Imperial Time Research Articles

Deep Imperial Time in Sinophone Poetics of History

This article examines three Sinophone cultural texts to suggest that Sinophone studies can draw from its affinities with historical and linguistic studies to question the conceptual boundary of “premodern” imperial China. Through case studies of Hou Hsiao-hsien from Taiwan and Saisai (Xi Xi) and Wong Bik-wan from Hong Kong, the article proposes “deep imperial time” as a Sinophone historical poetics and cultural strategy of deimperialization. Artists turn their Sinophone sensibilities into a historiographical method that intervenes in nation-centric history and performs a capacious form of localization. Marginality from the normative nation-state and interimperial positionality compel them to enact decentered visions of historical Chineseness and imagine anti-imperial solidarities with the margins of different imperial formations across history. The article concludes that Sinophone studies can contribute to the conceptual enlargement of decoloniality by incorporating subaltern experiences in contesting non-Western empires.

"I wish i were my / self – mexican": Tom Raworth and Mexico

This article is the first analysis of the importance of Mexico for the postwar neo-avant-garde British poet Tom Raworth (1938–2017). Focusing on his poetry of the late 1960s and early 1970s, it traces the centrality of Mexico, Latin America, and Spanish to Raworth's work, beginning with connections forged in the internationalist intellectual milieu at the University of Essex in 1967 and concluding with his brief residence in Mexico City in the summer of 1973. Drawing on extensive new archival material, it centers on Raworth's friendship and correspondence with the Mexican writer José Emilio Pacheco (1939–2014). The article demonstrates how these exchanges gave political impetus to Raworth's experiments with the institutional forms of language-learning and how Raworth's critical engagement with Nahuatl in 1968 enabled the temporary reconciliation of linguistic experiment with decolonial politics through a critique of state violence and imperial time. Lastly, it argues that Raworth's interrogation of writing itself in the early 1970s was articulated through the "Mexican" tropes of the mirror and the mask, which provided Mesoamerican analogues for his concern with linguistic instability and the limits of expressive selfhood.

Метафоры остановившегося времени в современной литературе

The article examines the metaphors of the stopped time, defined as artistic ways of representing the Soviet century in post-Soviet discourse. The metaphor reveals the reflection of the “dying century”, fractally connecting the beginning of the twentieth century and the modern period in the integral semiotic field of artistic historiography (post)soviet era. The purpose of the article is to show the multidimensional nature of the metaphorical interchangeability of the semantic concepts “time is history” and “history is time”. The novelty lies in the study of artistic experimental world projects, in which metaphor fixes the models “time as an illusion” and “time as a body”. The authors consider various images of the “mental chronotope” in which the metaphor of stopped time captures special altered states of consciousness (ideological, cultural and personal) that form the artistic “myth of shaken consciousness” of the twentieth century: for example, Sukhbat Aflatuni — lethargy, Sasha Filipenko — alzheimer and coma, L. Petrushevskaya — a split personality, E. Vodolazkin — a tabula rasa state, etc. The article systematizes such metaphorical forms as time-consciousness, body-time, time-labyrinth, time-fractal, etc. A. Bitov emphasizes a special collective-incorrect time, designated as an exit from the time-labyrinth of the “cult of personality” into the general space of thawing truth. The mythosemantics of the metaphorical image of time-being and time-substance combines imperial time and thanatological parasemantics and becomes the subject of analysis on the material of the novels by Kior Yanev “Southern Mangazeya” and Henri Volokhonsky “Roman the Deceased”.

