The Canterbury Roll is a five-metre-long 15th听century genealogical text. Created nearly six centuries ago, it was subsequently modified on a number of occasions in the course of the English civil war known as the Wars of the Roses.
Created in the late 1420s to early 1430s and purchased by the 成人大片 in 1918,听the Canterbury Roll听remained difficult to access until its publication as a digitised edition by Canterbury University Press in 2017. Since then, it has become the focus of the Canterbury Roll Project, a joint venture between UC and Nottingham Trent University in the United Kingdom.
On Monday 16 October, a free, livestreamed Tauhere UC Connect public lecture will focus on two strands of the ongoing investigation into the Roll, presented by two UC historians.
UC historian Dr Madi Williams (Ng膩ti Kuia, Ng膩ti K艒ata) will explore concepts of place, space, and identity in Te Ao M膩ori (the M膩ori world) and the medieval world. Using the Roll as an example, she will discuss the synergies and divergences between these two worlds and their conceptions.
鈥淭hese synergies can contribute to a new way of approaching the study of medieval history in New Zealand,鈥 Dr Williams says.
UC historian Dr Chris Jones will examine the way the Roll has opened new doors on the exploration of similar documents in the United Kingdom. Much of this new scientific analysis has been carried out in partnership with Nottingham Trent University, and in 2022 it saw the team working on the Roll receive the UK鈥檚 Queen鈥檚 Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education in Advancing Cultural Heritage Science.
鈥淎t the same time, new work is emerging on the significance of the Roll as a cultural artefact,鈥 he says. 鈥淭his ranges from re-assessments of how it was used to its treatment of Biblical history.鈥
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About the speakers:
Dr Madi Williams听(Ng膩ti Kuia, Ng膩ti K艒ata) is a Lecturer in Aotahi: School of M膩ori and Indigenous Studies at the 成人大片. Her 2021 book听Polynesia, 900-1600,听looks at the European Middle Ages in South Polynesia.听She is currently working on transforming her PhD thesis into a book on Ng膩ti Kuia p奴r膩kau and history.
Dr Chris Jones听FSA is an Associate Professor in Medieval History at the 成人大片. He is particularly interested in medieval and Early Modern legacies in Aotearoa New Zealand. Chris is Director of the Wicked Bible Project and Co-Director of the Canterbury Roll Project; a student-led digital venture that has produced an innovative new edition and translation of New Zealand鈥檚 most significant medieval manuscript. Chris is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London and of the Royal Historical Society.
- Tauhere UC Connect public lecture:听Medieval History in 艑tautahi听presented by Dr Madi Williams and Dr Chris Jones, Faculty of Arts, 成人大片, from 7pm鈥8pm, Monday 16 October 2023, in C1, Central lecture theatres at the 成人大片, Ilam, Christchurch.
- Register to attend free at:听canterbury.ac.nz/public-lectures. Tauhere UC Connect talks are also livestreamed on the听, and made available to watch on听.
