Mediality and materiality

Social identities are fundamentally shaped by narratives and performative acts, in which objects often play a central role. Moreover, all texts and images that have come down to us in their original form possess a specific materiality and mediality. These two closely intertwined fields of research are inseparable, particularly in light of a modern understanding of media, according to which printed publications as well as objects themselves can be considered “media.”

The Institute of History has long maintained a strong focus in this area, firmly embedded in both research and teaching across nearly all departments. A wide range of image- and text-based media are examined as material primary sources, including everyday objects, comics, monuments, films, photographs, inscriptions, coins, charters, and journals. These sources are analyzed with regard to their impact on both contemporary audiences and later recipients.

In addition, the Institute also studies other surviving materials that were not originally intended to convey information, such as archaeological finds and features, architecture, landscape design, and urban planning. These materials can be used to reconstruct economic processes, for example, or can be made to “speak” as relics of past social and societal realities.