Upcoming thesis defence

Our chairwoman, art historian Andréa Kroon, has for the last few years been working on a thesis with the title: Masonic networks, material culture & international trade. The participation of Dutch freemasons in the commercial & cultural exchange with Southeast Asia, 1735-1853. This project has recently been completed. Kroon will defend her thesis on 26 november 2015 at the Leiden University. More information is availale (in Dutch) in the online calendar of the university.

Network Weave

Research network WEAVE (Western Esotericism in modern Art and Visual Culture) is a thematic network of ESSWE (European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism). WEAVE aims to be a a research network connecting scholars studying the interplay of heterodox spiritualties with Modern western art and visual culture. Scholars of all disciplines, interests, backgrounds and convictions are welcome. The phrase “heterodox spirituality” includes Western esotericism, occultism, occulture, mysticism, alternative Modern spirituality, and contemporary spiritualities. See the new website (which includes a conference agenda) for more information: networkweave.com.

In memoriam: Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke (1953-2012)

To our great regret the OVN has learned of the passing of professor Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke (1953-2012). He was the directeur of the Exeter Centre for the Study of Esotericism (Universiteit van Exeter). Goodrick-Clarke made important contributions to the field of study, such as his research into the relation between western esotericism and fascism. The field of study is mourning a prominent scholar and beloved teacher. A beautiful in memoriam by fellow researcher Christopher Mcintosh can be found on the website van de European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism (ESSWE), of which Goodrick-Clarke was a member.

Art & Western Esotericism

From 1996 onwards OVN board members Marty Bax and Andréa Kroon, together with fellow art historians Marijo Ariens and Audrey Wagtberg Hansen, have realized various projects aimed at drawing attention to the relationship between ‘art & western esotericism’. Because their goals have largely been realized, Bax and Kroon feel the time has come to focus on other lacunas in their knowledge of art history. They have marked the end of their joint ‘lobby’ for this fascinating subject with an interesting column on the subject.

In memoriam: André Hanou (1941-2011)

We have received a sad, but not unexpected message: professor André Hanou has passed away on 8th February 2011. The many 'in memoriams' that have since appeared online, make it clear just what a remarkable inspiration this Dutch researcher, author and tutor was to students and colleagues. We would like to mention his many contributions to the study of freemasonry amongst an impressive body of work:

Hanou studied philosophy, theology and Dutch literature. In 1988 he defended his dissertation at the Nijmegen University: De Sluiers van Isis. Johannes Kinker als voorvechter van de Verlichting, in de vrijmetselarij en andere Nederlandse genootschappen (The Veils of Isis. Johannes Kinker as a campaigner for the Enlightenment in freemasonry and other societies). It marked the beginning of a specialisation in Dutch literature of the Enlightenment. 

Between 1992 and 1998 he published a series of articles on his research of 18th century lodge archives in Thoth, a research journal for freemasons, including the series ‘Beelden der vrijmetselarij’ ('Images of Freemasonry').

‘De loge parterre’ ('The ground floor lodge') appeared in: ‘Een stille leerschool van deugd en goede zeden’. Vrijmetselarij in Nederland in de 18e en 19e eeuw in 1995.  In this article, Hanou drew attention to the lack of standard sources and statistical data for the (new) field of study, such as a bibliography of 18th century masonic publications and publication of membership lists of lodges. This overview is still very relevant today.

Hanou worked at the University of Amsterdam for a long time, where he eventually became professor in 1989. Together with his wife, Rietje van Vliet, he founded Astraea Publishers in 1994, which published many 18th century studies, including Onder de Acacia. Studies over de Nederlandse vrijmetselarij en vrijmetselaarsloges (Underneath the Acacia. Studies on Dutch freemasonry and masonic lodges, 1997). Hanou also actively participate in many research societies, including one of the first on the subject of western esotericism, Aries. This is where the founders of the OVN Foundation first met.

In 2000 Hanou was appointed at the Radboud University as professior of early modern Dutch literature. He published: De Naakte Waarheyt der Vrije Metselaars. Teksten van de 18de eeuwse schrijver Jacob Campo Weyerman over de Vrijmetselarij (The Naked Truth about Freemasons. Texts by the 18th century author Jacob Campo Weyerman, 2004).

For some, becoming emeritus professor marks the end of their scholarly productivity. But when that moment arrived for Hanou in 2006, the steady stream of publications continued. In 2007 he started blogging on the Herkauwer blog, where he shared his expertise, exciting discoveries in libraries, and opinions on new books on an almost daily basis. The number of visitors shot up to nearly 35.000 hits. And when it became clear that an illness would soon make an end to his life's work, he still kept on blogging. It's characteristic for his love of research that he quickly wrote columns about notes found in his archive, in order to stimulate a new generation of researchers to pick up those subjects.

From the foundation of the OVN in 2001 Hanou was involved, as a speaker at conferences and member of the research grant committee. He declined our invitation to join as board member because of his very busy working schedule, until he finally found the time to do so in 2009. Our board members welcomed his stimulating input on the foundation's activities and especially the sense of humor he brought to our meetings. We will miss him dearly. Following Hanou's own initiative, the OVN will shortly publish a compilation of his articles on Dutch freemasonry. We sincerely hope that a translation of his work into English will be published one day, so his contribution to the field of study will be accessible to even more readers.

A new 'academic' initiative

The latest issue of Ken U Zelven, the magazine of the Grand East of the Netherlands, mentions the following news:

The Grand Masters of the Regular Grand Lodge of Belgium and the Grand East of the Netherlands have signed a Convenant on 1st June 2010, stating their intent to establish an academic bureau in order stimulate the study of masonic sources in the Dutch language area and to do so within one year. The bureau will support the Chair for the history of freemasonry at the Leiden University.

The author of this article justly remarks that it is curious, that the Statutes will include the formal condition that the academic bureau will be dissolved, if one of the participating Grand Lodges would lose its status as 'regular' masonic body. (Which means: is no longer recognized as regular by the Grand Lodge of England; a recognition which since the 18th century is based on, amongst others, the restriction of membership to men only).

There are several existing international networks and cooperation agreements between academic research centres, heritage institutes and scholars in the field of study, which include irregular masonic bodies (with both male and female members) and their museums. It is customary in academic circles not to state a preference for research into, or in cooperation with, regular or irregular masonic bodies. All of freemasonry, in it's many shapes and forms, is interesting within an historical perspective, and academic research should not be restricted by prejudice or preference, if it's results are to be impartial.
Any new initiative should be applauded, but the preference for 'regularity' stated here, could be interpreted to contradict the intended ' academic' character of this new initiative.

[Source: Ken U Zelven, nr. 7-2010, article by Louis van Koert of loge Concordia ad Libertatem]

OVN research grant 2010

The OVN Foundation has awarded a research grant to to Joyce Stoffelsma, a student of western esotericism at the University of Amsterdam. The grant will allow Stoffelsma to make a professional inventory of the historical archive of the Dutch Federation of the International Order of Co-Masonry 'Le Droit Humain'. This inventory will make the archives dating from 1904 until 1945 accessible for future research. The project is made possible by kind cooperation of Le Droit Humain and The Hague's Municipal Archive. See earlier posts ons this blog for more information. Dr. Marco Pasi of the (chair for the History of Hermetic Philosophy and Related Currents) at the University of Amsterdam will oversee the progress of the project.

Network Esoteric Collections in the Netherlands

In 2008 an OVN-conference was organized in the National Library of the Netherlands on the theme of 'Geheime kennis. De bijzondere archieven en bibliotheken van maçonnieke en esoterische organisaties in Nederland' (Secret Knowledge. The archives and libraries of masonic and esoteric organisations in the Netherlands). As a result, the OVN Foundation, Chair for the History of Hermetic Philosophy and Related Currents and the National Library discussed a plan to found a platform, which would unite professionals working with Dutch esoteric collections in both the public an private sector. They saw a growing need for interdisciplinairy exchange of knowledge and cooperation between the professional heritage sector, the academic sector and esoteric organisations concerning the care for the cultural heritage of esoteric currents.
Because other projects were prioritised, this plan remained on the shelf for some time. Meanwhile, so many new network opportunities have been created online, that there is no longer a need for the formal structure (and meeting schedule) of an association. This is why the OVN Foundation took the initiative in March 2010 to launch the online Network Esoteric Collections in the Netherlands. Free membership is open to curators of public and private esoteric collections, academics at university chairs and centres, and other professional researchers in the field of study.

Activities CRFF suspended!

Dr. Andreas Onnerfors, director of the Centre for Research into Freemasonry and Fraternalism at the University of Sheffield, send us the following announcement:
'With the publication of the first issue of the Journal for Research into Freemasonry and Fraternalism in January 2010 the activities of the Centre for Research into Freemasonry and Fraternalism at the University of Sheffield, established in 2000, have come to a preliminary end. On March 8, faculty administration put following message on the Centers website:

The Faculty of Arts and Humanities regrets that, with effect from 1 January 2010, the activities of the Centre for Research for Freemasonry and Fraternalism are suspended for the time being.[ ]

The CRF(F) has over the past ten years contributed considerably to the vitalization of academic research into freemasonry and related fraternal organizations both in Britain and abroad. We are in this respect deeply indebted to the efforts of founding director, prof Andrew Prescott. It is intended to publish a chronological overview over Ten Years of Research into Freemasonry at the University of Sheffield later this spring.

