Call for Abstracts
peer-reviewed, open access journal
“The So What” of Medieval Collections
Due by 29 August 2025
One of the hardest questions academics, educators, and cultural workers must answer is: why does teaching the public about the past matter? This question becomes even sharper for those who steward the past in physical form: rare manuscripts, fragmented psalters, pilgrim badges, weaponry, and bestiaries—often thousands of miles and hundreds of years removed from their origin. What are these medieval materials doing in U.S. institutions? And how can they still be impactful to modern viewers?
As The So What (TSW), a peer-reviewed, open access journal, continues its mission to interrogate why the study of the Middle Ages matters—especially in public-facing spaces—we invite contributions that explore the role of libraries, museums, and similar cultural institutions in honestly and inclusively shaping the stories we tell about the past.
We are particularly interested in how medieval collections in the United States complicate, challenge, or reinforce current political projects that seek to rewrite history not in the service of truth, but of nationalism, exclusion, and power.
In an era when government officials increasingly question the value of public libraries and museums—defunding them, questioning their “neutrality,” or attempting to erase marginalized histories—we want to ask: What is the “so what” of public medieval collections in the U.S.?
We invite museum professionals, librarians, archivists, curators, educators, and public historians to contribute pieces that explore:
● Why U.S.-based medieval collections matter to the public today
● How these collections challenge or reinforce white supremacist narratives of a "pure" or "Christian" past
● The material and ethical questions of acquiring, maintaining, and displaying medieval objects far from their origin
● How to teach with and through medieval collections in community-centered, inclusive ways
● Creative or multimedia responses to working with medieval collections in public institutions
● Examples of public programming, exhibitions, or curriculum that connect medieval objects with today’s urgent issues
We welcome short, accessible essays, lesson plans, annotated exhibition materials, creative or multimedia pieces, and reflections on the work of public medievalism. All submissions will undergo anonymous peer and editorial review.
Abstracts (500 words or less) due by 08/29/25. Issue would come out fall 2026 or early 2027. Send abstracts and questions to mlsheble@gmail.com