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| Profile: Elizabeth Duncan | ||
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Name: Elizabeth Duncan Current Position/Academic Assignment: PhD student at University of Aberdeen, Scotland. The title of my dissertation is 'Eleventh- and Twelfth-Century Gaelic Book-Production.' Hometown: Barnstaple, North Devon, United Kingdom Educational Background: Pilton Community College (1991–6); North Devon College (1996–8); St John's College, University of Cambridge (2000–4) – BA and M.Phil degrees How did you learn about HMML? My supervisor suggested the idea to me. Current research at HMML: I have various reasons for using the HMML collections. I am searching Austrian and German libraries (particularly those which are only partly catalogued) for Gaelic manuscripts. In the eleventh and twelfth centuries a number of monasteries (the so-called Scottenklöster) were founded in parts of Germany and Austria by Gaelic exiles. I am looking for manuscripts and fragments written in Gaelic script or by Gaelic scribes. I am also examining particular texts produced in the eleventh and twelfth centuries in these monastic establishments to act as a point of reference in my work on Gaelic book-history. For example, one of my interests is looking at how the format of psalter-texts differs from those written in the Gaelic tradition. Why did you choose to study this—what got you interested in this topic? The research I am doing at HMML is an important part of my doctoral research. I am interested in eleventh- and twelfth-century Gaelic book-production because so little scholarly work has been conducted in this field. This is exciting and rewarding for me and means I can conduct original research. What has been the most surprising thing you’ve uncovered in your current research? It is striking to me how little scholarly work has been carried out on the eleventh- and twelfth-century Austrian and German collections as a whole, in terms of analyzing script and manuscript preparation methods. It has struck me that a lot of interesting work could be done in this area. What can we learn from that? It seems to me that there are certainly patterns in terms of script (and probably codicological methods too, but this is hard to see from microfilm) assignable to particular monastic centres, or perhaps monastic centres. Such patterns would possibly reflect links between certain houses. Why did you decide to come to HMML for this particular research? The fact that the material is preserved in one place saves time and money. It is unlikely I would have had the resources to visit each library's collection that I was able to peruse with such ease. What would you tell someone about your experience at HMML? I thought it was a good experience. It was interesting for me to live in the monastic communal environment and make myself better acquainted with archival research methods. I felt also that everyone at the library had an open-minded and optimistic attitude towards research which I think made my job feel easier than it perhaps would have been. Do you have a favorite book or teacher from your youth that influenced your career/academic path? I have had a few good teachers but I am not sure that any of them apart from my current supervisor have influenced my choice of study. What do you read for leisure? I like reading novels but to be honest I spend so much time reading for work that I tend to do other activities to unwind. |
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