5th November 2021, 14.00, 1463-515

Lukas Rösli, Juniorprofessor für Skandinavistik und Mediävistik i Nordeuropa-Institut, HumboldtUniversität zu Berlin

“Old Norse-Icelandic scriptogenesis – The Foundation Myths of Old Norse-Icelandic Literature”
Old Norse-Icelandic literature offers us its own scriptogenesis, that is, a creation narrative of its own writing and literariness. In contrast to other text-bound founding narratives, however, scriptogenesis is directly linked to its own mediality and thus, in its own form, always refers to itself, the written word. Scriptogenesis thus turns out to be metafiction. In my lecture I will talk about how Old Norse-Icelandic literature narrates and discusses its own written mediality as a founding myth and what influence this has had and continues to have on our understanding of Old Norse-Icelandic literature.

18th November 2021, 14.00, 1461-516

Bjørn Bandlien, Professor i Institutt for økonomi, historie og samfunnsvitenskap, Universitetet i Sørøst Norge

“The travels of Isa Kelemechi from China to Europe in the 1280s: Global Interaction and Mediation through Cultural Brokers along the Silk Road”
There is a growing interest in the global Middle Ages, and in the wake of an increasing volume of studies there are also different approaches as to how to approach. This presentation will discuss some aspects of understanding agents in the global network during the Mongolian Era, c. 1250-1350, and attempt to make theoretical and practical sense of transnational cultural interactions. It will take departure from the story of the envoy Isa Kelemechi who travelled from the Mongol court in China to Bagdad and then to Europe, at about the same time Marco Polo made his journey in the opposite direction. His encounters with the Middle Eastern and Western world, and possible traces of them in China, will be used to discuss two related concepts of intercultural agency: the cultural broker who acts within sites of mediation.

30th November 2021, 14.00, 1461-516

Haki Antonsson, Associate Professor, University College London

“An Icelandic Memorial Poem on a Danish King: Magnús Skeggjason’s Eiríksdrápa Reassessed”
Eiríksdrápa, a skaldic poem in 32 stanzas, was composed sometime between 1104 and 1107 by the Icelandic lawspeaker Markús Skeggjason (d.1107) for King Níels Sveinsson (1104-1134) in honour of his brother and predecessor, King Eiríkr ejegod (1095-1103). Eiríksdrápa describes Eiríkr’s just rule in Denmark, pilgrimage to Italy and victory over the Wends in the Baltic. The poem concludes with Eiríkr’s Crusade to the Holy Land and death in Cyprus. This lecture will throw fresh light on the nature of this fascinating, yet relatively neglected, literary composition and historical source. In particular, the lecture will show how the poem both reflects and illuminates the historical contexts of Denmark and Iceland around the turn of the 11th century.

9th December 2021, 14.15, 1461-516

Pernilla Myrne, Senior Lecturer, University of Gothenburg

"Arabic Erotic Manuscript Traditions and Attitudes to Sexuality in the Medieval Islamic World"

At this lecture Pernilla Myrne, Senior Lecturer at the University of Gothenburg, will discuss the Arabic erotic manuscript traditions and attitudes to sexuality in the medieval Islamic World. 

17th Februar 2022, 17.00, 1461-516

Mirja Piorr, Lærer, Tange Kristne Friskole

“Dronning Christines hof i Odense: Personhistoriske resultater om hofpersonalet og de økonomiske partnere i byen”
Dronning Christine holdt selvstændigt hof i købstaden Odense fra 1504, mens hendes ægtefælle kong Hans stadig var i live. Hun residerede på Næsbyhoved Slot indtil hun flyttede til en gård i residensbyen, som hun købte i 1505 og lod udvide og ombygge til hendes bopæl. Som enke fortsatte hun med at holde hendes eget hof i Odense fra 1513 indtil hun døde i 1521. Under hele residensperioden stod dronningen i tæt økonomisk kontakt med byen, hvilket byens købmænd og håndværkere udgjorde en betydelig del af. Samtidig havde hun et omfattende hofpersonale, der boede på slottet og gården.

Mirja Piorrs ph.d. (Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, 2020) handler om dronning Christines hof i Odense og de økonomiske relationer til residensbyen (1496-1521). Nogle af de vigtigste resultater er to personkataloger, der omfatter de ovenstående persongrupper. Foredraget skal informere om personhistorie i Mirjas ph.d., hendes fremgangsmåde, kilder, udfordringer og ikke mindst de to personkataloger samt et nærmere indblik i udvalgte personer.

24th March 2022, 14.00, 1461-516

Brian Patrick McGuire, Professor Emeritus i Historie, RUC

“Glemte danskere: Helgener i fortid og nutid”
De danske helgener er ikke en central del af vores historiske tradition. Måske er "kongehelgener" kendt hos danskere der fik en traditionel skoleundervisning med Svend, Knud og Valdemar, men Vilhelm af Æbelholt, vores indvandrerhelgen, er kendt kun hos de få der har besøgt Æbelholt klosterruin ved Hillerød. Århus har sin egen helgen fra kongeslægten, Niels, men hans hellige kilde er gemt væk i den moderne by. Hvad skal vi stille op med disse Guds venner hvis biografier fik en kritisk behandling for mere end hundrede år siden men som siden er forsvundet fra kulturlivet? Foredraget satser på en rehabilitering af helgener som kan bidrage til en forståelse af vor middelalderarv.

1st April 2022, 14.00, 1461-516

Mia Münster Swendsen, Professor MSO i Institut for Kommunikation og Humanistisk Videnskab, RUC

“Damnatio Memoriae, Bad Press, and Political Biases: The Case of Archbishop Eskil in Danish Historiography”
The paper discusses Archbishop Eskil as catalyst/agent provocateur in the (often fierce) debates about political structures and political conflict in twelfth-century Denmark. In profound ways, the evaluation of Eskil in the Danish academic historical tradition has reflected contemporary politics and subtly set the tone of how High Medieval Danish history has been studied and debated. Is it possible to create a new portrait of Eskil without such historiographical biases? And what happens to the view of twelfthcentury Denmark (and Scandinavia) if we do? The speaker is currently finishing the first scholarly biography of Archbishop Eskil and would also welcome a more general discussion on the genre of historical biographies in the present historiographical context