• Jane Ohlmeyer (TCD) – The 1641 Depositions: what now?

– 16.00-16.30: tea

Session 2: chair, Jutta Weber

-16.30-17.30: Materiality

• Bernard Meehan (Library TCD) – ‘The Faddan More Psalter
• Susie Bioletti (Library TCD) – Early Results from the “Early Irish Manuscripts” Project

– 18.00: Reception in Old Library with Book of Kells and exhibition of treasures

Thursday 26 May

Session 3: chair, Felicity O’Mahony

– 09.30-11.00: Materiality

• Ad Leerintveld (Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Netherlands) – Authenticating the coat of arms in a Gruuthuse manuscript
• Birgit Vinther Hansen (Kongelige Bibliotek, Copenhagen) – Exhibition and fading of manuscripts: microfadometry and a lighting policy to increase exposure and reduce risk
• Nicholas Pickwoad (University of the Arts, London) – Ligatus: the importance of bindings and their description

– 11.00-11.30: coffee

Session 4: chair, Jane Maxwell

– 11.30-13.00: Commemoration

• Claire Breay (British Library) – Commemorating the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta in 2015
• Rebecca Boxler Ødegaard and Bente Granrud (National Library of Norway) – A decade of writer’s commemorations – and what we have learned
• Matthew Shaw (Institute of Historical Research, London) – Europeana 1914-1918 and creating a digital collective memory

– 13.00-14.00: lunch

Session 5: chair, Ellen O’Flaherty

– 14.00-15.30: Post- digital Issues and Concerns

Matthew McGrattan (Bodleian Library Oxford) – International Image Interoperability Framework and Bodley
Allen Packwood (Churchill College, Cambridge) – ‘The Churchill Papers: a modern historical epic
Gerhard Müller (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin) – Understanding Archival Metadata and Shaping Perspectives on the Benefits of Standards beyond the Simple Search

– 15.30-16.00: tea

– 16.00-16.45: discussion, led by Jutta Weber (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin)

– 17.00-19.00: Reception at Royal Irish Academy and viewing of early medieval Irish manuscripts. Welcome by Siobhán Fitzpatrick, Librarian.

– 19.30: Conference Dinner: Dunne and Crescenzi, South Frederick Street, Dublin 2.

Friday 27 May

Private visits to Marsh’s Library and Chester Beatty Library

– 08.50: Meet at Trinity College front gate

– 09.15-10.15: Marsh’s Library: Guided tour by Dr Jason McElligott, Keeper of Marsh’s Library, of the exhibition dealing with the 1916 Rising, as well as the opportunity to view rare survivals of medieval fragments found inside the bindings of early-modern books.

– 10.45-11.45: Chester Beatty Library: limited to two groups of 20. Meet at main reception of Chester Beatty Library:

• Group 1: Tour of ‘Lapis & Gold: The Story of the Ruzbihan Qur’an’ – Temporary Gallery with Dr Elaine Wright, Curator of Islamic Collections
• Group 2: Highlights from the East Asian Collections – Reading Room with Dr Mary Redfern, Curator of the East Asian Collections

– 11.15: Meet at main reception. Reverse tours

– 11.45: End

Opportunity to explore the Chester Beatty Library’s two permanent galleries (self-guided).

Presentations

Commemorations and Anniversaries

The conference started with three presentations by colleagues of the TCD and from the United Kingdom and Norway which gave a broad overview of ongoing work in the libraries.

Estelle Gittins (Library TCD) – Ireland’s Decade of Commemoration: Marking 1916 in the Library of Trinity College Dublin
Jennifer Edmond (TCD) – ‘CENDARI: what next?’ – Link: http://www.cendari.eu/ – Presentation slides
Jane Ohlmeyer (TCD) – ‘The 1641 Depositions: what now?’
Claire Breay (British Library) – Commemorating the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta in 2015
Rebecca Boxler Ødegaard and Bente Granrud (National Library of Norway) – A decade of writer’s commemorations – and what we have learned – Links: Presentation Slides – Text Boxler Ødegaard – Text Granrud
Matthew Shaw (Institute of Historical Research, London), ‘Europeana 1914-1918 and creating a digital collective memory’ – Links: http://www.europeana1914-1918.eu/ – Presentation Slides

Materiality
The next papers dealt with the materiality of manuscripts. After two presentations from the TCD colleagues from the Netherlands, Denmark, and the United Kingdom informed about ongoing research with the manuscripts themselves.

Bernard Meehan (Library TCD) – The Faddan More Psalter
Susie Bioletti (Library TCD) – Early Results from the “Early Irish Manuscripts” Project
Ad Leerintveld (Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Netherlands), Authenticating the coat of arms in a Gruuthuse manuscript -Links: Presentation slides – Text Leerintveld
Birgit Vinther Hansen (Kongelige Bibliotek, Copenhagen) – Exhibition and fading of manuscripts: microfadometry and a lighting policy to increase exposure and reduce risk
Nicholas Pickwoad (University of the Arts, London) – Ligatus: the importance of bindings and their description

Post-digital Issues and Concerns
The conference ended with papers and discussion about the future of manuscript librarians work and the challenges and chances for scholars and the work with digital material. The papers were given by colleagues from the United Kingdom and from Germany.

Matthew McGrattan (Bodleian Library Oxford)- International Image Interoperability Framework and Bodley
Allen Packwood (Churchill College, Cambridge) – The Churchill Papers: a modern historical epic – Links: Presentation slides – Text Packwood
Gerhard Müller (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin): Understanding Archival Metadata and Shaping Perspectives on the Benefits of Standards beyond the Simple Search