Hannah Purtymun

The Publishing Industry Has a Gambling Problem | The Walrus Companies keep betting on the next bestseller. Literature is poorer for it

This is a really important read about how the current capitalist formations are shaping what books are available to readers and which writers get a chance to publish a book: thewalrus.ca/the-publishi...

#BookSky

once again, if tylenol caused autism, america would have a better rail system

George III to Lord North, his prime minister. September 11, 1774. In response to the petition from Congress. “The dye is now cast. The colonists must either submit or triumph. I do not wish to come to severer measures but we must not retreat…” Lent by His majesty Charles III to the Library of Congress for the “Two Georges” exhibit. Photo by Holly Brewer 9/19/2025

Strongly recommend the “Two Georges” exhibition at the Library of Congress.
It includes original material on loan from the Royal Archives. Here
George III writing in response to the act of association from Congress, September 11, 1774: “The dye is now cast.”

I’ll definitely check this out! Thank you!

They’re both perfect ❤️

Opening slide entitled Faded but not Forgotten: Female Friendships During the Women’s Suffrage and Abolitionists Movements, featuring images of 19th c letters and a photo of Ann Preston

Conference presentation day! #womenshistory

Yeah well whose fault is that??

Can anyone tell what this circled word is? #history #paleography

Can anyone tell what this circled word is? #history #paleography

You know what I thought was a good idea a month ago? To wait until the week I move across the country to write an abstract and an entire paper for a presentation next week.

Our latest podcast episode is now available everywhere podcasts can be found! Today we are talking about a very popular, if you can call it that, murder from the 1500s that features a love triangle, a failed poisoning and much more - it's the murder of Thomas Arden!

Last day in Philly ✌️

My department at Princeton is hiring an assistant professor specializing in the study of early Christianity. First round materials are cover letter, cv, and writing sample. Letters will be requested for later stages. Deadline: September 30, 2025.

If you haven't done this yet, the Save SEPTA website linked here makes it incredibly easy. <30 seconds with a provided form letter (customizable if you want, like I did, to add how this disaster personally affects you as a constituent).

Math History is wild, it will just be like:

“His ideas were so grotesque that he was disowned by all his friends and colleagues, labeled a disease against humanity and a stain on the face of gods creation. He died an insane pauper. Today his ideas are used in every aspect our existence!”

Today we are talking about the murder of Marguerite Porete, who, while little known to most people, is a fascinating woman whose life ended terribly - featuring the inquisition and the Beguin movement!

Seems like Cambridge UP won't let contributors to edited volumes opt out of LLM training on their work 🧐

Every time someone tells me to use fewer em dashes ⸻ I bring out Big Bertha.

Valedictory Address for the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania pamphlet from 1857

Spent another afternoon in the archives and ended with a wine happy hour. Loving summer Fridays.

We take August off for CWAC but this year we're making an exception - a special one hour Coffee With A Codex on August 14 featuring (a very good facsimile of) the Voynich Manuscript and @lisafdavis.bsky.social !!

AI can't eliminate historians because fun it can't create new knowledge, go to archives (where most sources are) or analyze sources. It can repeat what other historians have already written. History isn't "fact" it understanding the past to understand humanity+ #skystorians

Just as a reminder since this seems to be getting some citations recently. I’ve published this open access piece from my masters dissertation on Crime and Sin in Early Medieval England. doi.org/10.33929/sherm.2021.vol3.no1.08

Hundreds of medieval medical manuscripts now accessible Over the course of the last three years, the Curious Cures in Cambridge Libraries project has been enhancing the discoverability of medieval medical recipes in historic library collections across the ...

Over 7000 pages of medieval medical recipes are now freely accessible online at the end of the Curious Cures in Cambridge Libraries project.
👉 Discover more about this ambitious project and its achievements: loom.ly/XFJt-Tg

Public media has been defunded. Your support keeps journalists on the ground, lifts unheard voices, and connects communities.

Help us plan for what’s next. Make a monthly gift today. Stand with public media: n.pr/458sOhq

Handwritten letter from the 1840s featuring large ink spots.

Spent my Friday afternoon in the archives with some lovely 19th century letters.

🗃️

#skystorians: have any of you ever done a commonplace book type of assignment in your courses? I'm thinking of something like @jmadelman.bsky.social 's assignment, detailed here.

josephadelman.com/2014/09/04/c...

#teaching #pedagogy

Thoughts? Advice? Could it be done digitally?

Our latest podcast episode "The Sack of Rome of 1527" is now available everywhere podcasts can be found! Listen to us talk about the politics and people surround the attack on Rome, with a special emphasis on the Swiss Guard!

Athenaeum reading room with grandfather clock on right and marble columns.

Lovely visit to the Athenaeum of Philadelphia today.

"this is for you .. this is for the no becoming yes for scars becoming breath for saying i love you to people who will never say it to us for scraping away the rust and remembering how to shine for the dime you gave away when you didn't have a penny for the many beautiful things we do for every song we've ever sung for refusing to believe in miracles because miracles are the impossible coming true and everything is possible" - from Andrea Gibson, "Say Yes"

Andrea Gibson is my favorite poet. They are the reason I began writing poetry and their words got me through some truly terrible times. Thank you for your words and letting us see your light ❤️

I'm just going to sit here a moment and meditate on Andrea Gibson and how to love life so much that my heart is covered in stretch marks <3