ON RESEARCH AND CAREER PATHWAYS IN TEXTILE HERITAGE: FINDING RELEVANCE & APPLYING FOR FUNDING

 29^th – 30^th of July 2024

Organization:

COST Action EuroWeb – Europe through Textiles (CA19131)

Organizing Committee:

Francisco B. Gomes (University of Lisbon, PT),

Agata Ulanowska (University of Warsaw, PL),

Marie-Louise Nosch (University of Copenhagen – Centre for Textile Research, DK)

& Riina Rammo (University of Tartu, EE)

***

Nowadays, work on Textile Heritage takes place in an increasingly competitive research ecosystem. In a context where resources are often limited, and even insufficient, researchers are increasingly called upon to justify the relevance of their research, not just for their specific scientific field, but also in regard to broad societal challenges.

This Training School aims to offer Early Career scholars and innovators some insights on how to raise the profile of their research by reflecting on how it can connect with current concerns shared by a larger audience.

In particular, it will cover the potential implications for Textile Heritage research of new European policies regarding the sustainability of the textile sector, reflecting on potential synergies with other stakeholders in the economic and political arenas. Other facets of the potential social and political relevance of work in the textile field will also be addressed.

This Training School will also serve as a venue for exchanging experiences regarding the application and management of research projects related to Textile Heritage. A roaster of experts with experience on this topic will share their insights and offer practical advice to future applicants.

Finally, it will also act as the launch of a new EuroWeb mentorship programme, in which experienced mentors will offer the benefit of their experience to Early Career researchers looking to develop their career further by applying for grants or funding for research projects.

***

 PROGRAMME

 Day 1 – 29/07

 Session 1

09:00 – 09:45 CET

Current trends in European policy relating to the textiles and fashion sector: potential implications for Textile Heritage research

Francisco B. Gomes

 09:45 – 10:00 CET

COFFEE BREAK

 Session 2

10:00 – 11:30 CET

Project Showcases

11:30 – 12:00 CET

Incorporating Science Communication and Outreach into Research Projects: Insights from the EuroWeb Communication Strategy

Francisco B. Gomes

12:00 – 14:00 CET

LUNCH BREAK

Session 3

14:00 – 15:00 CET

Break-out Group Discussions

15:00 – 16:00 CET

Presentations and Joint Discussion

Day 2 – 30/07

Session 4

09:00 – 10:30 CET

Preparing and Writing Competitive CVs and Grant Applications

Marie-Louise Nosch

10:30 – 10:45 CET

COFFEE BREAK

Session 5

10:45 – 13:30 CET

Sharing Experiences with Grant Applications and Management

13:30 – 15:00

LUNCH BREAK

15:00 – 17:00

One-on-one mentorship sessions

Full programme available here.

***

For any practical questions regarding the Training School and the programme, please contact Francisco B. Gomes (franciscojbgomes@gmail.com).

– Mineralized textiles from Pompeii as a case study –

PROGRAMME

Monday, 15 April 2024

11:00-11:30 Introduction

Christina Margariti, Liviu Iancu, Francesca Coletti

11:30-12:30 Mineralised textiles excavated in Pompeii

Francesca Coletti

12:30-13:30 Lunch break

13:30-16:00 Tour of the ancient city of Pompeii

Tuesday, 16 April 2024

09:30-11:00 The process of mineralisation of textiles in archaeological contexts

Christina Margariti, Francesca Coletti

11:00-12:30 Mineralized textiles: a perspective from the study of metal artefacts

Liviu Iancu

12:30-14:00 Lunch break

14:00-16:00 The conservation of mineralised textiles

Christina Margariti

Wednesday, 17 April 2024

09.30-11:00 Documentation and technological analysis of textiles

11:00-12:30 Documentation and study of mineralised textiles with microscopes – Hands-on practice

Christina Margariti, Liviu Iancu, Francesca Coletti

12:30-14:00 Lunch break

14:00-16:00 Documentation and study of mineralised textiles with microscopes – Hands-on practice

Francesca Coletti, Liviu Iancu, Christina Margariti

Thursday, 19 April 2024

09:30-11:30 Sampling and analysis of mineralised textiles

Christina Margariti, Francesca Coletti

11:30-12:30 Appropriate storage and packing methods and materials for transport of mineralised textiles

Christina Margariti

12:30-14:00 Lunch break

14:00-16:00 Presentations of documentation by participants and discussion

Trainers:
Francesca Coletti (Sapienza University of Rome)
Christina Margariti (The Hellenic Ministry of Culture)
Liviu Iancu (The Institute for Advanced Studies in Levant Culture and Civilization in Bucharest)

Full programme available here.