Putting imperial time on show: visual culture in the mid-nineteenth-century anniversaries of Singapore and Batavia

ABSTRACT The article examines the uses of visual culture and visual representations of time in two major public anniversaries in nineteenth-century colonial Southeast Asia: the 35th anniversary of Singapore in 1854 and the 250th anniversary of Batavia (now Jakarta) in 1869. The authorities in these two major colonial cities, capitals of the British Straits Settlements and the Dutch East Indies respectively, made use of these occasions to celebrate colonial rule, but also to project specific and contrasting messages to their intended audiences. These messages were embodied in a range of visual cues, representations, and events throughout the anniversary programmes, including images, sculptures, decorations, architecture, theatrical performances, and balls. Analysing this range of visual materials and focusing on the fleeting and spatially specific experience of the ceremonies rather than durable material representations, this article shows that the two anniversaries embodied strikingly different conceptualisations of historical time and imperial self-fashioning: one broadly presentist and forward-looking, the other far more past-oriented. Connecting these cultural differences to the diverging historical circumstances of the two colonies at the time, the article argues that imperial visual culture, especially in relation to practices of commemoration, was both global and transnational in its re-employment of metropolitan models on the one hand and highly locally specific on the other, responding to needs that were specific to the time and the place.

Routledge Handbook of Modern Korean Literature

Routledge Handbook of Modern Korean Literature

A General Survey of Ancient Chinese History

The author reviews the first six chapters of the monograph by John S. Major and Constance Cook “Ancient China: A History” (New York, London: Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group, 2017. 300 p.). The authors of the book made an attempt to briefly review the history of ancient China on the basis of a compilation of factual data from the works of the most prominent researchers of these periods in Europe and the United States. It is shown that the authors of the compilation mainly follow the Chinese historical tradition, repeating the basic information from the classical Confucian treatises of the early Imperial time. It is particularly significant that the authors make mistakes that indicate the formation of their own tradition of writing the history of China in the United States.

Revision and cassation in French military courts of the late XVIII – early XIX centuries: on the legal nature of permanent councils of revision

This article contains material on the history of the Permanent Councils of Revision – bodies of military justice in France of the late XVIII – early XIX centuries, which is examined in the Russian historiography for the first time, as well as poorly studied in the French historiography. Leaning on the legislative acts and works of the French lawyers of that time, analysis is conducted on the procedure for the formation of the councils of revision, and determination of their judicial competence. The article also raises the question on correlation of the concepts of “revision” and “cassation” in French military justice of the end of revolutionary and post-revolutionary eras. Consideration of the provisions of French jurisprudence of the early XIX century allows concluding that the concept of “revision” could also include cassation of court judgments. Comparison of the permanent councils of revision, which carried out the functions of cassation of court decisions, with the Cassation Tribunal (in the imperial time – the Court of Cassation) did not allow to equate these bodies, which were created separately for military and civilian justice. Having a different procedure for the formation of bench of judges, the permanent councils of revision were granted the limited authority to conduct cassation and were not of equal importance to the Court of Cassation.

Virtud, alma y música: Plat., R., 443d y los desarrollos filosóficos posteriores

From his soul-dividing model (through a comparison with music 443d) Plato presents in the Republic the predominance of certain virtues in each part and its political meaning. This idea is later developed by other Greek philosophical schools in imperial time. Plutarch’s commentary on the Platonic passage let us know how Neoplatonists, Neo-Pythagoreans and Stoics have enriched the identification between Soul and Virtue with elements taken from the musical system and from the latestdoctrine on virtues, even establishing links with theory of knowledge.

Virtud, alma y música: Plat., R., 443d y los desarrollos filosóficos posteriores

From his soul-dividing model (through a comparison with music 443d) Plato presents in the Republic the predominance of certain virtues in each part and its political meaning. This idea is later developed by other Greek philosophical schools in imperial time. Plutarch’s commentary on the Platonic passage let us know how Neoplatonists, Neo-Pythagoreans and Stoics have enriched the identification between Soul and Virtue with elements taken from the musical system and from the latestdoctrine on virtues, even establishing links with theory of knowledge.

COOKBOOKS AND NATIONAL IDENTITY IN IMPERIAL RUSSIA DURING THE 18th AND 19th CENTURIES

Despite the scarce relevance in the academic world compared to other disciplines, cookbooks and food-related stories represent a valid source to understand more in detail socio-economic and political changes in a country. In this paper I will briefly introduce the increase in importance of cookbooks and the national cuisine in Russia, their contribution and the key role they played during the imperial time in the formation of national identity. The method of my research includes an analysis of the most influential culinary works printed in Russia during the 18th and 19th centuries and their contextualization in a time full of social and political changes. As result, I will explain how politics and social events reflect over the kitchen and cookbooks and how the latter have been used by their authors as medium to spread patriotism and nationalistic ideologies.

