Material Cultures of Archiving: An Introduction to a Global and Historical Practice
Berlin: De Gruyter (2026), vi, 267 pp.
"The history of archiving and record-keeping has recently attracted a lot of attention, however, scholarship on the physical and spatial aspects of that history are still scant. Hence, the volume foregrounds the material aspect of record-keeping and highlights the object-nature of archiving. Chapters on archive-related document preparation and the composition of archivable records are followed by explorations of storage containers, furniture, and spaces.The volume is cross-cultural in nature, highlighting the materiality of record-keeping practices as a prime entry point for a globally comparative history of archiving. Exploring the rich traditions of record-keeping practices and facilities makes visible previously underappreciated parallels and unique specifics of various archival cultures from around the globe." (Publisher description)
Why Materiality Matters in Archival History: An Introduction / Markus Friedrich, 1
CHAPTER 1. ARCHIVAL ARTEFACTS: FROM SHEETS AND FILES TO DIGITAL DOCUMENTS / Peera Panarut, 19
Archiving Ancient Papyrus in Modern Times / Jakob Wigand, 66
Material Traces of Piercing and Bundling in the Ḥaram al-Sharīf Corpus / Anna Steffen, 68
CHAPTER 2. BOOKS AS ARCHIVES / Benedikt Reier, 71
A Medieval Cartulary: The Codex Eberhardi / Till Hennings, 96
The Golden Gospel of Dabra Libānos, at Ham, Eritrea / Alessandro Bausi, 98
CHAPTER 3. CONTAINERS: FROM WRAPPED TEXTILES AND JARS TO HARD DISKS / Cécile Michel, 101
An Archival Backpack from Gotha / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 142
Archival Bags in Ethiopia / Alessandro Bausi, 144
Leather-laminated Boxes from Ethiopia / Dirbwork Bitsu Kassa, 146
An Early Modern Coptic Slipcase from Cairo, Egypt / Eliana Dal Sasso, 148
A Decorated Charter Ark from Xanten, 1460 / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 150
CHAPTER 4. FURNITURE / Markus Friedrich, 153
Fluchtkisten / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 206
Shelves and Manuscripts in Tibet / Agnieszka Helman-Ważny, 208
Storing Books (and Potentially Archival Bundles) in Medieval Arabic Societies / Konrad Hirschler, 210
Ida Dehmel’s Archive Cabinet (Hamburg, 1901) / Sebastian Schirrmeister, 212
Working the Archive: An Archival Desk and Many Drawers / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 214
CHAPTER 5. STORAGE SPACES: ROOMS AND BUILDINGS / Philippe Depreux, 217
Caves as Storage Spaces / Agnieszka Helman-Ważny, 250
Archive Building in Gondar Ethiopia / Dirbwork Bitsu Kassa, 252
The Archives Internationales de la Danse in Paris / Franz Anton Cramer, 254
The ʿĀbdīn Palace Archive in Cairo: Merging Monarchy and Nation / Konrad Hirschler, 256
CHAPTER 1. ARCHIVAL ARTEFACTS: FROM SHEETS AND FILES TO DIGITAL DOCUMENTS / Peera Panarut, 19
Archiving Ancient Papyrus in Modern Times / Jakob Wigand, 66
Material Traces of Piercing and Bundling in the Ḥaram al-Sharīf Corpus / Anna Steffen, 68
CHAPTER 2. BOOKS AS ARCHIVES / Benedikt Reier, 71
A Medieval Cartulary: The Codex Eberhardi / Till Hennings, 96
The Golden Gospel of Dabra Libānos, at Ham, Eritrea / Alessandro Bausi, 98
CHAPTER 3. CONTAINERS: FROM WRAPPED TEXTILES AND JARS TO HARD DISKS / Cécile Michel, 101
An Archival Backpack from Gotha / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 142
Archival Bags in Ethiopia / Alessandro Bausi, 144
Leather-laminated Boxes from Ethiopia / Dirbwork Bitsu Kassa, 146
An Early Modern Coptic Slipcase from Cairo, Egypt / Eliana Dal Sasso, 148
A Decorated Charter Ark from Xanten, 1460 / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 150
CHAPTER 4. FURNITURE / Markus Friedrich, 153
Fluchtkisten / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 206
Shelves and Manuscripts in Tibet / Agnieszka Helman-Ważny, 208
Storing Books (and Potentially Archival Bundles) in Medieval Arabic Societies / Konrad Hirschler, 210
Ida Dehmel’s Archive Cabinet (Hamburg, 1901) / Sebastian Schirrmeister, 212
Working the Archive: An Archival Desk and Many Drawers / Ann-Sophie Hellmich-Schwan, 214
CHAPTER 5. STORAGE SPACES: ROOMS AND BUILDINGS / Philippe Depreux, 217
Caves as Storage Spaces / Agnieszka Helman-Ważny, 250
Archive Building in Gondar Ethiopia / Dirbwork Bitsu Kassa, 252
The Archives Internationales de la Danse in Paris / Franz Anton Cramer, 254
The ʿĀbdīn Palace Archive in Cairo: Merging Monarchy and Nation / Konrad Hirschler, 256