Online from Warsaw, on 7th of June 2023, 9:30–13:30 AM, CEST (with a break at 11:15–11:45).

The purpose of this mini-training school is to offer basic training in the use of Dino-Lite-type digital microscopes, as well as to establish a common protocol for analysing excavated textiles, textile imprints on clay and use-wear marks on textile tools, based on the best practices and knowledge of both participating trainers and trainees. Please see the link for the programme and registration details:

Mini-Training School in the Use of Dino-Lite_Type Digital Microscopes for Textile Analysis

All users of Dino-Lite microscopes are also kindly requested to complete the poll by 22nd May 2023: https://forms.gle/okFNrRj5sBbSE9qh9

We look forward to seeing you online!

The Organisers: Agata Ulanowska, Bela Dimova, Christina Margariti, and Magdalena Woźniak

EuroWeb, in collaboration with the Ecole française d’Athènes, the University of Florence and the INSTAP SCEC, is organising a one-week training school on Minoan textile production. The objective of the course is to familiarise participants with the textile technology used during the Bronze Age in Crete, through some seminars, hands-on experience, and experimental activity. The participants will study and recreate Minoan textile tools, and will learn to spin and weave using them. A maximum of 8 participants will be accepted for the school, which is designed for Ph.D. students or Early Research Investigators interested in ancient textile technology, textile archaeology and Minoan daily life. Participants should be members of the COST Action CA 19131 and have an e-COST account.

The School will offer a combination of lectures and hands-on practice on:

• Minoan textile production;
• Minoan textile equipment;
• Petrography;
• Preparing the fibres;
• Spinning;
• Arming the warp-weighted loom;
• Weaving.

Detailed programme is to be found here

Eligibility

Trainees eligible to be reimbursed:

• Formal membership in EuroWeb and e-COST profile;
• Trainees shall be engaged in an official research programme as a PhD Student or postdoctoral fellow or can be employed by, or affiliated to, an institution, organisation or legal entity which has within its remit a clear association with performing research;
• Trainees from COST Full Members / COST Cooperating Members;
• Action MC Observer from NNC;
• Trainees from Approved European RTD Organisations;

Costs

Travel costs and daily allowances reduced to 162 EUR/day can be reimbursed to 8 applicants. The priority will be given to PhD students, ECI (Early Career Investigators) and researchers from ITC (Inclusiveness Target Countries)

Dates

The workshop will take place from Monday 03 July to Friday 07 July 2023, on the excavations premises of the Ecole française d’Athènes, at the archaeological site of Malia, Crete (Greece).

Deadline for applications

Applications must be submitted by 16^th of May 2023 at 23.00 CET by e-mail to one of the organisers:

a.ulanowska@uw.edu.pl

mariaemanuela.alberti@unifi.it

kalliope.sarri@gmail.com

Applications will include one paragraph on the applicant’s background and motivation in participating, and a CV.

For further information or questions:

Prof. Maria Emanuela Alberti mariaemanuela.alberti@unifi.it

EuroWeb, in collaboration with the École française d’Athènes, the University of Florence and the INSTAP SCEC, is organising a one-week training school on Minoan textile production. The objective of the course is to familiarise participants with the textile technology used during the Bronze Age in Crete, through some seminars, hands-on experience, and experimental activity. The participants will study and recreate Minoan textile tools, and will learn to spin and weave using them. A maximum of 8 participants will be accepted for the school, which is designed for Ph.D. students or Early Research Investigators interested in ancient textile technology, textile archaeology and Minoan daily life. Participants should be members of the COST Action CA 19131 and have an e-COST account.

