Networks, policies, and promotion (15th-18th centuries)
Since the advent of the printing press, the circulation of written cultural heritage has been shaped by the policies and regulations dictated by various powers throughout history. These regulations sought to strike a balance between control and promotion. Numerous institutional mechanisms were put in place to control the production, circulation, and consumption of books, with far-reaching consequences. Examples include printing privileges and state or religious censorship.
These norms and regulations interacted with the reality of the actors involved in the production and distribution of books. As a result, networks operating in the book markets developed various strategies, including the creation of lobbies to influence decision-making processes, the use of alternative institutions, or simply not complying with the rules.
The aim of this conference is to examine how these mechanisms of control and promotion have influenced the production and circulation of written cultural heritage, as well as their interplay with commercial, political, financial, and legal networks. Topics to be addressed include:
- Rules and regulations for the circulation of written knowledge.
- Printing privileges: balancing private interests and knowledge control.
- The control of production: censorship, promotion, and lobbies.
- Commercial networks, agents, and logistics in the circulation of written knowledge.
- The financial architecture of book markets.
- Materialities and authorship.
This conference particularly encourages incorporating a gender perspective in discussing these themes.
We invite scholars to submit abstracts of approximately 500 words outlining the central hypothesis, objectives, sources and main findings of their paper by 15 September 2024. Accepted proposals should be developed into full-length papers of between 8,000 and 10,000 words, to be submitted by 18 November 2024. This will allow for a more detailed discussion of the topics covered. Proposals should be sent to a.j.c.pardo@iakh.uio.no.
The conference is funded by the ERC Before Copyright project (ERC, BE4COPY, 101042034) of the University of Oslo (Norway) and the I+D project Las redes del comercio de libros en la Monarquía Hispánica: mercados, agentes y arquitectura financiera. 1501-1648 (PID2022-137793NB-I00) of the Pablo de Olavide University (Spain).