HISPANEMA · Hidden Spaces of American Natural History in Early Modern Central Europe: Reconstruction of Memory and Experience Narrated by Things

Hidden Spaces of American Natural History in Early Modern Central Europe: Reconstruction of Memory and Experience Narrated by Things

The objective of the HISPANEMA project is twofold. First, to carry out reconstruction and visualization of once lost and so far still hidden part of European scientific heritage - by investigating the narratives of things, i.e. by investigating their epistemic, cultural, and social lives, by reconstructing their ‘previous lives’ and afterlives. In doing so, secondly, the project reveals new material and cultural links between two distant environments, imparting alternative narratives of the cultural history of knowledge and science. The investigation focuses on American naturalia, i.e. ‘natural things’, kept in yet unexplored center European collections and museums (for example, in the Jesuit museum in the Clementinum). The reconstruction of the memory and experience of these things will be achieved by linking the study of inventories, artefacts, or partial references to items included in those collections with diverse texts and images of institutional and personal character, which bring these things to life from various perspectives and reveal their geographic instability, slipperiness, cultural and gender hybridity, multivalence, and categorical fluidity, especially – but not exclusively – in relation to the specific conditions of Central Europe in the era of first globalization. One of the aims of the HISPANEMA project is to promote interest in the history of science already among elementary school students to encourage children’s interest in research careers, to show the interdisciplinary character of the history of science, highlight its close links with culture and society, and to develop in the general public a more critical approach to selected historical and sociocultural issues. Conclusions of the action: The project has generated several important outputs, in form of scientific publications, publications for children, or audio-visual material for a broader impact (see below); currently work is still being done on the finalization of the monograph and the website. One of the most important impacts of the project was the dissemination of the social and cultural dimension of the problematics -and thus the emphasizing of the importance of the study of the cultural history of science. Four videos were created and presented in various places, for example, within the Semana de la Ciencia (at CCHS, CSIC), at Real Jardín Botánico, the Instituto Cultural de México (Mexican Embassy), Madrid, and many festivals and events in Mexico. They were also presented on radios and on TV and two of them were selected for documentary film festivals (Muestra Nacional de Imágenes Científicas, Contra el Silencio, etc.). Another divulgation output of the project is the website HISPANEMA. Another impact of the project was its scientific activities. The Marie Curie Fellow participated in various congresses, symposiums, lectures, and workshops; and wrote various texts. During the project implementation, the MC Fellow has gained new thematic, and methodological impulses as well as new contacts, which pushed the boundaries of her internationalization and helped her share and communicate the results of her research.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union