The workshop will offer a combination of lectures and hands-on practice on:

• Minoan textile production;
• Minoan textile equipment;
• Petrography;
• Preparing the fibres;
• Spinning;
• Arming the warp-weighted loom;
• Weaving.

Eligibility

Trainees eligible to be reimbursed:

• Formal membership in EuroWeb and e-COST profile;
• Trainees shall be engaged in an official research programme as a PhD Student or postdoctoral fellow or can be employed by, or affiliated to, an institution, organisation or legal entity which has within its remit a clear association with performing research;
• Trainees from COST Full Members / COST Cooperating Members;
• Action MC Observer from NNC;
• Trainees from Approved European RTD Organisations;

Costs

Travel costs and daily allowances reduced to 162 EUR/day can be reimbursed to 8 applicants. The priority will be given to PhD students, ECI (Early Career Investigators) and researchers from ITC (Inclusiveness Target Countries)

Dates

The workshop will take place from Monday 03 July to Friday 07 July 2023, on the excavations premises of the Ecole française d’Athènes, at the archaeological site of Malia, Crete (Greece).

Deadline for applications

Applications must be submitted by 16^th of May 2023 at 23.00 CET by e-mail to one of the organisers:

a.ulanowska@uw.edu.pl

mariaemanuela.alberti@unifi.it

kalliope.sarri@gmail.com

Applications will include one paragraph on the applicant’s background and motivation in participating, and a CV.

For further information or questions:

Prof. Maria Emanuela Alberti mariaemanuela.alberti@unifi.it

The objective of the course is to familiarise participants with the study and handling of excavated textiles. A maximum of 10 participants will be accepted for the school, which is designed for postgraduate or advanced students interested in textile archaeology and archaeological science and professional archaeologists, conservators, curators who may occasionally need to work with textiles.

Participants should be members of the COST Action CA 19131 and have an e-COST account.

The workshop will offer a combination of lectures and hands-on practice on:

● Instrumental analysis
● First aid practices
● Selection of appropriate packing materials
● Documentation
● Weave analysis
● Sampling
● Fibre identification

Eligibility

Trainees eligible to be reimbursed:

● Membership in EuroWeb and e-cost account
● Trainees shall be engaged in an official research programme as a PhD Student or postdoctoral fellow or can be employed by, or affiliated to, an institution, organisation or legal entity which has within its remit a clear association with performing research.
● Trainees from COST Full Members / COST Cooperating Members.
● Action MC Observer from NNC.
● Trainees from Approved European RTD Organisations.

Costs

If possible, travel costs and daily allowances (incl. accommodation, meals etc.) will be covered. Expenses will be covered first and foremost for PhD students, ECI (Early Career Investigators) and researchers from ITC (Inclusiveness Target Countries).

Dates

The workshop will take place from Monday 22 August to Friday 26 August 2022, at CTR/UCPH in Copenhagen, DK.

Deadline for applications

Applications must be submitted by 30 June 2022 via the online application form found here.

Applications will include one paragraph on the applicant’s background and motivation in participating, and a CV.

For further information or questions:

Questions about the program – Dr Christina Margariti euroweb.wp1@gmail.com
Questions about the application – Dr Hana Lukesova hana.lukesova@uib.no
Questions about the venue place Dr Elsa Yvanez at elsa.yvanez@gmail.com

The Call for Participants can be found  here.
The Proposed Programme can be found here.

Organised by Working Groups 2, 3 & 4
Organisers: Francesco Meo, Louise Quillien, Magdalena Wozniak

Embroidery was a technique used by textile craftsmen and women since the earliest Antiquity and has given birth to a great diversity of textile traditions in the various parts of the world. Embroidery allows to paint complex patterns on textiles, tell stories and convey messages thanks to figurative and non-figurative patterns, and through calligraphed words. Adding material on an existing fabric, this technique transforms it, adding relief, shine, or colour, enhancing its artistic, technical, and economic qualities. Thanks to the opportunities of the Euroweb network, we aim to offer training on this diverse and complex technique and to gather researchers, trainers, and trainees, of different specializations in order to encourage the exchanges of knowledge and know-how.