Linguistic Politeness in the Chinese Language and Culture

This paper aims to explore the cultural foundations of polite speech and analyze its usage and practice in modern Chinese. A language mirrors the culture it is associated with. Grounded in the Chinese tradition and the teachings of Confucianism, the emphasis on rites, propriety and humility led to the development of polite language from the early imperial time. Because of the absence of related syntactic features, Chinese linguistic politeness is predominantly manifested on the lexical level. A rich array of decorous terms and expressions has been evolved accordingly to express courtesy or respect either verbally or in formal writing. In general, the lexicon of politeness can be classified into four major categories, namely, honorifics, humble language, courteous speech, and euphemisms.

Multitechnique approach for unveiling the technological evolution in building materials during the Roman Imperial Age: The Atrium Vestae in Rome

The present study focuses on the chemical characterisation of the bricks and mortars of a Roman Imperial building, the Atrium Vestae, characterised at least by five building phases. From each phase, brick and mortar samples were selected in order to emphasise compositional differences and/or possible evolutions in the materials employed and in the building technology of different historical periods. This investigation is carried out by a multitechnique approach based on: optical microscopy (OM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), Fourier Transform InfraRed (FT-IR) and micro-Raman spectroscopies. The comparison between contemporary samples or between samples produced in different ages provided important information to be integrated with the archaeological and historical data highlighting an improvement in the technological skill during the Imperial time. Furthermore, compositional similarities between samples of controversial dating, offered a hint to discriminate certain building phases and, finally, the compositional analyses were also extremely useful to determine the condition of the entire building.

Money and Future in Late Ming China

Chinese imperial dynastic time represented the cyclical change of regimes with a naturalized moral order. A linear lineage time and synchronic communal time were often eclipsed by the more ritually visible and well-documented cyclical imperial time. The dawn of China’s “silver century” (1550–1650,) however, disrupted the cyclical temporality of the dynasties and revealed other time-orders that had been usually subsumed under the dynastic time. Late Ming China (fifteenth to early seventeenth century), like many parts of Europe in the early modern period, experienced commercial accumulation, competitive consumption, desire for capital, reformulation of norms and traditions, bringing China into a globalized world historical process. This change in economy brought to the fore the many layers between imperial dynastic time and that of the individual. Money also influenced existing philosophies of past and future, as well as techniques of prognostication. Manipulation of the future often took the form of calculation of good deeds inspired by accounting. In short, money transformed what we can call “the practice of future” in two ways. First, it reemphasized the importance of linear lineage time instead of dynastic time through emphasizing the longevity of descendants and fortunes in the afterlife. Second, through the discussion of capital acquisition and the popularization of accounting, it also introduced “balance” into temporality through the discourse of just and unjust accumulation, allowing a synchronized and more egalitarian communal time to disrupt lineage time.

APP 3D: el ciclo escultórico del foro de Torreparedones (Baena, Córdoba)

