A Workshop on European Peasants

Art critics and scholars have puzzled over the behavior of Pablo Picasso, Gerhard Richter, and Sigmar Polke, three important modern painters who have made frequent and abrupt changes of style. In each case, assuming this behavior to be idiosyncratic, the experts consequently failed to recognize its common basis. But stylistic versatility is in fact often a characteristic of conceptual innovators whose ability to solve specific problems can free them to pursue new goals. This contrasts sharply with the practice of experimental artists, whose inability to achieve their goals often ties them to a single style for an entire career. The phenomenon of the conceptual innovator who produces diverse innovations is an important and new feature of twentieth-century art; Picasso was the prototype, and he has been followed by a series of others, from Marcel Duchamp and Francis Picabia to Bruce Nauman and Damien Hirst. Versatility has furthermore been a characteristic not only of modern painters but also of conceptual innovators in other arts, and of conceptual scholars. Recognizing the common basis of this behavior deepens our understanding not only of twentieth-century art but also of human creativity more generally, for it adds a dimension to the contrast between conceptual and experimental innovators.     

From Peasants to the PLO

Book reviewed in this article: Palestinian Peasants and Ottoman Officials: Rural Administration Around Sixteenth-Cent ury Jerusalem, Amy Singer Politics in Palestine: Arab Factionalism and Social Disintegration, 1939–1948, Issa Khalaf U.S.-PLO Dialogue: Secret Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution, Mohamed Rabie     

The Peasants Revolt of 1381 and the chronicles

This paper contains a textual comparison between the eight accounts of the events in London, June 1381. It reveals a close interrelationship between these accounts, and the author therefore provides a new evaluation of their reliability as a source for the events of the revolt. A stemma is proposed which, among other things, shows that the Anonimalle chronicle should be regarded as a secondary compilation.     

The Peasants Revolt of 1381 and the chronicles

This paper contains a textual comparison between the eight accounts of the events in London, June 1381. It reveals a close interrelationship between these accounts, and the author therefore provides a new evaluation of their reliability as a source for the events of the revolt. A stemma is proposed which, among other things, shows that the Anonimalle chronicle should be regarded as a secondary compilation.     

Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage Initiatives in Tanzania and Mozambique

The aim of this paper is provide an overview of the capacity building programmes in maritime and underwater cultural heritage (MUCH) conducted by the authors in Tanzania and Mozambique. Tanzania and Mozambique have long histories of indigenous cultures, foreign contacts and influences and African adaptations beginning in the late Greco-Roman period, when the coastal populations exploited the peoples and riches of the interior. Today the coastline contains numerous examples of indigenous tangible and intangible heritage and many sites and histories related to the Swahili culture. Some exploratory research and training has been conducted in Tanzania and Mozambique, but the implementation by local residents of their own MUCH programme is still at an early stage. Under a UNESCO agreement framework, Tanzania in particular has started to develop a MUCH programme, which can assist in highlighting their extensive histories, cultural landscapes and cultural identity.