The next PoTaRCh workshop will be held in the living-history area at the Šelmberk Castle near the town of Mlada Vozice (Mladá Vožice), Czech Republic,June 18 – 20, 2025.
The workshop will focus on tar, resin and pitch, especially in the following topics:
- experimental production and subsequent applications (for scientific as well as for popularisation purposes)
- presentation of PoTaRCh heritage to the general public
- chemical characterisation
- environmental-historical consequences of tar, resin and pitch production and use
The goal of the workshop is not to provide training, but to offer a platform for discussion, exchange of knowledge, and to connect experts and experienced researchers.
We would like to discuss the role of experiments and personal experience with ancient and traditional techniques with production in scientific cognition and interpretation of archaeological discoveries and in cultural heritage protection and popularisation.
Our goal is to share knowledge on features of various substances obtained during the process of processing resin and production of tar and pitch as well.
The workshop is organized by WG1 – Heritage, however, it is suitable also for the members of the working groups WG2 – Analytical Characterization, WG3 – Archaeology and WG4 – Environmental History.
Preliminary programme:
Wednesday, June 18th – dedicated to talks, presentations and discussion on the above mentioned topics. The day will be finished on a social evening event around a campfire with a small refreshment directly in the garden of the venue.
Thursday, June 19th – practical demonstrations of the production of tar from pine and birch with some subsequent applications. There will be a space for the sharing of knowledge on the simulation of ancient and traditional techniques, and the possibilities and methods of their identification in the archaeological record among the participants of the workshop. We would also like to apply the results of the previous day’s discussion.
Friday, June 20th – a practical demonstration repeated for the general public. Participants will have the opportunity to exchange knowledge and experience and discuss ways of presenting the tangible and intangible historical heritage of forest by-products and historical sites of forest crafts. This day will be a part of the event Archeologické léto 2025(Archaeological Summer 2025) – an event organised by the Institutes of Archaeology in Prague and in Brno, presenting various archaeological sites to the public (website available only in Czech, update for this year programme will come yet).
Venue: Historical-educational area in a former hunting lodge with a garden in front of the ruins of the medieval castle of Šelmberk (49.54828126268004, 14.825967923348328). The place is situated 3 km northeast of the town of Mladá Vožice in the South Bohemian Region and about 90 km southeast of Prague. The area is run by a local society with experience in various historical crafts and their presentation to the public.
There is a place for about 20 participants for the workshop but because of budgetary constraints, only 10 of these can be reimbursed by the COST Action CA22155 PoTaRCh.
Transport from the nearest town of Mlada Vozice to Selmberk Castle will be provided.
Local traditional bearers, experts on the topic, and students from several universities in the Czech Republic will also be invited to the meeting.
Decision on who will be reimbursed is based on the following priorities:
- Active participation with presentation and/or on experiments focused on deliverables of COST Action CA22155 PoTaRCh
- Previous active participation in preparing COST Action CA22155 PoTaRCh deliverables
- Young researcher
- ITC
- Gender
Next important steps and schedule:
- by April 30, 2025 fill out carefully preliminary registration here: registration form
- by May 10, 2025 you will be informed regarding acceptance of your presentation
- by May 15, 2025 you will be informed whether you will receive reimbursement from COST Action CA22155 PoTaRCh
There is no inscription fee.
For your questions and further communication please use the e-mail: selmberk.workshop@gmail.com
Organisers:
Tomáš Krofta (WG1, WG3, WG4; Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague),
Veronika Brychová (WG2, WG5; Nuclear Physics Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences),
Tomáš Pavloň (WG3; Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno),
Jiří Woitsch (WG1, WG2, WG3, WG4, WG5; Institute of Ethnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences).