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Medieval Publishing will be hit by EU Plan

Last year UK proposed to make research papers stemming from work paid by British Taxpayer’s free online by 2014. July 16 the proposal was confirmed. Next day the European Commission followed the plan of the UK government and made all EU-funded scientific research available for free from 2014. It is believed that scientists will benefit, as they will be able to more productive as no publishers will be able to act as gatekeepers and scholars – due to copyright issues will not be obliged to publish the same results twice albeit with different wording (so-called “slicing the salami thin”). Likewise voluntary and charitable organisations as well as independent scholars will be able to access information hitherto reserved for Universities. “Last, but certainly not least, citizens will have direct access to publicly-funded research in addition to benefitting from the indirect effects resulting from everybody else’s faster access”, says the Memo.

As a first step, the Commission will make open access to scientific publications a general principle of Horizon 2020, the EU’s Research & Innovation funding programme for 2014-2020. As of 2014, all articles produced with funding from Horizon 2020 will have to be accessible: Articles will either have to be made immediately accessible online by the publisher, which can get reimbursement of up-front for publication costs, or researchers will be obliged to make their articles available through an open access repository no later than six months (12 months for articles in the fields of social sciences and humanities) after publication (“Green” open access).

In a press release the European Commissioner for Research and Innovation, Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, declared that open access to scientific papers and data “will speed up important breakthroughs by our researchers and businesses, boosting knowledge and competitiveness in Europe.”

This will definitively hit the lucrative business of Medieval History Publishing as most European Research in the Humanities is funded by the member-states. Of course there will still be a market in US, but as much research here is dependent on grants from European Universities – hosting visiting overseas scholars working in Archives or Museums – matters will not be that simple.

From a recent roundtable discussion on “The Future of Academic Publication” in Leeds at the 19th International Medieval Congress it appeared that the usual print-run for a book is 300, with 50 presented to the authors, while app 200 – 250 are sold to (American) University Libraries. As most books published by the more prestigious publishers are sold on average for between €100 -120 (whether in print or as an E-Book) this is a lucrative business.

Although the publishers at the roundtable stressed the value of their work connected with the so-called “editorial process”, some scholars, who were present at a later reception, afterwards claimed, that they did most of the editing themselves. Further it was apparent that in a number of instances, these scholars had even been obliged to pay for the editing process, thus in reality the privilege to publish. Further some scholars had experienced that publications, they had contributed to, were not available at their national or academic libraries (in the minor European countries). As copyright was strictly policed, they were not even allowed to circulate their results among colleagues. Added to this should be the dissatisfaction with the fact that the large publishing houses routinely declined collections of papers from conferences. Finally a general dissatisfaction with the quality of the publications was sounded: photos and illustrations were printed in non-colours and LD.

“Something has to give”, as one scholar voiced it! Apparently sooner than later if the different European Countries follow up on the recent decisions by the Commission.

Karen Schousboe

Archita Church in Transsylvania Source Wikipedia - before restoration

Fortified Churches

Recently a new app was launched, which tells the story about the fortified churches in Transylvania in Romania and give precise directions about location, opening times etc.

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Anglo-Saxon Art

Anglo-Saxon Art.  A New History. 
Leslie Webster
The British Museum Press 2012

One of the very puzzling things about the more prominent pieces of Anglo-Saxon Art – the jewellery, the weapons, the manuscripts etc. – are their intricate character and their invitation to close-up inspection.

The Anglo-Saxons – not least the early bands of warriors of the 5th century and their ancestors up until mid 9th century – must have presented themselves as close-knit elites, bands of brothers.  How else explain the fact that you nearly would have had to sit on the lap of a chieftain or a kinglet to get a glimpse of his brooches; or stand close to the altar at mass to get a glimpse of the book-craft and miniatures.

Of course there were stone sculptures to entice the public to enter the churches and marvel at the wall-paintings, the glittering textiles and the tabernacles of shrines and imported icons. And we might believe that at some point there existed a carved wooden sculpture-tradition, now completely lost except for a few fragments. In general though, the art of the Anglo-Saxons was best consumed close up.

Accordingly the art of the Anglo-Saxons is no easy matter to tackle head on, as is very well documented by a new introduction to the various art forms, written by archaeologist and art-historian, Leslie Webster.

