Herzog Ernst and Hiob Ludolf Fellowships

Thanks to the generous support of the Ernst Abbe Foundation (Ernst-Abbe-Stiftung), which has been funding the programme since 2020, the Herzog Ernst and Hiob Ludolf Fellowship Programme at the Gotha Research Campus is carried out by the Gotha Research Center, the Centre for Transcultural Studies / Perthes Collection and the Gotha Research Library. The programme includes short-term scholarships for doctoral candidates and post-docs as well as the Hiob Ludolf Fellowship for senior scholars.

Our research emphasizes the contemporary history of the Gotha collections, with a particular focus on topics from the 19^th and 20^th centuries. This includes historical research on material cultures and object histories, the history of knowledge and science — especially natural sciences (e.g., zoology and botany) — as well as space-oriented disciplines (e.g. geography, geology, ethnology, and statistics), and global history as reflected in ego-documents. We are particularly interested in new histories of cartography, the politics of mapping, and colonial history.  Furthermore, concerning the Gotha Perthes Collection, we are keen to further explore the history of the publishing house, including the history of individual products, and to conduct transdisciplinary research on collecting practices.

Further information:

Herzog Ernst Fellowships     Hiob Ludolf Fellowships

The scholarship programme is open for doctoral candidates, postdocs, and senior scholars. The Centre for Transcultural Studies welcomes applications from all fields of history, the history of knowledge and history of science, as well as literary studies, media studies, art and visual studies, regional studies, and political science with a historical approach and historically interested ethnology, anthropology. We are also interested in transdisciplinary research on practices of collecting. We encourage applications that align with the Centre for Transcultural Studies’ academic profile, especially those engaging with our interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches. Topics that explore postcolonialism, globality, and reflexive approaches addressing politically and socially relevant issues are particularly valued.
Please note that residency in Gotha is expected during your research stay.

Herzog Ernst Fellowships for doctoral candidates: research grant of 1.300 euros per month, plus a potential family allowance of 100 euros per month, if applicable, for a maximum duration of 9 months.

Herzog Ernst Fellowships for postdoctoral researchers: research grant of 1.800 euros per month, plus a potential family allowance of 100 euros per month, if applicable, for a maximum of 6 months.

Hiob Ludolf Fellowships are intended for established national or international senior scholars who wish to spend a research period of one or two months in Gotha. They will receive a reimbursement of travel and accommodation costs of up to 1.500 euros per month.

Application documents for Herzog Ernst Scholarships and Hiob Ludolf Fellowships:

• Application form (Herzog Ernst Scholarships: PDF) or cover letter stating the desired research period (Hiob Ludolf Fellowships)
• Curriculum Vitae
• Brief outline of the project (3–5 pages) including a statement on the necessity to do research in Gotha that explicitly indicates the holdings to be consulted.
• Copies of relevant certificates
• A list of publications, if applicable
• Signed consent to the processing of personal data (PDF).

Further application documents for Herzog Ernst Scholarships:

• Two recent letters of recommendation regarding the proposed project (both experts should be named in the application form); these are to be submitted via email by the reviewer themselves respecting the deadline.

For further details on your application, please have a look at:

application Herzog Ernst Scholarships     application Hiob Ludolf Fellowships

• Closing date for applications for 2025: September 30, 2024
• Earliest date for starting your research stay and your fellowship: February 1, 2025

Contact for questions regarding the application:
Kristina Petri, M.A.
Forschungszentrum Gotha | CG3 - Forschungszentrum Gotha | Schloßberg 2 | 99867 Gotha
+49 361 737-1712
herzogernst@uni-erfurt.de

Contact for questions regarding the Centre for Transcultural Studies/ Perthes Collection:
Dominic Keyßner, M.A.
Forschungskolleg Transkulturelle Studien / Sammlung Perthes | CG2 - Pagenhaus | Schlossplatz 1 | 99867 Gotha
+49 361 737-1602
fkts.gotha@uni-erfurt.de

Contact for questions regarding the Collections:
Gotha Perthes Collection:
sammlungperthes.fb@uni-erfurt.de

Gotha Research Library:
bibliothek.gotha@uni-erfurt.de

The Perthes Collection is part of the Gotha Research Library. It preserves the records of the publishing house Justus Perthes Gotha, founded in 1785, and its successors (VEB Hermann Haack Geographisch-Kartographische Anstalt Gotha and Justus Perthes Geographische Verlagsanstalt Darmstadt). The Perthes Collection consists of a specialized geographic-cartographic library with 120,000 volumes, the archival collection with about 800 running meters, and the map collection, which includes 185,000 sheets of cartographic material.

In addition to extensive correspondence, work journals, account books and a collection of voucher copies of the publisher's products, the archive contains hand-drawn manuscript maps, map drafts and itineraries. Additionally, there is a wealth of printed maps from other publishers, which had been evaluated and used by the Gotha cartographers for their own maps and atlases. This outstanding cultural heritage allows deep insights into the inner life of three of the most influential European map publishers in the 19th and 20th centuries and into the production processes of their published cartographic and geographical works.

Part of the collection, in particular a significant proportion of the maps of Africa and Asia as well as the publisher's products, is available digitally in the Digital Historical Library Erfurt/Gotha. Here you will also find holdings of the Gotha Research Library that have already been digitized. By searching with the abbreviation SPA (Perthes Archive Collection), SPB (Perthes Library Collection) and SPK (Perthes Map Collection), researchers can filter out the digital copies belonging to the Perthes Collection.

Printed works and books belonging to the library of the publishing house, as well as maps produced by Justus Perthes Gotha, can also be searched via the Online Catalogue of the Erfurt University Library. In addition, larger holdings connected to the editorial staff of the journal Petermanns Geographische Mitteilungen can already be accessed via the manuscript database Kalliope.

For further information, please contact the collection team: sammlungperthes.fb@uni-erfurt.de