Charles University, Prague-Oxford History of Science and Medicine Collaboration

Charles University, Prague–Oxford History of Science and Medicine Collaboration

In 2019, Oxford History of Science, Medicine, and Technology established a research and student partnership with Charles University – particularly their History and Philosophy of Science group as well as their History of Medicine group.  This was launched with a doctoral student workshop hosted by Oxford in June 2019, supported by a TORCH International Partnership Fund.  However, the plan of further exchanges in 2020 was disrupted by Covid.  Instead, throughout 2020 and 2021, Charles University attended and participated in online HSMT seminars. The in-person partnership was resumed in November 2022, when Dr Georgiana Hedesan, Prof Rob Iliffe, and Prof Erica Charters participated in a workshop on the history of medicine and science, hosted by History of Medicine, First Faculty of Medicine at Charles University.

In June 2023, Charles University hosted OCHSMT researchers and doctoral students for a two-day workshop, along with a reading group of an English translation of Zdeněk Horský’s seminal text, Kepler in Prague, that outlines early modern Czech-English networks. Dr Georgiana Hedesan, Dr Alex Aylward, Prof Rob Iliffe, Prof Erica Charters, and doctoral students James Lees, Hohee Cho, Madeline White, and Nilanjana Dutta shared and discussed current research with students and scholars at Charles University, while also using Horský’s Kepler in Prague to analyse the role of place, space, and transnational networks in their research and in the history of science and medicine more broadly.

We are grateful to TORCH International Partnership Funding, support from the History Faculty, and to the History of Medicine group at the First Faculty of Medicine as well as the History and Philosophy of Science group, both at Charles University, for making this experience possible.


How was the discussion on Kepler in Prague?

James Lees

“While our group was still in Oxford, our hosts provided us with an English translation of Kepler in Prague, a popular history by the accomplished Czech historian of science, Zdeněk Horský. Obviously, the text provided us with a useful point of reference for our tour of the city. However, its significance as an example of the historian’s craft became apparent when we met to discuss our impressions of the book over refreshments in the shade of the Emmaus Monastery overlooking the Vltava River. Some commentators were quick to point out that Horský’s work, which reveals the influence of Roman Catholic dogma and political patronage over Kepler’s astronomical discoveries, provides a striking, albeit veiled critique of the author’s own experiences under Soviet rule in the Eastern Bloc. Following Dubček’s fall from power and subsequent restrictions on international travel and publishing, Horsky’s career, until then on a promising international trajectory, was quickly stunted. Rather than providing the laudatory record of discovery common to some popular works, Horsky’s account of Kepler’s life remained highly sensitive to the religious, political, and intellectual circumstances that defined the astronomer’s career, a choice perhaps informed by his own personal experiences. Our discussion thus challenged us to consider how ideology and political climate colour our paths of inquiry as researchers.”

What did you gain from the workshop?

Hohee Cho

“The workshop was an intellectually stimulating and enriching experience. I believe being exposed to various academic topics, disciplines, and cultures is critical to broadening one’s understanding of a field. This is why I wanted to participate in the first workshop between the two universities in 2019. I was eager to broaden my spectrum in the history of science, which Charles University has a strong tradition in. Regrettably, I was conducting overseas research when the first Oxford-Charles University Prague International Network workshop was held in Oxford, and then, the pandemic stopped the subsequent workshops for many years. This year, I was finally lucky enough to visit Prague for the workshop.

The workshop consisted of four sessions with twelve presentations, having six speakers each from Oxford and Charles University. I found the presentations from colleagues at Charles University particularly interesting because many concerned ancient, Medieval, and early modern periods, which was rarer among Oxford HSMT graduates. It gave me a sense of historical continuity and an insight into how different subfields of the history of science, medicine, and technology were studied in another country. The workshop also helped me think of considering various angles for teaching the history of science courses in the future. For my own presentation, I received very constructive and friendly comments. As a result, the workshop in Prague challenged me to think more comparatively across regions and time periods.”

What was it like to connect with scholars from Charles University?

Madeline White

“Outside of the programmed events of our visit to Prague, the entire trip was filled with opportunities to connect with scholars in the histories of science, medicine, and technology. Interspersed between visits to important landmarks and informative presentations, we were able to mingle with post-holders and students from Charles University, which gave the trip a greater sense of significance. By the time the weekend was over, people who had been strangers had turned into friends and fruitful contacts for the future.

I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to meet with our Czech counterparts, and discuss their research outside the formal bounds of post-presentation questions. The hours spent at coffee shops, pubs, restaurants, and gardens were some of the most lively of the entire trip, stretching our analysis of Kepler to broader contexts and allowing the minutiae of our research projects to enter deeper discussion. I certainly felt like we made connections beyond mere academic formalities, and am looking forward to inviting them back to Oxford. I even found that this trip gave me a better sense of what my own peers at Oxford were doing, as we were able to discuss our work for longer stretches and in greater detail.

Perhaps most exciting, were the small tours we were given of the research homes for both the history of medicine and history of science. Not only were we given exclusive views of where the scholars at Charles University completed their daily work, but we saw some of the more unique features of the department. We were shown medieval medical texts historians of medicine referenced daily and preserved feathers, which the philosophers of science used to jumpstart their ideas. The final capstone of this part of the trip was a celebration organised by Charles University after our presentations, which extended our discussions of eugenics, alchemy, botany, and ancient hospitals from that afternoon late into the night.”

How was the History of Science themed tour of Prague?

Nilanjana Dutta

“Aside from the conference, the stay in Prague proved to be much enriching in its cultural aspects. I thoroughly enjoyed the packed tour that we were very generously provided with by the professors in Charles University and it was every bit intertwined to the theme of the workshop, effortlessly linking a holistic view of the city with Johannes Kepler and his life in Prague. In our three days, our hosts made sure we visited and learned about numerous sites of interest, beginning with the Prague Meridian and the Tyn Church. We stopped to see the Astronomical Clock (Orloj), the third oldest operational clock in the world (1410). On the way, we saw the Café Einstein where Einstein visited Kafka. We visited the Skautsky (Scout) institute, the Botanical Gardens, followed by an enriching discussion on Kepler at Café Emauzy, and then the National Library, which housed a dilapidated chapel with frescoes dating from 1600s called the Vlasska Kaple; ‘the Chapel of the Italians’ in Karlova street which was consecrated in 1600, replete with references to Kepler. The anecdote goes that seeing the dome, Kepler, who was struggling with Tycho Brahe’s data, could finally identify the orbits as Ellipses instead of a circle. The Karlova Street is also where Kepler briefly resided, as was commemorated by a plaque and a monument erected in his honor in the middle of a residential courtyard. The iconic Charles Bridge could not be missed either. The last day of our conference featured a tour to the National Library, this time to see the particle room, in which we saw documents written by scientists such as Coppernicus, Kepler, and others; including Kepler’s first depiction of Ellipses. The highlight of the tour however was the Klementinum Library, with its elaborate baroque architectural motifs, and references to planetary sciences, astronomy and geography, with handmade globes and lavish clocks placed throughout the library. The tour ended in the beautiful courtyard of the library with sundials surrounding it, a perfectly sunny day to observe them and it was much more than I could have asked for.”