The Academic Society for Research into Freemasonry and Fraternalism (ASRFF) will immediately take over some core functions from the CRFF, such as the publication of a newsletter or the edition of the academic journal JRFF.
The Society is under formation and experienced already a serious blow with the tragic death of its intermediary president, prof Malcolm Davies, who passed away unexpectedly in February 2010. With the Leiden chair empty and the CRFF in hibernation, academic research at the moment and for the foreseeable future will be carried out by single academics based at single universities across the world.
This increases the need for cooperation of various initiatives such as the organization of conferences, e.g. the next International Conference on the History of Freemasonry that will take place in Alexandria, VA in late May 2011 and to which we currently are recruiting the Academic Committee. The ASRFF has created a temporary website that will be continually updated.'

Of course the OVN supports the ASRFF and calls upon it's members and colleagues to do the same. Students and scholars can join the society and subscribe to the journal, which will allow this initiative to grow. The OVN also feels that it is necessary to establish academic organisations for the study of freemasonry, such as the OVN in each country, for which the ASRFF could act as an international umbrella-organisation. This will provide valuable support to students and scholars and can make funding available for research - independent of the internal politics of Orders and universities.

Freemasonry in Amsterdam

On 26th February 2010, mrs. drs. Floor Meijer defended her dissertation Wereldburgers. Vrijmetselaren en de stad Amsterdam, 1848-1906 (Citizens of the world. Freemasons and the city of Amsterdam, 1848-1906) at the University of Amsterdam.
This is one of the first studies to look at the history of Dutch freemasonry around 1900. Although freemasons traditionally do not engage in politics as a matter of principle, they changed their views in the second half of the 19th century. Some of the social problems in the modern city of Amsterdam included poverty, hunger and child labour. Local freemasons debated about such problems in lodge publications as well as in the lodge itself, and got involved in charity, creating organizations to care for the blind and hungry. This developement went hand in hand with a shift in membership of the Order, which included more and more citizens, from craftsmen to shopkeepers and teachers, who were very much engaged with the daily problems in the city. New contacts between freemasonry and other organisations, both social and political, changed the character of the Order, as did the introduction of mixed Orders in Amsterdam after 1900.

Floor Meijer, Wereldburgers. Vrijmetselaren en de stad Amsterdam, 1848-1906, Wereldbibliotheek Amsterdam 2010, ISBN 978-90-284-2321-3, paperback ca. 704 pages, € 39,90.

Prescott Director of Research at HATII

Prof. Andrew Prescott (former director of the CRFF at the Sheffield University and member of the comittee of recommendation of the OVN Foundation) has announced that he will be leaving his current position at the University of Lampeter. From January 1, 2010 he will be appointed as director of the Research Department of the Humanities Advanced Technology & Information Institute at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. This transfer will allow Prof. Prescott to once again make a contribution to research on the history of freemasonry. More information is available at the Glasgow University website.

Scholars at CRFF and UCLA

The Centre for Research into Freemasonry and Fraternalism at the University of Sheffield has announced an addition to its scholarly team: Róbert Péter (PhD, University of Szeged, Hungary). He will be a visiting scholar until September 2009, made possible by the British Academy Visiting Fellowship Scheme and an Eötvös Scholarship from the Hungarian government.
Péter's research focuses on ideological aspects of English freemasonry. His thesis on the subject of The Mysteries of English Freemasonry: Janus-Faced Masonic Ideology and Practice Between 1696 and 1815 was completed in 2006. Péter is review editor for the Journal for Research into Freemasonry and Fraternalism.

The CRFF Newsletter also mentions the award of a post-doctoral fellowship in the history of fraternalism and freemasonry at the History department at the University of California in Los Angeles (USA) to mrs. Natalie Bayer, (Ph.D. Rice University). Bayer's research focusses on Russian freemasonry, and foreign contacts in the period 1750 to 1850. In addition, a Research Assistantship at UCLA will go to Matthew Crow, graduate student in American history with an interest in republicanism and Thomas Jefferson. Both scholars will develop one course each at UCLA on the history of European and American fraternalism and freemasonry.