Following this insight – that each piece of art – must be read carefully, the book very appropriately opens with an introductory chapter, which shows what might be gained from a close reading of the images, and seeing the text.

One of the more fascinating examples of this is a silver gilt pommel from the Woodeaton area in Oxfordshire. Seen from the wearer’s point of view it has the form of  a horned animal. Seen from the enemy’s point of view it looks like a stinging bee or a winged bird, where the blade might have presented the sting or the beak. Indeed, very cheeky… (seen on page 36).

Having “learned” to read the artistic language, we are treated to a numer of well-written chapters outlining the heavy Roman influence, both the ancient and Christian. The final chapters present a more secular perspective and introduce the reader to the connections between “Art and Power” and the “Viking Impact”. Illustrated with more than 200 colour and black-and-white illustrations the book gives us ample opportunity to get close to this very close-knit social world, its mentality and world-view.

If one wishes to explain the entangled and obviously complex mythic stories of fabulous birds or crouching dogs, twisting in shaman-like transcendence, this is a good start. And where else learn to properly appreciate the artistic merits of the miniatures in the manuscripts?

There is always room for some quibble. Does it make sense to publish an introduction to Anglo-Saxon Art and leaving out an introduction to another of the major art-forms, poetry? Especially as the deep layers of storytelling found in many of the art-pieces seem to be echoed in literature and poetry – as may be witnessed by the visual program of Franks Casket, which is discussed in some detail in the book, while the inscriptions are only cursorily touched upon.

Maybe, however, this will be remedied in the next publication from the pen of Leslie Webster: a monograph of the said casket and to be published in the autumn.

Until then we have to be content with this fascinating and tho-roughly enjoyable introduction; as with all good reads it invites us to further explorations, museum visits and detailed examination of the many pieces of arts presented here.

Early medieval Northumbria

Early Medieval Northumbria. Kingdoms and Communities, AD 450 -1100.
David Petts and Sam Turner (eds).
Studies in the Early Middle Ages. Vol 24.
Brepols 2011.

In a sense, early medieval Northumbria is an enigma. On one hand it presents us with some of the most evocative historical sources – foremost the writings of Bede, but also other material like hagiographies and letters. On the other hand charters are non-existent as are compilations of law. This leaves the Early Medieval Northumbrian historian with a dire need to consult archaeologists, art historians, onomastic scholars, biologist and zoologists in order to get a better grip on the lives and thoughts of people at that time. And vice versa!

In 2006 a group of researchers got together in Newcastle in order to try and bridge the many traditions and see if the merging of their different nitty-gritty and specialised enquiries might throw new light on the region as well as raise the interdisciplinary awareness of the need for further collaboration.

The papers from this conference are now available in a very interesting edition prepared by Davis Petts from Durham University and Sam Turner from Newcastle.

Of course, as with any collection of papers, you have to sift the wheat from the chaff. Nevertheless it is a very interesting collection, in so far as it really tries to bring the reader up to date on the many lingering questions and scholarly controversies: To what extent constituted the Anglo-Saxon immigration a brutal subjugation of the British? Or was there rather an atmosphere of “continuity and convivencia ”, which the archaeological excavations of Yeavering have hinted at? Should Early Medieval Northumbria be considered a homogenous kingdom albeit marked by strife and upheavals? Or was it rather a poly-cultural region consisting of an Anglo-Saxon coastal region and a less subdued hinterland in the West, characterised as a frontier zone – a zone of process more than place?

Lots of good questions and many interesting answers! As an example may be mentioned the analysis by Jenny Walker of the great halls at Doon Hill and Yeavering, showing how the “later” halls from the first half of the 7th century might be interpreted as evidence for a more hierarchical social structure, organising space for ritual processions and gatherings in order to showcase might and power of a new kind. Or as claimed by Colm O’Brien in his revaluation of the excavations at Yeavering: “ Here the elite played out inside great timber constructions, clad to simulate Roman stone, the drama of the Hall in which a king received and gave honour, and fealty was confirmed with gold and mead”.

There is definitely and increased appreciation of the need for regional studies as well as the need for more holistic oriented studies of the material culture in order to grasp Early Medieval History. For a long time this was a specialty of German Historians.

Now, it seems the English are getting there…