Future Research
New Roll Publication
The first in a series of Canterbury Roll Working Papers is now accessible via the Project website. In Working Paper 1, Damon Daines, who completed his PACE495 Internship at UC as part of a taught MA in Classics, explores one possible way in which the Roll may have been employed:
Damon Daines, “Another Role for the Canterbury Roll? Table Linen in the Fifteenth Century.” In The Canterbury Roll Project, edited by Chris Jones and Natasha Hodgson, Canterbury Roll Working Paper 1 (November 2021).
Canterbury Roll Working Papers are an occasional series of papers published by the Canterbury Roll Project. They are reviewed and approved by the CRP’s Co-Directors but not peer-reviewed.
18 November 2021
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The Canterbury Roll Project congratulates recent UC MA graduate, Jayson Boon, who has been awarded a $3500 grant from the Canterbury History Foundation towards ongoing work on a database of named individuals who appear on the Roll. When complete, the database, which has been in development since 2016, will enable users of Stage II of the Roll website to select any of the 1000 rulers and other figures who appear on the Roll and look up information relating to them. So far, the database project has involved over 30 UC interns; it is presently being finalised by a joint postgraduate team based at UC and Nottingham Trent University (UK) for release in 2022.
Prior to beginning his Roll-focused MA in 2019, Jayson completed two internships connected with the Roll database (PACE395 and PACE495). In 2020, he completed 35 hours of database-related work funded by UC's School of Humanities and Creative Arts. His current project will focus on the early, complex names connected with Germanic and Welsh figures on the Roll.
20 April 2021
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New Roll Publication
The March 2021 online update to the Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages, edited by Graeme Dunphy and Christian Bratu (Leiden: Brill, 2021), contains a new entry on the Roll written by Chris Jones. It can be accessed here:
(the full text is only available via subscription)
9 April 2021
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New Roll Research
The Canterbury Roll Project Team congratulates Jayson Boon on the successful completion of his MA thesis, the latest research to take a deep dive into the Roll!
Jayson's thesis, which was awarded with Distinction, can be downloaded from the UC Research Repository:
Boon, Jayson. "An Exercise in the Obscure: How History is Constructed on the Canterbury Roll." Masters diss., University of Canterbury, 2021.
UC Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10092/101758
http://dx.doi.org/10.26021/10811
Jayson's work has identified a number of corrections to be made to the Latin/English text and these will appear in the next set of updates.
1 April 2021
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NZ Society of Genealogists
Associate Professor Chris Jones
“The Canterbury Roll: A Contested Past & New Discoveries”
The Canterbury – or Maude – Roll is Aoteroa New Zealand’s most significant European medieval manuscript. Originally created in the early 15th century, the Roll is a 5 metre English genealogical text. Purchased by the University of Canterbury in 1918, the manuscript remained, until recently, little known and difficult to access. This paper will introduce the Roll’s history, some of its most striking features, and provide an overview of the current research being undertaken into the document.
When: 12 September, 7:30pm-9:00pm
Where: Parkview Community Lounge Hall, Parklands
20 July 2019
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U3A Lecture, Rangiora
Associate Professor Chris Jones
“The Canterbury Roll: A Contested Past & New Discoveries”
The Canterbury – or Maude – Roll is Aoteroa New Zealand’s most significant European medieval manuscript. Originally created in the early 15th century, the Roll is a 5 metre English genealogical text. Purchased by the University of Canterbury in 1918, the manuscript remained, until recently, little known and difficult to access. This paper will introduce the Roll’s history, some of its most striking features, and provide an overview of the current research being undertaken into the document.
When: 27 August, 11:00am-2pm
Where: Rangiora, Baptist church
20 July 2019
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Centre for the Study of Religion and Conflict 2019 biennial conference, Nottingham Trent University, UK
Associate Professor Chris Jones
“Writing & Rewriting the Wars of the Roses: The Canterbury Roll”
Chris Jones will deliver the opening address at the second bieenial conference of the CSRC, Nottingham Trent University. His paper will focus on what the Canterbury Roll reveals about the themes of religion and conflict in mid-15th century English society.
