The Huygens ING extends a standing invitation to scholars to apply to our Visiting Scholars programme. Visiting researchers may take part in any activity by the institute, can use our facilities (library, ICT, etc.) and are actively encouraged to share their insight with the institute’s researchers. Applicants should be active in one of the Institute’s research domains (History, Literature, or History of Science). The individual must be visiting from an outside institution or organization, and have a doctoral degree or be a recognized expert in his or her field. Appointments are typically for the period of six months to a year.
If you’re interested in taking part in the programme, please e-mail us to receive further information.
The Huygens Institute, A Scholar’s Paradise
By Martine van Ittersum, Lecturer in European History at the University of DundeeSadly, even ten-month sabbaticals pass in a blink of the eye. It only seems yesterday that I arrived at the Huygens Institute, a subsidiary of the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences (Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen), which specializes in (electronic) publications of texts important to Dutch history, literature and culture. It turned out to be the ideal place for my current book project, Hugo Grotius and the Archaeology of Archives: How the Dispersal of His Personal Papers Shaped the Public Image of a Dutch Jurist, 17th-20th Centuries.
Since early September 2009, I have not just had a splendid office and computing and printing facilities at my disposal, but also an electronic key card which has opened many doors in the Royal Library, situated right underneath the Huygens Institute. What more could a scholar want than to have the Royal Library at his/her doorstep? Indeed, the archival and printed source materials in the Royal Library, not to mention its splendid collection of secondary literature on Dutch history, has proven absolutely crucial to my research. In the past ten months, I have uncovered many new materials on the use and abuse of Grotius’ working papers, including its implications for the scholar’s public image and the reception of his thoughts and ideas down the ages. It was particularly inspiring to do my research and writing at such a dynamic, professionally-run research institute. No dust is allowed to gather here! I cannot count the number of Saturdays when I walked into my office, expecting a quiet day of research and writing, only to discover that the research staff of the Huygens Institute had organized yet another workshop or conference.
What makes the Huygens Institute an even more attractive working environment is the perfect mixture of male and female scholars of all ages and at various stages of their career, supported by a dedicated administrative staff (thanks Suzanne and Anne Jette!) and by an impressive number of high-tech specialists in electronic text publication. A case in point is, of course, the electronic edition of Grotius’ letters, which Peter Boot recently made available. Needless to say, I am a frequent visitor of the site. Finally, I should like to express my thanks to Henk Wals and Henk Nellen, the Director and Senior Researcher of the Huygens Institute, respectively, for arranging my Visiting Fellowship at relatively short notice and for their encouragement and moral support in the past ten months. I hope to return to the Huygens Institute in the not-so-distant future. Some people just cannot get enough!
Many thanks!
28 June 2010