The botanical drawings of the American naturalist William Bartram.

William Whewell, the famous master of Trinity College in Cambridge, was a central figure in nineteenth-century British scientific culture and one of the last great polymaths. His influential work ranged from history and philosophy of science, education, architecture, mineralogy, and political economy to mathematics, engineering, natural theology, metaphysics, and moral philosophy. Among his many gifts to science was his role as cofounder and president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science and his wordsmithing; he coined the terms scientist, physicist, linguistics, and electrode. While he was himself an opponent of evolution through natural selection, Whewell’s most famous works, including his Bridgewater Treatise (1833) and Philosophy of the Inductive Sciences (1840), played a formative role in Charles Darwin’s creation of the theory of evolution. William Whewell: Victorian Polymath reexamines the whole of Whewell’s oeuvre, as well as the wide range and internal unity of his many polymathic endeavors, placing him within the early Victorian intellectual landscape and highlighting his exchanges with other important figures of the period, such as John Herschel, Charles Lyell, and Robert Peel. Bringing together a group of eminent and emergent scholars, the volume explores all major aspects of Whewell’s reform project and its legacy, both in the sciences and the humanities, in the Victorian era and beyond.

Chief Engraver at the Royal Mint and the leading medallist of his time William Wyon RA (1795-1851) produced some of the best known and most widely distributed images ever made. His portraits of the young Queen Victoria on the coinage, used throughout the British empire, and the more regal head used for the first postage stamps, the penny red and twopenny blue, were reproduced in their millions and distributed all around the globe. A highly regarded modeller in low relief, known and admired for the classical purity of his compositions and the accomplishment of their execution, Wyon was celebrated as a British artist who more than rivalled his continental competitors, favoured by royalty and by many of the most prominent and influential figures of his time. The book aims to understand how and why Wyon's work was commissioned and how it was received, using institutional archives, contemporary correspondence and reminiscence, and the popular press, to create a rounded picture of the life, work, networks, influence and impact of an artist who was also an entrepreneur on his own account and a public servant at the heart of the establishment. Wyon's career began with a major contribution to the execution of the monetary reform that created a new and widely respected coinage which underpinned and symbolised the global growth of the British economy. The medals, which he made throughout his career, reflect their time: commissioned to celebrate and reward the scientific and technological progress, the improvements in education and agriculture, the literary and artistic achievements, the passion for making things better and recognising and encouraging those who did, that characterised Wyon's contemporaries. Almost every major figure of the age is here, from Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, to Palmerston, Peel, Wellington and Gladstone; from Maria II of Portugal and Mrs Sweetenham Waters to Sir Joseph Banks, Sir Walter Scott, Sir John Soane and Thomas Telford. And yet the prosperity that enabled his patrons to commission Wyon's work, often came from the profits derived from the long hours and appalling conditions of industrialising Britain, from enslaved labour in the West Indies and from imperial aggression in India and the Far East. Late in his career it was Wyon who was commissioned to create the military and naval medals that recognised and rewarded the service of those who had fought in the Napoleonic wars; of those who had played a part in the establishment of British rule in India, and those who fought in contemporary wars in Afghanistan, India and Burma, and to force opium on China: medals which, despite moments of revulsion in parliament and the press, reflected pride in Britain’s growing empire.Wyon's work throws new light on the attitudes and networks that lay behind official commemoration at a time of ebullient energy and rapid change and holds a hitherto unexamined mirror to the British establishment in the first half of the nineteenth century. The close interrogation of things, of obstinate objects which insist on remaining themselves, provides us with an image which manages to be both arcane and popular, utterly conventional and intriguingly unexpected.

How a passion for translation fueled the development of a great American poetSo Much Secret Labor is a window into the work of the great American poet, James Wright, whose love of languages and quest for the "true imagination" helped transform American poetry. The book draws on memoir, archival research, interviews, letters, and previous unpublished journal excerpts, presenting a scrupulous and intimate reading of Wright's work and the translations he insisted were as redemptive in his life as they were crucial to his poetics. At its center is a selection of Wright's translations, both from German and Spanish: poems by Trakl, Rilke, Heine, Vallejo, Lorca, and Neruda, among others, including draft versions discovered among his collected papers that have never been published. It also provides an important assessment of the little known formative influence of German poetry on Wright's own poems. Wright's literary relationship with another great mid-century American poet, Robert Bly, is featured here in a portfolio of unpublished letters, typescripts and holographs. These tell the story of their ardentfriendship and earliest translation collaborations, and situates them in the history of the emergence of poetry of the "true imagination" that they were beginning to explore at that time.