When: Tuesday 8 July 2019, 6.15pm–7:00pm
Where: Boots Library, Nottingham, UK
20 July 2019
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Leeds International Medieval Congress, UK
Associate Professor Chris Jones; Dr Natasha Hodgson (NTU); Professor Haida Liang (NTU)
“Manuscript Rolls: New Digital & Scientific Approaches” (Session 124)
The Canterbury Roll will form the focus of a strand at the 2019 Leeds International Medieval Congress. In 2017, UC and Nottingham Trent developed an international project to develop an enhanced digital edition and explore a number of unsolved historical queries. This cross-disciplinary session will reveal results from digitisation processes, non-invasive scientific imaging, spectroscopic techniques, and historical research. It also aims to stimulate discussions about the future of manuscript roll digitisation. The session will include the following three twenty minute papers:
"New Zealand's Canterbury Roll: A Case Study in Digitisation" (Chris Jones)
"Scientific Imaging and Spectroscopic Analysis of the Canterbury Roll: Some Preliminary Results" (Haida Liang)
"Contextualising the Canterbury Roll with the 'Noah' Tradition of 15th-Century Royal Genealogies" (Natasha Hodgson)
When: Monday 1 July 2019, 11.15am-12.45pm.
Where: Leeds International Medieval Congress, Leeds, UK.
20 July 2019
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Medieval Academy of America Medieval Digital Resources database
The Canterbury Roll has been included in the Medieval Academy of America's Medieval Digital Resources database. The MDR is a curated database of peer-reviewed digital materials for the study of the Middle Ages. Resources are selected for the MDR by subject and digital specialists with reference to the rigorous Standards for Web Publication developed by the Medieval Academy of America.
For more information: Medieval Digital Resources
17 July 2019
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Family History Society of New Zealand - Golden Jubilee Celebration Lecture
Associate Professor Chris Jones
“The Canterbury Roll – A Medieval Genealogy in Aotearoa New Zealand ”
The Canterbury – or Maude – Roll is Aoteroa New Zealand’s most significant European medieval manuscript. Originally created in the early 15th century, the Roll is a 5 metre English genealogical text. Purchased by the University of Canterbury in 1918, the manuscript remained, until recently, little known and difficult to access. This paper will introduce the Roll’s history, some of its most striking features, and provide an overview of new scientific research.
When: Sunday 27 April, 12:00pm-4:00pm.
Where: Papanui RSA
27 April 2019
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UC CONNECT Public Lecture
Dr Chris Jones
“Revealing the Mysteries of the Canterbury Roll”
The Canterbury Roll is a five-metre long English genealogical text, the only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. Part of the University of Canterbury’s collection since 1918, the Canterbury Roll was created in the early 1400s, begins with Noah and traces the rulers of England from the mythical Brutus to King Edward IV. It was subsequently modified a number of times before it emerged in its final form, probably during the reign of King Richard III. Modern University of Canterbury (UC) researchers and students are now asking new questions and developing new techniques to increase access to this unique historic item. In this upcoming UC Connect public lecture project director Dr Chris Jones will share the results of cutting-edge scientific research undertaken at the start of 2018 by a team of British and New Zealand researchers. He will also explore the world in which the Canterbury Roll was originally made and discuss how it came to be in Aotearoa New Zealand.
When: Wednesday 18 July, 7pm-8pm.
Where: Central Lecture Theatres, UC Ilam campus
15 July 2018
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U3A Lecture - Timaru
Dr Chris Jones
“The Canterbury Roll: A Contested Past & New Discoveries”
The Canterbury – or Maude – Roll is Aoteroa New Zealand’s most significant European medieval manuscript. Originally created in the early 15th century, the Roll is a 5 metre English genealogical text. Purchased by the University of Canterbury in 1918, the manuscript remained, until recently, little known and difficult to access. This paper will introduce the Roll’s history, some of its most striking features, and provide an overview of new scientific research.
When: Monday 9 July 2018, 1:30pm-3pm.
Where: West End Hall, Timaru
15 July 2018
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Media Spotlight
Dr Chris Jones appeared on Radio New Zealand National's "Nine to Noon" programme with Kathryn Ryan on 1 February 2018 to talk about the Roll in a 30 minute segment, "Secrets of the 600 year-old scroll & the kiwi connection".