<p><strong>Extended Abstract:</strong></p><p>The archaeological site of Torreparedones (Baena) is one of the most outstanding Roman sites in the Province of Cordoba, due to not only the structural remains excavated in recent decades, but also the relevance through the relevance of other recovered materials. In recent years, among the recordings made during excavations and in the area of the north portico of the forum and the temple, an important sculptural group from the high imperial time was documented. The sculptural cycle consists of two dynastic groups, which are currently part of the museum exhibition of Baena. The first, found in the area of the gate, consists of a toga, a female figure, a military sculpture and a fragment ideal statue (of the type hüftmantel). The second group, from the temple or near the same area, consists of two male and female seated statues representing: Divus Augustus, Divus Claudius and Diva Augusta (Livia). The latter offers a representation of idealized types, as characters portraits were produced post-mortem once the senate decreed their deification time. Because of the importance of this second group, a three-dimensional (3D) model of each of the pieces has been created. The main objective of this research, with some results presented in this article, is further development of a mobile application that allows disseminating results and promotes the use of virtual reality in the field of heritage. In order to carry out the development of the app the following lines of action have been followed: 1) Recording by the sculptural 3D scanning cycle; and 2) the development of a 3D digital catalogue for the dissemination and study within the framework of scientific research.</p><p>Data collection of the surface was performed by using a 3D laser scanner, a tool that allows obtaining sub-millimetre resolution and accuracy. After obtaining the results, we processed and checked the quality of the acquired points, best-fit and registration of successive surface recordings, and filtering and cleaning of the point clouds. To disseminate the findings of this research we chose to carry out analyses with a free application called "Sculptural Cycle Torreparedones" available for the Android operating system. With this app, the user can access all the information available, with periodic updates as the progress of other ongoing investigations. This application allows and intuitive and easy way of navigation, see the 3D models of the sculptures, as well as access a virtual tour of Rome in 360° room of the museum of Baena.</p><p>Also, the user can access different multimedia content related to the site. As representative logo for the app, the icon of the half-head portrait of Divus Augustus was selected along with the title “3D Sculptural Cycle Torreparedones” as it is one of the largest and best known general level sculpture images. Since the app has been available since October 2017, a survey for assessing the app was conducted in order to know its impact and anticipate future necessary changes. In the course of this system, we have known the user skills in handling the application and the great interest of the youngest people in 3D.Theresults of this survey confirm that this work is an example of how this communication channel can be of service to the valorization and intelligibility of archaeological heritage. It not only allows knowing the materials recovered during the excavations of Torreparedones but also facilitates the visitor to establish a direct connection between the museum and the archaeological site. The application 3D Sculptural Cycle Torreparedones joins other works developed for 3D models digitized as a virtual catalogue, as is the Epigraphia3D app and other applications made with visits 360° as the case of the mobile application Guadiat VR -Belmez (Spain).</p>

Diet and health in Central-Southern Italy during the Roman Imperial time

<p align="left">The reconstruction of ancient diets by means of stable isotopes analyses acquires a deeper meaning when their results are compared with other odonto-skeletal indicators which are strongly contextualized in the light of historical and archaeological evidence. Nevertheless, the outcomes can be contradictory or, more realistically, they may not completely satisfy our hypotheses on how complex and diverse conditions - such as health status, life style, diet and nutrition - can actually interrelate in the life course of an individual.</p><p align="left">In this study we present and discuss evidences from Isola Sacra and Velia, two Roman Imperial Age coastal towns. The õ<sup>15</sup>N and õ<sup>13</sup>C values are compared with demographic and health status parameters, such as age, sex, stature, auricular exostoses, DISH, <em>cribra orbitalia</em>, enamel defects.</p><p> </p>

New insights into the manufacturing technique and corrosion of high leaded antique bronze coins

Selected ancient Greek bronze coins held in the Coin Collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna (KHM) were studied concerning their preservation and conservation. The coins had been minted during the Roman Imperial time (50 to 280 AD) using alloys with high lead and/or tin contents. Today a number of these highly leaded bronze coins, altogether different singular pieces, show progressive whitish corrosion in spots or well-defined areas on their surfaces. Different analytical techniques were used for the documentation and study of the different states of corrosion, the corrosion phases developing in the whitish parts as well as the cause of the specific corrosion phenomena.Further studies focused on the analysis of the corrosion phases – combining results from μ-XRD and neutron diffraction investigations – as well as on the manufacturing techniques of the antique Greek coins. The μ-XRD analysis applied a beam spot of 300μm allowing for a localised determination of corrosion phases on the surfaces of the objects. The main corrosion products consist of metal (Cu, Pb, Cu/Sn) oxide phases. As minor components also metal sulphide and chloride phases could be assigned. To enable the distinction between different manufacturing techniques 35 coins and eight self-made ‘replicas’ were analysed in a non-destructive way by bulk neutron texture analysis which reveals changes in the microcrystalline structure of the alloys related to the mechanical minting processes.

