The Fourth International Congress of the John Gower Society:
“GOWER, HIS CONTEMPORARIES, AND THEIR LEGACY
IN MSS AND EARLY PRINTED BOOKS, 1350-1550″
University of Durham, UK
09 July – 14 July, 2017
The John Gower Society and the Early Book Society co-organized the fifteenth biennial conference of the Early Book Society and the IVth International Congress of the John Gower Society, hosted by the University of Durham, UK (9th to 14th July 2017). The Congress theme was ‘Gower, His Contemporaries, and Their Legacy in MSS and Early Printed Books, 1350-1550’. The local organizers included Elizabeth Archibald and Corinne Saunders (Department of English Studies, Durham), and co-chairs Martha Driver (Early Book Society) and R. F. Yeager (John Gower Society).
About the conference
Panels and plenary lectures took place in Durham on Monday 10th, Tuesday 11th, Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th July. The welcome reception occurred in the Cloisters of Durham Cathedral on the evening of Sunday 9th (6-7.30pm). A reception was held at St Cuthbert’s Society (one of the university colleges on the Bailey) on the evening of Tuesday 11th (6-7.30pm), and the conference dinner took place at University College (the Castle) on the evening of Thursday 13th July. Wednesday afternoon included time for Cathedral and Library visits. The conference included three plenary lectures, given by Professor A. S. G. Edwards (University of Kent), Professor Roberta Krueger (Hamilton College), and Professor John O’Brien (Durham University). All panels and plenary lectures took place at Elvet Riverside, the primary Arts building of the university. Coffee and tea, and lunch, was provided up the street in Dunelm House (the Durham Students’ Union building) on Monday 10th, Tuesday 11th, Wednesday 12th and Thursday 13th July.
Excursions
Professor Richard Gameson and the staff of the Cathedral and Palace Green libraries generously agreed to host tours in which selections from the important manuscript collections of these libraries will be presented. Durham Cathedral Library preserves the largest in situ medieval collection in Britain. These took place on the afternoon of Wednesday 12th July between 2 and 5pm, with three groups of a maximum of 20 each moving between Palace Green Library, the Cathedral Library and the Cathedral. Delegates on these tours were able to see both libraries, and could also visit the Cathedral Open Treasure exhibition at a reduced cost. A separate tour left at 2.15pm by coach to Ushaw College (located 5 miles outside the city centre) to visit the college buildings and the library, again in three groups of 20. The chapel was originally designed by Pugin; the library, which descends from the English College at Douai, contains a remarkable collection ranging from ninth-century manuscripts to an extensive printed book collection of 30,000 titles, as well as significant archival resources and deposits from various collections.
On Friday 14th July,there was an all-day excursion to Alnwick, a market town located 53 miles north of Durham, and its spectacular castle and gardens. The eleventh-century castle is the seat of the Duke of Northumberland and has an impressive array of state rooms (including a beautiful library); the castle has also gained fame in recent years as a filming location for various film and TV franchises including the Harry Potter series and Downton Abbey.
