From the department of Historical Regimes of Normativity at the Max Planck Institute for Legal History and Legal Theory
Unwritten Histories: exploring colonial normativities in Africa through podcasting
This post follows our research trip to Maputo, where we explored the depths of colonial archives and sought out voices rarely captured in official records. Faced with the limits of written sources, we turned to oral histories, weaving these stories into Tramas Coloniais, our podcast that reimagines how African histories can be shared. It’s an invitation to rethink colonial legacies through voices and perspectives beyond the written pages.
Of Elements and Fragments. ‘Knowledge of Normativity’ and the Practice of International Law in the SMS Gazelle Incident, 1864
What does it mean to practice international law? And how can the concept ‘knowledge of normativity’ help us gain deeper insights into this field? This blog post explores the SMS ‘Gazelle’ incident of 1864, in which a Prussian warship captured three Danish ships in the Bohai Sea off China’s coast. It is an incident that came to be credited as the first application of international law by China; but there is more to tell of this story.
Al lector cándido: advertencias para la reescritura digital de textos vivos
¿Qué sucede cuando la referencia a una obra impresa que hemos usado como fuente primaria difiere de la edición digitalizada con la que construimos la plataforma para búsquedas vinculadas? Las variaciones no solo afectan las páginas o la estructura de la obra, sino también el contenido mismo que se fue transformando a lo largo de las ediciones. Este artículo analiza cómo el trabajo de edición del Diccionario DCH revela el uso de ediciones cambiantes, textos vivos e inestables que debemos visibilizar en nuestras plataformas digitales.
Why is materiality useful for legal historians? More than just a vessel for legal content
Do you prefer reading from a screen or a printed book? What is the difference anyway? This post considers how the material characteristics of things like books and their format contribute to our understanding of the history of law.
About Us
Legal History Insights is a blog about legal history, created by the researchers, guests and affiliated researchers of the department of Historical Regimes of Normativity at the Max Planck Institute for Legal History and Legal Theory.
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