This talk examines the ways in which knowledge was communicated through diagrams in late medieval manuscripts.

Part image, part text, diagrams were integral to the preservation, organization, and dissemination of information in the Middle Ages. They could take on any number of forms, ranging from abstract geometrical constructions to more concrete schemas shaped like trees, wheels, towers, and more. Drawing on the extraordinary richness of the Lawrence J. Schoenberg collection of pre-modern manuscripts, and presenting some exciting new acquisitions, this talk will not only “decode” the content of these seemingly arcane memory aids but will also place them within their original pedagogical contexts. In today’s world of instant information, can these analog teaching tools from the past provide a more methodical pathway for retaining knowledge?

About the speaker: Nicholas Herman is the Lawrence J. Schoenberg Curator at the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies. He is a specialist in manuscript illumination and its intersections with other media across the pre-modern world.