Concertina-Fold Books across Time, Space and Cultures Symposium

Accordion, screenfold, chain—various terms have been applied to books folded in a zig-zag or ‘concertina’ pattern. Seen now as novelties, concertina-fold books were once found worldwide. They were even the preferred or sole book format in some places, before the imperial spread of the codex. This one-day symposium brings together a group of international experts to talk about the historic uses of the concertina structure in a range of cultural contexts from around the globe. Their discussion will showcase some of the outstanding examples housed in greater-London. The symposium is part of programming for the Unfolding Time exhibition, on medieval ‘pocket’ calendars, which looks at the way the concertina format was deployed in late medieval England.

Symposium attendees will have the opportunity to visit the exhibition and play with concertina facsimiles. Lunch will be provided.

The event is made possible thanks to generous funding from the Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures (CSMC), University of Hamburg; The Royal Society of Edinburgh; and The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Schedule of the day:

SESSION 1: Around the world in a concertina-fold book

10:15–10:25 Introduction (Megan McNamee)

10:30 Costantino Moretti (Chinese)

10:40 Benjamin Nourse (Tibetan)

10:50 Halle O’Neal (Japanese)

11:00 Roberta Zollo (Indonesian and/or Malay)

11:10 Peera Panarut (Thai)

11:20 Ewa Balicka-Witakowska (Ethiopian)

11:30 Jamie Forde (Mesoamerican)

11:40–12:00 Q&A

12:00–1:00 LUNCH + tours of exhibition

SESSION 2: Implications: The concertina as choice and the significance of folding

1:00–1:10 Introduction (Megan McNamee)

1:10–1:30 Paper 1 (Costantino Moretti)

1:30–1:50 Paper 2 (Halle O’Neal)

1:50–2:10 Paper 3 (Roberta Zollo)

2:10–2:30 Q&A

2:30–3:00 Break

SESSION 3: Concertina communication

3:00–3:10 Introduction (Megan McNamee)

3:10–3:30 Paper 4 (Ewa Balicka-Witakowska)

3:30–3:50 Paper 5 (Peera Panarut)

3:40–4:00 Q&A

4:00–4:20 Concluding remarks

4:20–4:30 Acknowledgements & Thanks

All are welcome, but those wishing to attend should book a free ticket via Eventbrite or email archives@churchofengland.org no later than Thursday 1 May.

This event is also available to watch online. Please book a separate ticket if you wish to join us online instead of in person.

Please note that tickets must be booked individually for security purposes.