The Roll Project was the subject of an article by The Times's technology correspondent on 29 January 2018 [access requires subscription]. The story was syndicated in, amongst other newspapers, the Christchurch Press. It also featured on the websites of the The Sun (29 January 2018) and Aleteia (31 January 2018).
1 February 2018
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Public Lecture
Professor Haida Liang (Nottingham Trent University, UK)
“A Holistic Approach to the Non-invasive Scientific Examination of Historic Manuscripts”
Professor Liang, Head of Imaging & Sensing for Archaeology, Art history & Conservation Mobile Lab at Nottingham Trent University in the UK is presently visiting the University of Canterbury to carry out research into UC’s unique 15th-century English genealogical text, the Canterbury Roll. This lecture will explore the techniques Haida and her team are employing to reveal new information about the manuscript.
The event will be accompanied by a rare public viewing of the Canterbury Roll.
When: Friday 12 January, 3pm-4pm.
Where: Room 388, Level 3 Central Library, Puaka-James Hight Building, UC Ilam campus
10 January 2018
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Unrolled! The Canterbury Roll – A Symposium
On the 12 January, the University of Canterbury is hosting a symposium to explore current work into the Roll and chart future research pathways.
The symposium timetable can be found here. The symposium is open to all UC staff and students. It is only open to members of the public by invitation. For all enquiries please contact the General Editor.
10 January 2018
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Revealing the "Invisible" Roll
In January 2018, Professor Haida Liang (Nottingham Trent University Imaging & Sensing for Archaeology, Art history & Conservation Mobile Lab) and Dr Natasha Hodgson (Nottingham Trent University, History) are visiting Christchurch to carry out precision imaging of the Roll.
Spectral imaging, an X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer (XRF), and a high sensitivity and high spectral resolution spectrometer are being used to carry out pigment identification and identification of any faded or "hidden" writing or drawings.
Spectral imaging and reflectance spectroscopy provide information about compounds used; XRF gives complementary information about the chemical elements. Professor Liang and her team are utilizing expertise developed in analysing medieval manuscripts from the Bodleian Library and the Fitzwilliam Museum.
The story was reported on the TVNZ 6pm news bulletin on 8 January and Dr Jones gave an interview to Radio New Zealand National's 5 O'Clock Report on the same day.
The visit of the NTU ISAAC Mobile Lab to UC is generously funded by a $5000 grant from the UC Marsden Support Fund.
10 January 2018
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The Canterbury Roll Project – Stage 2
Stage 2 of the Canterbury Roll Project is expected to be released in 2019. It involves linking a database to the existing transcription/translation. The database will allow users to click on any individual who appears in the Latin or English text and view a detailed entry on that person with accompanying bibliography.
Stage 2 commenced in November 2016. The database was developed via the PACE internship programme in conjunction with the UC Arts Digital Lab and DIGI403. It is being compiled via a collaboration between UC History, the PACE internship programme, and Nottingham Trent University (UK).
Future stages in the project are intended to facilitate the digital reconstruction of the various scribal “layers” that compose the Roll and to enable more detailed exploration of the relationship between the text and its sources.
Project Timeline
| Stage | Major outcome | Timeline |
0 | Information website with basic photographic facsimile of Roll | 2013 |
1 | Release of TEI edition with high quality images, transcription, and translation. Accompanied by textual notes and indications of where the new version departs from the Wall edition | 2017 |
1.5 | Release of tablet/mobile-accessible version | 2017 |
2 | Integration of a comprehensive database of all individuals who appear on the Roll | 2019 |
3 | A digitally “layered” version of the manuscript, intended to reveal the work of each scribe | |
4 | An expanded set of notes including commentary and indications of the original sources used on a line-by-line basis |
20 December 2017
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Page last updated: 20 June 2019
Postal address:
University of Canterbury
Private Bag 4800
Christchurch 8140
New Zealand
Enquiries
General Editor
Dr Chris Jones
chris.jones@canterbury.ac.nz
Phone +64 3 369 4307
Text copyright © 2017 the authors as named. Images copyright the institutions and individuals as credited.
ISBN 978-1-98-850307-3
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Phone +64 3 369 4307