Diskussionsforum: A New Imperial History?

Abstract The study of modern empires is today one of the liveliest fields in international historical research. This is in no small part due to the emphasis on the ethnic diversity, geographical extent, and uneven distribution of power that characterize imperial spaces. Stimulated both by the critical questions posed by postcolonial studies and the experience of globalization, a “new imperial history” is emerging. This continues, however, to be relegated to the margins of German historiography. This essay presents an overview of contemporary research, discusses new concepts and themes, and presents perspectives for future work. It argues that the established separation of maritime from continental empires should be abandoned in favor of new approaches that compare and entangle imperial spaces using the conceptual tools provided by global history. It proposes historicizing gender as an important technique of rule by colonizers and colonized alike. Finally, the essay discusses how to rethink imperial time i...

Fontes Documentais Para o Estudo da População e da Família Escrava: Franca-SP, Século XIX

Criada em 1996, a revista Mediações é uma publicação quadrimestral do Departamento e do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Sociologia, voltada para o debate sobre temas relevantes e/ou atuais das Ciências Sociais e de áreas afins. Mediações dedica-se à missão de divulgar conteúdo científico de qualidade produzido por pesquisadore(a)s nacionais e estrangeiro(a)s das áreas de Ciências Sociais e de áreas afins, com o objetivo de fomentar e ampliar a produção de conhecimento, contribuindo seja para a inovação teórica e/ou metodológica, seja para o avanço de análises empíricas qualificadas na pesquisa em Ciências Sociais e Humanas.

The Cosmic Time of Empire: Modern Britain and World Literature

Arenewed, expansive reckoning of the relationship between modernism and imperialism has long been gathering momentum. More and more, literary scholarship has complicated the Lukácsian notion of modernist apoliticism, showing how modernists were not wholly divorced from questions of empire. Critics like Kathy J. Phillips have explored references to militarism and imperialism in the works of Virginia Woolf, once the embodiment of aesthetic ahistoricism. More recently, Jed Esty has mined the links between empire, nationhood, and the narrative temporality of the modernist Bildungsroman.1 Published just weeks after Esty's book, Adam Barrows's The Cosmic Time of Empire examines some of the same authors and shares a similar focus on ‘imperial time’. His unique contribution, though, pivots on the apparatus of temporal reckoning itself: Greenwich Mean Time. Studying its history as one of homogenisation and imperial control, he finds some fascinating political and aesthetic ramifications for a host of British and Indian modernists alike. The Cosmic Time of Empire is a dense and conceptually ambitious work that demonstrates how writers ‘engaged with rather than evaded the enlistment of temporality in the imperial project’ (p. 4). Moreover, drawing on history and the philosophy of science, and encompassing neglected as well as canonical transatlantic authors, it advances scholarship on modernist temporality with admirable methodological breadth.

Seeing Caesar in ruins: towards a radical aesthetic of ruins

This paper considers two ancient instances of engagement with the ruin: resonant descriptions of Troy in the second-century historian Tacitus and in the Neronian poet Lucan. Both represent the encounter with the ruin as alienating, which provokes interpretations corresponding to those of modern engagements with ruins. These instances undermine the particularity of the modern experience of ruins and instead introduce a dialectic between the ruin and the imperial state. Although one might assume that the ruin as a symbol of times past offers a locus outside Modernity or the (Roman) imperial state from where an oppositional perspective becomes possible, this alienation works instead to reinforce political norms. The ruin operates as an illusion of opposition. Although totalitarian systems operate with monological visions of history and unitary imaginaries, and the ruin would seem to encourage plurality, imperial time operates in more complex ways, which allow different historical periods to be enfolded in and subordinated to the imperial dialectic. Collective memory in the imperial society is critically ambivalent and that ambivalence imbues imperial society with a pervasive sorrow.