Report on the “Archives, history and knowledge” symposium, University of La Plata, July 10, 2023

by Magalie Moysan

Archives in context, archives in networks: report on the “Archives, history and knowledge” symposium, University of La Plata, July 10, 2023

On July 10, 2023, the “Archives, History and Knowledge” symposium was held at the University of La Plata in Argentina, as part of the SciCoMove project. Bringing together archivists and researchers in history, literature, British civilization, entomology and archival studies, the event offered an interdisciplinary reading of the role of archives in the construction of knowledge.

The day began with a talk by Laura Casareto, head of historical archives at the National University of La Plata, on standards, practices and strategies for preserving archival heritage. Her presentation placed archival practices in the context of Argentina: the policies of memory pursued since 1984 have led to changes in legislation and customs concerning access to information. Many universities have undertaken reparation initiatives, and the University of La Plata has a policy in this area. María Eugenia Rasic, a literature researcher at the University of La Plata and a specialist in poetry, presented a project to set up an archive to preserve and promote the archives of writers in the rural areas of Buenos Aires province. She set out to meet artists and writers who are preserving their own archives in order to make them known to the general public. Oriana Pelagatti and Renata Alonso (University of Cuyo, Mendoza) then proposed a cross-analysis of the role of archives and libraries in the province of Mendoza between 1820 and 1930. They analyzed the role of these professional bodies at a time when historical discourse was being constructed, highlighting the development and ruptures in the constitution of libraries and archives.

Presenting their work as part of the SciCoMove project, Adeline Soulier, Maud Michaud and Magalie Moysan each discussed one aspect of scientific collections in museums. Adeline Soulier presented the collecting practices of hemiptera – a category of insects – at the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle in Paris. The collection grew in the 19th century, then went through periods of stagnation. The Museum currently holds 40 million insects, including 7 million hemiptera, divided between the general collection and nominal collections set up by a donor. The Museum has chosen to leave the types in the collections, despite their special status. Maud Michaud reported on her research into scientific collections built up and managed by missionaries. These Church of England-affiliated organizations collected plants, conditioned and photographed them. The missionaries developed relationships with British botanical gardens, of which Kew Gardens was the central node. Some missionaries sent scientific objects to museums in their home towns. Finally, Magalie Moysan presented an overview of museum archives in France, analyzing their scope, issues and networks. She showed that, despite centralizing legislation on public archives, museums rarely entrust their archives to the national, departmental or municipal archives. Often managed by other types of professionals within museums (documentalists, librarians), museum archives are rarely examined in French archival literature.

This symposium examined the role and place of archives, both in scientific collections and in general. As well as serving as sources for historians, archives are first and foremost used to document processes and activities: at the Muséum national d’histoire naturelle in Paris, the labels attached to specimens characterize them, allowing them to make sense within the collection as a whole. These labels document not only their content, but also their form: Adeline Soulier points out that certain label models attest to contacts with London. Photography also serves to document and contextualize the research practices of missionaries. In France, this continuum between the object and the documentation of the object is one of the arguments put forward by museums to keep archives within museums. As Laura Casareto points out, archives not only serve as traces, but also as evidence. Today, this evidence is used in reparation procedures, but also more generally to attest to the actions of the State. For example, given the difficulties of preserving electronic archives, the Argentine government has reversed a provision that allowed the original paper copy to be destroyed after digitization. According to María Eugenia Rasic, archives also make it possible to constitute “a political memory of territories”, and to make visible categories of populations that are invisible in society (women, rural populations). From archives to archive, the process of creating a coherent whole guides the purpose of the documents. In the province of Mendoza, the judicial function of the archive, predominant in the 1980s, gradually gave way to the historical function, until the two entities split (Renata Alonso).

Finally, the symposium addressed the issue of archive networks, a central notion in the SciCoMove project. Adeline Soulier and Maud Michaud demonstrated the importance of networks in building up scientific collections, the dynamism of collaborations and exchanges being directly reflected in the variety of specimens conserved. Today, the establishment of networks between archive centers is making it possible to reestablish links between these scientific collections, using online platforms for example. They are also mechanisms for mutual assistance and collaboration between professionals, as demonstrated by the creation of an Archives en musées network in France in 2011.


OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
Nathalie Richard (July 17, 2023). Report on the “Archives, history and knowledge” symposium, University of La Plata, July 10, 2023. SciCoMove — Scientific Collections on the Move. Retrieved April 18, 2025 from https://doi.org/10.58079/twuh


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