"A new edition of Ronald Johnson's masterpiece ARK is a metaphysical poem that could only have been written in our time, of which it displays a new vision. It is a late harvest of seeds sown by Blake, L. Frank Baum, the Bible, and Zukofsky, all in a new architecture, a wholly new voice, and even a new chemistry of words and images. It is for those who can see visions, and for those who know how to look well and be taught that they can see them."—Guy Davenport

Sweden was perceived for a long time as a society characterized by equality, social cohesion and an ambitious welfare policy. With its independent foreign policy, it stood outside the great power conflicts. In recent years, gang crime and shootings have received a lot of attention in the media, a right-wing populist party has become part of the government and we have ended 200 years of non-alignment by becoming members of NATO. How has it changed the image of our country and ourselves?In this anthology, a number of writers discuss the image of Sweden past and present, both within and outside the country's borders. Svante Nordin writes about Sweden and Luther, Elisabeth Braw about the importance of Swedes living abroad, Mikael Wiberg about the technological wonder, Fraser Nelson about gang crime and Sofia Bard about Sweden's soft power. Per Enerud, Anna von Bayern and Nathan Shachar address the image of Sweden in Russia, Germany and Spain and Richard Swartz criticizes the decline of the Swedish language.

A new collection of poetry from David Trinidad, author of DIGGING TO WONDERLAND.

Monasticism is a form of religious life in which participants renounce worldly activities to dedicate themselves primarily to spiritual matters, living in small communities subject to a set of rules and isolated from the secular world. Christian monasticism, which originated at the end of the 3rd century in Egypt and North Africa, spread to different parts of Europe in the 6th century. However, it was not until the Middle Ages that monastic communities became one of the most powerful institutions in Europe. Monasteries and convents played a very important role not only as centers of spirituality but also as focal points of economic, technological and cultural activity. This multiplicity of activities carried out alongside their religious, social and political roles make monasteries spaces that can be studied from very different perspectives and that unfailingly provide essential information about our history.This first of two titles originates from an international conference that took place in Barcelona in January 2024, which sought to examine different aspects related to monastic life in the past and to promote and disseminate the results obtained in the latest studies undertaken within the framework of monastic complexes and their environments. These include contributions and multidisciplinary studies from archaeological, bioanthropological and/or documentary perspectives. Specialists from different disciplines present developments on the topic of monasticism from different fields of study, such as zooarchaeology, bioanthropology, palaeopathology, archaeology, history, documentary disciplines, archives, cultural heritage, etc.Volume 1 concentrates on health and lifeways within monastic communities, focusing on palaeopathological information providing insights into physical wellbeing and, in particular, the presence and significance of disabled individuals and evidence for longterm health and dental issues. A variety of scientific methods of analysis are applied to cemetery populations from monasteries and nunneries of different periods to examine both causes of and contributions to the death of individuals, the composition of communities and the treatment of the dead. Studies of assemblages of faunal remains from monastic complexes consider how faunal analysis can help interpret the role of domestic species.

Monasticism is a form of religious life in which participants renounce worldly activities to dedicate themselves primarily to spiritual matters, living in small communities subject to a set of rules and isolated from the secular world. Christian monasticism, which originated at the end of the 3rd century in Egypt and North Africa, spread to different parts of Europe in the 6th century. However, it was not until the Middle Ages that monastic communities became one of the most powerful institutions in Europe. Monasteries and convents played a very important role not only as centers of spirituality but also as focal points of economic, technological and cultural activity. This multiplicity of activities carried out alongside their religious, social and political roles make monasteries spaces that can be studied from very different perspectives and that unfailingly provide essential information about our history.This second of two titles originates from an international conference that took place in Barcelona in January 2024, which sought to examine different aspects related to monastic life in the past and to promote and disseminate the results obtained in the latest studies undertaken within the framework of monastic complexes and their environments. These include contributions and multidisciplinary studies from archaeological, bioanthropological and/or documentary perspectives. Specialists from different disciplines present developments on the topic of monasticism from different fields of study, such as zooarchaeology, bioanthropology, palaeopathology, archaeology, history, documentary disciplines, archives, cultural heritage, etc.Volume 2 focuses on diet, food practices, water management, and the organization and use of space within monastic complexes and landscapes.

