The Medici Archive Project in Florence, Italy, is offering two Samuel H. Kress Fellowships for graduate students interested in pursuing archival research at the Archivio di Stato di Firenze and other Florentine archives.

These fellowships offer American graduate students a great opportunity for on-site training and practice in archival methods, manuscript studies, and paleography.

Graduate students in Renaissance Art History, Renaissance Italian History, Early Modern European History, Early Modern Mediterranean Studies, and Renaissance Studies may be interested in this opportunity.

Graduate students at Northern Illinois University and other universities affiliated with the Center for Renaissance Studies at the Newberry Library should contact their professors for advice on applications.

The Medici Archive Project is a research institute that promotes interdisciplinary Renaissance studies in Florence and worldwide. The Medici Archive Project has created online platforms for Renaissance archival collections in the Archivio di Stato di Firenze and sponsored various Digital Humanities projects. The Project also publishes a book series and hosts seminars, lectures, and conferences in interdisciplinary Renaissance studies.

Here is the Medici Archive Project’s call for applications:

Thanks to the continued support of the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, The Medici Archive Project is offering two fellowships for graduate and pre-doctoral students to undertake specialized archival research on-site at the Archivio di Stato as well as other archival collections housed in Florence and across Tuscany. These fellowships are especially aimed to provide graduate students in art and architectural history with the opportunity to examine original source materials, receive scholarly guidance from MAP Staff, present their findings at MAP-sponsored conferences and workshops, and enroll in MAP’s Paleography and Archival Studies Seminar.

Both fellowships must take place within a period of no less than three months from 23 August 2021 to 23 December 2021. The stipend is USD 8,000. Fellows will be responsible for their travel and accommodations in Florence. Eligible candidates must either have American citizenship or be enrolled in graduate programs at universities in the United States.

There is no application form for this fellowship. Instead, suitable candidates are invited to send via email to education@medici.org, the following documents in a single PDF by 15 June 2021:

1. A cover letter.
2. A short essay (no more than two pages) on how the candidate’s topic will benefit from archival research.
3. A curriculum vitae.
4. The name and email address of a scholar in the field, preferably the candidate’s supervisor, who can comment on the applicant’s qualifications and the merits of the research proposal (please do not include letters of recommendation with the application).

To apply for these fellowships, the following material should be sent electronically to education@medici.org. Please do not include supplementary material (publications, papers, syllabi, etc.). All materials must be submitted in English. For further information, contact education@medici.org.