How useful are statutes for the study of university history? The case of medieval and early modern Bologna

Studies of medieval and early modern universities have often relied heavily on statutes emanating from these bodies as evidence of organizational patterns or teaching practices. From this point of view, the 1405 statutes of the University of Bologna have received a considerable amount of attention, given their discussion of books to be read and how much professors were to be paid, in addition to references to specific teaching practices. This talk will discuss the extent to which such statutes are reliable and what other sources need to be considered as well.


David Lines is Professor of Renaissance Philosophy and Intellectual History at the University of Warwick. His most recent monograph is The Dynamics of Learning in Early Modern Italy: Arts and Medicine at the University of Bologna (Harvard University Press, 2023). He is currently re-editing the statutes and other documents for the University of Bologna.

All welcome- this seminar is free to attend, but booking is required.