Emily Whittingham, an intern at the Museum and PhD student in the history of microscopy, explores the history of the microscope in England from the 1600s to the present day.

Seventeenth-century virtuosi often figured themselves as epistemic weeders, grubbing up rank thickets of accumulated error. In this article, I argue that these metaphors were unnerved by the shifting...

In April 2026, scholars from across the UK and abroad came together at the University of York for the NEHN’s annual workshop, titled ‘Yuck?: Historical Approaches to Unwanted Non-Human Life’. Parti…

The Northern Environmental History Network welcomes Kate Nankervis (York) to speak about histories of climate, clouds and meteorology.

Following a workshop convened by the Northern Environmental History Network, we are establishing a network for scholars who research historical approaches to unwanted non-human life. This includes pla...

The silence of light and shadow dulls the chatter of Wright’s subjects, immobilising squabbling children and gesticulating lecturers into quiet, almost spectral forms.

The silence of light and shadow dulls the chatter of Wright’s subjects, immobilising squabbling children and gesticulating lecturers into quiet, almost spectral forms.

SHNH Summer Meeting by Josephine Koopman, Researcher (Department of History, European University Institute) “The senses,” Michel de Montaigne wrote in 1588, “are the beginning and the end of human kno...

This three-day international conference hosted at Leiden University by the ERC Consolidator-funded FEATHERS project aims to bring together researchers working on early modern scribal culture and manus...