Workshop: A Troubadour's Offering in a Courtly Keepsake Medievalism and 19th-Centrury Material Cultures

Organised by Dr Katie Garner (University of St Andrews) and Matteo Schiavone (Freiburg University)
Tuesday, 13th October, 2:15-5:00pm
Room 208 (Lapworth Room), Irvine Building

This workshop will examine the presence of medievally-inspired material, in both visual and textual form, in literary annuals and giftbooks from the 1820s-40s. Why do authors go back to medieval material, and what are the affordances of such adaptations? How did the commercial setting of the annual or giftbook encourage the production of verse, prose or illustrations on medieval topics? What kinds of medieval subjects feature and to what extent are they absorbed into the annuals' predominantly decorative and sentimental style?

The workshop will begin with an introduction to literary annuals, giftbooks and nineteenth-century medievalism, move to Special Collections to examine the university's collections of annuals and giftbooks, and finish with a group discussion of medievalism and material culture in the annuals focused on significant examples.

The workshop is open to postgraduates and staff in any discipline. To book a place please email Matteo Schiavone: [email protected]

Rough timings:
2.15-3.00 Introduction: Annuals, giftbooks and nineteenth-century medievalism
3.00-4.00 Viewing of annuals and giftbooks in Special Collections
4.00-5.00 Round Table discussion

Join us for an afternoon of courtly encounters at the library's Special Collections section and lively discussions at the Round Table!

Sign up at: [email protected]

Only limited places available!