This volume celebrates the academic life of prof. Raymond Corbey. It gathers contributions by diverse scholars and professionals from both science and society to engage with a range of key topics Raymond has grappled with at different stages of his capricious career. The volume not only provides an opinionated portrait of Raymond as an academic persona and sometimes controversial scholarly figure, unpacking key tropes of his intellectual journey such as “sitting on the fence” or the “embedded philosopher” and academic “jester”, it also illustrates the wide-ranging and inspirational nature of his work. As a “boundary-worker” seeking to re-negotiate the limits, opportunities and contributions of various disciplines, the volume reflects Raymond’s critical but always provocative engagement with issues such as theory-building, alien civilizations and cosmic evolution, nonhuman sentience, the politics of species, Darwinism, the Maussian gift, human nature, hand axes, the mark of the intentional, diamonds, the structure of the European Mousterian, the relation between cultural anthropology and archaeology, liminality and the marginal, ritual and religion, cats, primates, language, heritage and the many legacies of Western thinking and acting in the world. Taken together, these individual contributions showcase the immense scope – temporal, geographic and topical – that defines Raymond's unique scholarly venture which continues to animate many of his friends, colleagues and former students.The volume will be of interest for a broad readership in academia and beyond, and for the first time brings poignant essays from philosophy to archaeology into conversation, which comment on, continue, or critique the scholarship Raymond embodies. This scholarship defies the contemporary tendency of hyper-specialization, and sometimes scholasticism, and inspires us to transcend the self-erected boundaries of academic and public cathedrals in our thinking and acting alike.

“An indispensable, lucid guide to the origins and recent development of the European Union…. Judicious and authoritative in his curation of historical facts and details about the individuals, social forces, and geopolitics that shaped key developments of the EU, Dinan provides deep insights and clarity about the EU’s accomplishments and its shortcomings…. This up-to-date history of the EU is unparalleled—eloquent and engaging in its narrative and compelling in its final analysis that ‘the EU is worth fighting for. ’” —Vicki L. Birchfield, Georgia Institute of Technology“This is modern European history at its best…. Dinan offers a balanced and up-to-date narrative of European integration from its inception in the post–World War II period to the present, with special emphasis on the contemporary European Union, its institutional and legal structures, the management of the crises it has encountered, its continuing relevance, and its future. His book will establish itself as one of the best concise introductions to the EU for not only students, but also any other readers interested in a deeper understanding of contemporary European affairs.” —Yannis A. Stivachtis, Virginia Tech University What explains the remarkable evolution of the European Union since its emergence in the early 1990s? How has the EU coped with a series of severe shocks, ranging from the euro crisis to Brexit to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? How is it dealing with the rise of illiberal democracy in some of its member states? And why is it more contested, while at the same time more relevant, than ever before?Addressing these questions, this concise text—authoritative, engaging, and well written—traces the development of the EU from its inception to the present. It is ideal for use in the early weeks of courses on European or EU politics, as well as for the EU portion of courses on contemporary European history.

The rescue excavation of Egyptian sites in advance of construction of the Assuan Dam contributed greatly to the understanding of the ancient Egyptian and Sudanese civilisations in the Nile valley. This book examines cultural relationships in the last centuries BC and first centuries AD centred on the ancient city of Meroe, which lies on the east bank of the Nile between the Fifth and Sixth Cataracts. It was one of two principal cities, and the centre of political and religious power, of a civilisation that flourished between the 8th century BC and 4th century AD, extending over the area of northern Sudan. The Meroites were strongly influenced by Egyptian religion, architecture and art, adopting Egyptian hieroglyphs but later developing their own hieroglyphic and cursive script – representing the first of the ancient languages of Africa to be committed to writing. They worshipped Egyptian gods alongside their own deities, including Apedemak, here compared with the Egyptian lion-god Mahes and other Egyptian and Nubian lion-gods. A decorative figure found during excavations at Semna South in the Sudan is key to the discussion of the origin of particular features in representations of the Meriotic god and the extension of his worship to the north.The study, republished here in facsimile, shows that worship of Apedemak can be viewed within a wider framework of a contemporary religious and artistic trend, often referred to as a syncretistic trend or movement, which can be described as a process by which one deity could become assimilated with another with which it could share similar attributes, perform the same functions and exhibit the same representational features. Thus, old Egyptian gods and goddesses, their myths, legends and accoutrements, could be introduced into the new religious centres of Egypt’s southern neighbours, Nubia and Meroe, where they were adapted to new local cults and, in some instances, became associated with the principal native deities.

