Two IMS Members Present at International Conference
Two IMS Members, Jacob Deacon and Iason-Eleftherios Tzouriadis, presented a paper and demonstrated a workshop at the international conference 'L'art du combat chez Pietro del Monte' in France.
The conference L'art du combat chez Pietro del Monte (The Art of the Fighting of Pietro del Monte) was held at the Centre for Renaissance Studies at the University of Tours, France, from 20-21 April 2018. The conference was organised by the Centre and the European Institute for the History and Cultures of Food (University of Tours). Pietro Monte (1457-1509) was a Renaissance man: a successful condotierre, theologian, and philosopher, among many other interests. The conference coincided with two recent editions of his treatise Exercitiorum atque artis militaris collectanea by Dr Jeffrey Forgeng and Mike Prendergast, respectively.
The conference was divided into presentations on the first day, with a series of workshops demonstrating interpretations of Monte's work on the second day.
Jacob Deacon, IMS PG Researcher at the University of Leeds studying the transmission and contextual uses of martial knowledge in late medieval and early modern Europe, and Iason-Eleftherios Tzouriadis, a recently graduated IMS PhD alumnus researching the development and use of staff weapons from 1300-1500, co-presented and co-demonstrated at this conference. Their paper, titled 'Pietro del Monte's Staff Weapons: Context, Comparison, and Analysis' was given on 20 April. Their demonstration of staff weapons lasted for an hour and a half on 21 April, and illustrated techniques mentioned in their earlier presentation.
Tzouriadis commented that 'overall, it was a real treat to attend this conference', and mentioned that papers 'discussed a variety of subjects by specialists, a handling session of artefacts and books directly or indirectly connected with Monte, and a joint martial arts event with practical interpretations and demonstrations of Monte's teachings in the art of combat'.
Deacon agreed, calling it a 'pleasure and a privilege see their [various experts'] interpretations and approaches to Monte'. In particular, Deacon highlighted the conversation between the translators Forgeng and Prendergast, calling their discussion 'a fascinating insight to the translation process'.