Being an event organized jointly by Working Groups 2, 3 and 4, the Training School will especially address the following questions:

• What was the terminology used to describe this technique, tools, and materials in ancient languages and how to properly translate them in modern languages?
• How to identify embroidery through ancient sources: textile remains, texts and iconography?
• What embroidery and embroiders tells us of past societies and cultures: what stories tells the embroidered textiles?
• When and how people wear embroidered garments and made embroidered textiles; were embroideries made by specialized craftsmen?

This training school will offer:
– theorical trainings on embroidery: terminology, technique, fibres and tools
– practical trainings
– presentations of case studies by trainees

PROGRAMME

DAY 1 – 16 MAY 2022

SESSION 1 – THEORY

10.00-10.30 OPENING AND WELCOME

10.30-10.45 Embroidery and decoration of fabrics in pre-Roman South Italy
Francesco Meo (University of Salento, Italy)

10.45-11.15 The Cuthbert Maniple Recreation Project: a discussion about early medieval embroidery techniques and materials’
Katrin Kania (Pallia – Mittelalter hautnah, Germany) & Alexandra Makin (University of Glasgow, United Kingdom)

11.15-11.30 DISCUSSION

11.30-12.00 COFFEE BREAK

12.00-12.30 Introduction to Embroidery from the Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period: Terminology, Techniques, and Workshop Practices
Astrid Castres (École pratique des Hautes Études, France)

12.30-12.45 Byzantine textiles in Albania: The Epitaph of Gllavenica
Erilda Selaj (Studio House Kadare – Tirana, Albania)

12.45-13.00 DISCUSSION

13.00 LUNCH

SESSION 2 – PRACTICE WITH CRAFTSPEOPLE
for 12 selected people from Albania, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Poland, Romania, Switzerland, Tunisia, United Kingdom.

15.00-16.30 Salento and its traditional embroidery
Anna Borgia (Punto Maglie Association, Italy)

16.30-17.00 COFFEE BREAK

17.00-18.00 Salento and its traditional embroidery
Anna Borgia (Punto Maglie Association, Italy)

DAY 2 – 17 MAY 2022

10.00-11.00 The art of filet
Tiziana Zappatore (University of Salento, Italy)

11.00-11.30 COFFEE BREAK

11.30-13.00 The art of filet
Tiziana Zappatore (University of Salento, Italy)

13.00 LUNCH

15.00-16.30 Salento and its traditional embroidery
Anna Borgia (Punto Maglie Association, Italy)

16.30-17.00 COFFEE BREAK

17.00-18.00 Salento and its traditional embroidery
Anna Borgia (Punto Maglie Association, Italy)

DAY 3 – 18 MAY 2022

10.00-11.00 The 4th century BC fabric of Herdonia: reproduction of its decorative pattern
Tiziana Zappatore (University of Salento, Italy)

11.00-11.30 COFFEE BREAK

11.30-13.00 The 4th century BC fabric of Herdonia: reproduction of its decorative pattern
Tiziana Zappatore (University of Salento, Italy)

13.00 LUNCH

15.00-17.00 The 4th century BC fabric of Herdonia: reproduction of its decorative pattern
Tiziana Zappatore (University of Salento, Italy)

17.00 CLOSING OF THE TRAINING SCHOOL

***

The full programme of the Ancient Fashion Week at Muro Leccese (16th – 20th of May) can be found here.

Venue: Online

Trainers: Zofia Kaczmarek and Elsa Yvanez

Deadline for application: 15 March 2022

General concept of the Training School

Clothing throughout the ages became not only a second skin – an extra layer to protect humankind from unfavourable weather, cold or hurt – it also became a means of non-verbal communication. As such, it is closely related to identity, portraying information about the wearer’s age, gender, social status, belief, or geographical origin. Clothing affects the way we behave and the roles we embrace in society. The choice of garments (voluntary or imposed) claims one’s place in the society and demonstrates the commitment to the traditions of the group. In that way, clothing is a very powerful type of artefact, maintaining a high level of human agency. In history and archaeology, it has often been used as an identity marker to identify different population groups, using iconography as the main source. However, this approach carries many inherent biases that modern research needs to question. Merging textile research and archaeological theory opens new perspectives and can bring clothing to its full documentary potential.