This new book covers the Austro-Italian Naval War 1866 a little-known part of late 19th C naval history. The Battle of Lissa took place on 20 July 1866. It was the first major sea battle between ironclads and one of the last to involve deliberate ramming. The background, operations and outcomes are described in detail. All the ships involved, both Austrian and Italian, are described and illustrated with full technical specifications. Profusely illustrated with scale drawings and photos.

This facsimile reissue of the 1975 second edition of Iversen’s Canon and Proportion brings back into print a seminal work originally published in 1955. Iversen describes a canon – that is, a set of rules of proportions – advanced and used by the artists of Egypt. In order to interpret the stylistic message of the Egyptian system of proportion he undertakes a study of the principles of its construction, an analysis of its modules and presents an unambiguous numerical definition of the ratios governing its units and parts, demonstrating its use with illustrated examples. He contends that much of the art, especially tomb art, was never intended to be seen by mortal eyes and, as such, was designed to follow a set of rules governed by the requirements of religious and cultic traditions rather than purely aesthetic considerations. Painting and sculpture were largely not primarily things of beauty but magical entities fraught with fateful significance. The development and use of a grid for practical application of the system can still be seen in tomb paintings and is demonstrated in the proportional correctness of statues. The system was based on an accurate standardization of the natural relations of the various parts of human anatomy, such as the relation of palm to forearm and forearm to height, expressed in simple numerical terms geometrically reflected in grids based on the fist. Iversen’s treatise was not without controversy but this fascinating study remains a hugely important contribution to the interpretation of Egyptian art.

The Johnson-Gilmor Raid represents one of three attempts to free prisoners of war during the American Civil War. Like the other two, it was destined to fail for a variety of reasons, mostly because the timetable for the operation was a schedule impossible to meet. The mounted raid was a fascinating act of increasing desperation by the Confederate high command in the summer of 1864, and award-winning cavalry historian Eric J. Wittenberg presents the gripping story in detail for the first time in Destined to Fail: The Johnson-Gilmor Cavalry Raid around Baltimore, July 10-13, 1864. The thundering high-stakes operation was intended to ease the suffering of 15,000 Confederate prisoners held at Point Lookout, Maryland, a peninsula at the confluence of the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay. The story includes a motley cast of characters on both sides and fast-paced drama in a deeply researched study that draws upon published and unpublished primary sources, including contemporary newspapers. Part of Wittenberg’s cogent analysis compares and contrasts this raid to a pair of other unsuccessful attempts to free Union prisoners of war – the Kilpatrick-Dahlgren Raid of February-March 1864, and the Stoneman Raid on Macon, Georgia of July 1864 – as well as Gen. George S. Patton’s attempt to free his son-in-law and other American prisoners in March of 1945. This book will be welcomed by anyone with an interest in the Civil War, high-stakes cavalry operations, or the politics of Civil War high command.

This facsimile reissue of Anthea Page’s catalog of the stone and wooden statuary in the Petrie Museum makes available again a major corpus of material. The bulk of statuary in the museum was purchased since the finest sculpture from Petrie’s own excavations rightly went to Cairo and other museums. While the sculpture in his own collection covers the whole length of Egyptian dynastic history illustrating many different schools and qualities of workmanship, it does not provide a comprehensive view of the art of the Egyptian sculptor. Nevertheless, the 174 items described and discussed cover a wide range of subjects and forms. Statues of gods and animals and types loosely classifiable as ‘figurines’ or ‘models’ are deliberately excluded and the corpus focuses on representations of royalty, priests, officials and unknown individuals (men and women), of varying status and possible ethnicity in a variety of poses. Statues of multiple individuals are represented as well as a statuette of a man and a monkey. The catalogue is preceded by an introduction by H. S. Smith outlining the history of Egyptian portrait sculpture, the religious ideas behind it and nature of patronage, and is accompanied by detailed drawings and translations of associated inscriptions. All pieces are illustrated by photographs.