Byzantine Studies Conference Archives
Twenty-Sixth Annual Byzantine Studies Conference
Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Business Lunch Minutes: Saturday, October 28, 2000
- The meeting was called to order by Michael Maas at 12:40 p.m.
- The minutes were approved for the 1999 BSC Business Lunch.
- Michael Maas announced that George Dennis was in the hospital and that he would welcome visitors. Flowers have also been sent to him on behalf of the BSC.
- BSC Web Site has been redesigned and will soon be online.
Patrick Viscuso has agreed to provide the text for the first page of the web site.
BSC Abstracts will also be online soon except for numbers V and XVIII for which hard copy is needed. Any member having copies of these abstracts in their possession is asked to contact Hugh Elton, our new Web Coordinator. He can be reached at eltonh@fiu.edu
Ralph Mathisen and The University of South Carolina have generously agreed to continue to host our web site.
A new logo for the BSC has been designed by A. Dean Mckenzie, Prof. Emeritus, The University of Oregon, Portland, who won the recent BSC logo design contest.
Ideally, the web site will contain the following categories: Job Listings, Exhibitions, Conferences, etc. If you have information that you wish to see included on the web site, please contact Hugh Elton, as above.
- Elections to the BSC Governing Board
The ballot circulated by the Nominating Committee contained more than the four names allotted by the BSC Charter. The problem was noted by several of the founding members of the BSC and eventually rectified. The following individuals were ultimately elected to the BSC Governing Board:
Michael Gaddis
Paul Halsall
Mario Philippides
Ellen Schwartz
- News from Dumbarton Oaks relayed to Michael Maas from Alice-Mary Talbot
Copies of the DO newsletter were available to conference attendees.
Two new joint positions were announced: 1) a position in Theology with the University of Notre Dame; and 2) in Byzantine history at the University of Wisconsin. For more information, consult the DO website at www.doaks.org/jobs.html
The four-week Greek Summer School program will be repeated June 4-29, 2001, but may not be available for several years after that due to space restrictions during construction of the new library. Applications are due January 15, 2001.
Library construction at DO: Ned Keenan said that there is no construction schedule yet as the original plan has been replaced by a better plan thanks to the collapse of a 200 year old tree behind the guest house. This opens up a much better location for the new library. DO is half way through the regulatory process and construction plans will take several more months to complete. Ned Keenan’s house will be turned into a new refectory. All old systems in the mansion will be upgraded which may lead to some disruption during 2001-2002. A tunnel will also be constructed connecting the sub-basement of the Pre-Columbian building to the new library.
DO’s five volumes of Typika has gone to the printer. DO’s web site devoted to Typika has received 36,000 hits.
Ned Keenan also encouraged members to check out DO’s web site for spectacular savings on DO publications. They are losing their warehouse privileges and must reduce inventory.
- Dumbarton Oaks Liaison Committee
Claudia Rapp said that Ned Keenan and Alice-Mary Talbot met with Michael Maas, Claudia Rapp, and Leonora Neville (Annemarie Weyl Carr couldn’t make it) and updated them concerning D.O.’s plans. Please see the Dumbarton Oaks website for details.
Dumbarton Oaks library privileges:
All Dumbarton Oaks alumni have library privileges. All scholars in good standing (with an appropriate letter of introduction) can use Dumbarton Oaks Library, even during the Spring Symposium on Thursday evening or Friday.\
Dumbarton Oaks publications:
The significant backlog of Dumbarton Oaks monographs has been addressed. The newsletter indicates that another half a dozen volumes are now available. Portions of volumes by Greenfield and Sullivan have been placed on-line. Dumbarton Oaks Papers vol. 53 is also on-line.
- Graduate Student Paper Prize for BSC 1999 Awarded to Bissera V. Pentcheva
Maria Georgopoulou (on behalf of Kathleen Corrigan) awarded a gold coin to Bissera V. Pentcheva (Harvard University) for her paper entitled "A New Image of the Virgin in Eleventh- and Twelfth-Century Constantinople."
- John Nesbitt (Dumbarton Oaks), former archivist for the BSC, was given a gold coin for his many years of service to the BSC as archivist
- Treasurer’s Report by Derek Krueger (given in absentia by John Duffy).
Derek’s report indicates that total assets of the BSC as of 10/15/00 were $29,048.37
This sum does not include $929.00 to be added from the University of Maryland, according to George Majeska.
Graduate students are to be given free dues next year if they registered for BSC 2000. This is because they were not given the reduced rates for the BSC 2000 Business Lunch and the Banquet to which they are entitled.
- Future BSC Conference Locations:
2001University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana (November 8 - 11, 2001)
Charles Barber, Chair, Local Arrangements Committee, extends a warm Irish welcome to all. Charles Barber can be reached at barber.11@nd.edu
2002 Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio (date to be determined)
Tim Gregory, Chair, Local Arrangements Committee
2003 Bates College, Lewiston, Maine
Bob Allison, Chair, Local Arrangements Committee
2004 Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan
- Special thanks to Christine Kondoleon for the flyer she created providing directions to "Antioch: The Lost Ancient City" an exhibit at the Worcester Art Museum.
- XX Congres International Byzantine des Etudes Byzantines: Report by John Duffy for Nancy Ševčenko (nŠevčenko@aol.com)
The second circular will be mailed in early November. It will include information concerning registration and hotels. The e-mail address is
congres2001@college-de-france.fr The conference web site address is: http://byzance.dr10.cnrs.fr
The deadline for abstracts is Feb. 15, 2001
Registration forms need to be received by the authorities in Paris by April 30, 2001 to avoid paying higher fees.
- Friends of Mount Athos: Update by Bob Allison
Funding has been provided for the Protaton Tower. This was made possible in large part by a gift of the late Sir Steven Runciman (the proceeds of his Onassis Prize). The remainder came from membership dues. The Friends of Mt. Athos also provided money to the Decani monastery in Kosovo to upgrade its resources. The Friends also supports the microfilming of manuscripts of Mt. Athos via the Patriarchal Institute in Thessalonike.
- Patriarchal Institute, Thessalonike, Greece: Update by Bob Allison
The Institute, under the guidance of Efthymis Litsas and Katarina Katsarou, has successfully fought all five law suits brought against it in an effort to put it out of business. The present situation remains uneasy and requires great patience as neither Efthymis or Katarina have any support staff.
The Patriarchal Institute has formed a partnership with the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center of Claremont, California. The microfilms are beginning to disintegrate (due to heavy use as no copies were made of these microfilms) and therefore it is necessary to produce digital images. The Getty is helping with the funding.
- Graduate Student Prize, Proposal by Lee Striker:
Lee Striker argued that the prize needs to be reconsidered as problems are becoming apparent as it appears to create an atmosphere of competitiveness which runs counter to the founding principles of the BSC. Discussion was followed by a vote in which only three were in favor of abolishing the Graduate Student Prize.
- Very special thanks were offered again to Sari Takacs and John Duffy of the Local Arrangements Committee for all they did to ensure the success of BSC 2000.
- Michael Maas adjourned the meeting at 1:55 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Kathleen Maxwell
Secretary, BSC