This Training School aims at providing a first “tool kit” to approach past dress practices in our study of past identities. This event will combine theoretical readings and lectures with the development of solid case-studies, giving examples of workflows from artefacts to interpretation. The trainees will be provided with a package of introductory bibliography and prepare their own case-study based on their material of choice and concepts they find relevant. Group discussions and feedback sessions will conclude the 2 days. After the Training School, we hope that each trainee will feel more confident in handling and applying theoretical concepts, and that everyone would have worked in producing their own case-study and be well on their way to a future talk or article.

How to apply?

Following the rules of COST Training Schools, interested trainees are kindly asked to apply before the 1st of March 2022, sending a short motivation letter (max. 500 words) and a CV to:

zfkaczmarek@gmail.com and elsa.yvanez@gmail.com.

We offer a maximum of 10 positions – the selection of the candidates will be processed by the Core Group. We especially encourage application of ECI and PhD students.

Preliminary programme

07/04/2022. Morning session

Introduction by trainers Zofia Kaczmarek and Elsa Yvanez
Presentations by trainers:
● Theme 1. Pushing the borders (ZK)
● Theme 2. Dressing rank and power (EY)

07/04/2022. Afternoon session

Trainees independent work:
Prepare a short presentation (c. 5 minutes) about a case-study of your choice. Please include a figure modelling the concepts and material and start elaborating a plan for a potential article or talk about this case-study. Consider answering questions such as: Which concepts do you find relevant to your case-study? Why? Who is the garment belonging to? What element of the garment can be considered diagnostic of a specific individual or group of people? What are the links between the garment (and its wearer) under study and the surrounding society? How could you visualise them? Please remember to also consider the limitations of your documentation.

08/04/2022. Morning session

Presentations by the trainees and feedback session.
Group discussion.

For further details, see the full Call for Participants.

Digital data is both a challenge and an opportunity for researchers these days. Whether or not ECIs want to use digital methods, it is by now important to be aware of the tools and methods available; the aim of this Training School was therefore to introduce PhD students and Early Career Scholars to work with digital tools and databases.

With this goal in mind, the event included a first day focused on discussions and reflections on the EuroWeb Digital Atlas as a deliverable of the COST Action designed to disseminate the network’s work and to raise awareness for Textile Heritage and research.

The following two days of the Training School were dedicated to practical training. On the one hand, Julie Unruh introduced participants into basic techniques to ensure data quality and normalization using OpenRefine; on the other, Pim van Bree offered a comprehensive introductory training on how to design your own research environment/ database using nodegoat.

Both sections of the Training School focused on working digitally with quantitative or serial data, but also touched on the display of data, e.g. using GIS/ digital cartography. This resulted in interesting discussions on the potential of digital tools for collaborative research through data collection and shared storage environments. Participants were also encouraged to bring their own data sets in order to experiment with creating and structuring their own databases and apply what they learned in the Training School to their own research.

The full programme of the Training School can be consulted here.

The introductory courses were ministered by Susanne Lervad, who focused on “Verbal and nonverbal representation in textile terminology”, and Louise Quillien, who gave a conference on “How to study ancient textile and clothing terminologies: questions and methodology”.

PhD Students/ ECI’s presentations included talks by Dimitra Andrianou (GR) on “Furniture textiles in the ancient Greek world”, by Elodie Bauer (CH/FR), who spoke about “Crossbands in classical Attica: terminology issues and methods”, by Corinne Mühlemann (DK), who focused on “Loom terminology in ḥisba-manuals? What Islamic legal sources can reveal about the making of objects in the premodern marketplace”, and by Eva Montesinos-Ferrandis (ES), who shared her work on “Black silks dyeing materials and methods, degradation and treatment: specific problems, specific terminology”.

With this Training School, EuroWeb’s Working Group 3 aimed to provide general training on Terminology-related research and to exchange information, ideas, and knowledge, especially among members of the Working Group. The event was, however, open to all members of EuroWeb, and proved a success, having been joined by 41 participants from various countries and disciplinary backgrounds.