1995 Congress

January 1, 2014 in Conference Announcement, ICMS, International Congress on Medieval Studies, Kalamazoo

30th International Congress on Medieval Studies

4-7 May 1995

[First published on 9 August 2014, with updates]

At the 1995 Congress, the Research Group on Manuscript Evidence sponsored one Session. This appearance followed from the preparations already in hand for a transfer to the United States, as described in the 1994 Congress.

During the months following the 1994 Congress, and with the completion in October of the long-term Research Project on “Anglo-Saxon and Related Manuscripts” at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, from which the Research Group on Manuscript Evidence had emerged, the Research Group moved its principal base to the United States — however, unexpectedly, to Princeton.

Its participation in the 1995 Congress represents its first appearance there as an organization based in North America. The developments from this transition are recorded overall in our website.  This Session set the stage.

*****

Session Sponsored by the Research Group on Manuscript Evidence

Logo of the Research Group on Manuscript Evidence in Monochrome Version“Rediscovering and Reconstructing Lost Manuscripts”

Organizer and Presider: Mildred Budny

Presenters:

  • Mildred Budny ([formerly] The Parker Library, Corpus Christi College), “The Tip of the Iceberg:  Reconstructing Lost Manuscripts from Fragments”
  • Timothy Graham (Western Michigan University), “Lost, Hidden, and Disguised Elements in Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts”
  • Meradith T. McMunn (Rhode Island College), “Reconstructing a Missing Manuscript of the Roman de la Rose

The Abstracts of the papers by Mildred Budny and Timothy Graham are published in the Old English Newsletter, 28:3 (Spring 1995), A-22–A-23 and A-23, now archived online.

*****

The full 1995 Congress Program is available as 30th International Congress on Medieval Studies.

*****

The Next Congresses

In the next few years after this Congress, for some years the Research Group concentrated its energies on other work, notably

Additional activities can be followed among our Events.

'Insular, Anglo-Saxon, and Early Anglo-Norman Manuscript Art at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge: An Illustrated Catalogue', Front Cover of Volume II: PlatesAt the 1997 Congress, the Research Group held a pair of Receptions to celebrate the publication of the 2-volume Illustrated Catalogue, with ‘Cast & Crew Parties’ and Book-Signings.

We resumed our Sponsored Sessions at the Congress in 2003, with regular appearances from then onwards.  Soon our practice extended also to include Co-Sponsored Sessions (2006–), in collaboration with several organizations, starting with the Societas Magica.  Over time, we added the traditions of Business Meetings, Poster Displays (starting with the 2011 Congress), and co-sponsored Receptions (starting with our 2014 Anniversary Reception).

Our Archive of Congress Activities records these proceedings.

Starting in 2006, our first website (formerly at http://manuscriptevidence.org/data/, updated to this website in 2014) announced the stages for the preparations and accomplishment of each Congress on a single Page, with updates as the work progressed. Thus that Page reflected only the current, or most recent, stage, while the earlier stages ‘disappeared’ behind the scenes.

However, with our redesigned website (2014–), we can record the different stages of preparation for, and accomplishment of, a given Congress through a series of blogposts.  Reflecting the progress through the year, starting with 2014, they may advance, for example,

  • from the Proposed Events and the Call for Papers,
  • through the Program Schedule, with Updates and the Abstracts of Papers,
  • to the Report of the Congress as accomplished, sometimes also with a Report of the Reception (as for 2014 Anniversary Reception and 2015) and a Report Behind the Scenes (as for 2016).

It is also possible to exhibit the Posters for a given Congress (since 2011) not only within the Report for that Congress but also in our Gallery of Posters on Display, which now includes Posters for our other Events as well.

*****