Introduction to Auxiliary Historical Sciences

or - how to master the basic crafts of all those who want to research the past

 

The course is taught by: prof. PhDr. Juraj Šedivý, MAS, PhD.

Form of instruction: lecture (L:2)

ECTS: 3

Objective:

To obtain a basic overview of the various auxiliary historical sciences (PVH), especially palaeography, diplomacy, epigraphy, chronology, heraldry, sphragistics, genealogy, metrology, numismatics. The graduate will master the basic terms and the development of the main phenomena with emphasis on the territory of Slovakia (basic distribution of sources, development of writing, time measurement, offices and the structure of official documents, historical inscriptions, coats of arms, seals, family relations, weights and measures as well as the basic means of payment in our history). The PVH are also called "basic historical sciences" because they open the door to a deeper historical knowledge of the sources of the past.

Brief outline:

• PVH as a historical sub-discipline dealing with selected sources
• Written culture and the development of writing (palaeography)
• Official documents and offices (diplomacy)
• Measurement of time in the past (chronology)
• Coats of arms, seals (heraldry, sphragistics)
• Basic historical weights and measures, weights and measures of currency (metrology, numismatics).
• Historical inscriptions and epigraphy

Graduation Requirements:

• Attendance - 3 hours may be missed without excuse,
• completion of ongoing activities = 10% of the grade (consists of the student's activity in class, his/her ongoing homework for reading inscriptions),
• final assessment during the exam period = 90% (assessment of theoretical and practical knowledge in the form of a test). 

Recommended reading:

• Pomocné vedy historické – súčasný stav a perspektívy. Zostavil L. Vrteľ. Dolný Kubín, ŠOKA 1986.
• HLAVÁČEK, I. – KAŠPAR, J. – NOVÝ, R.: Vademecum pomocných věd historických. Praha,Svoboda 1988. (resp. novšie vydania)
• ZUBÁCKA, I. – ZEMENE, M.: Kapitoly z PVH. Bratislava, UK 1993.
• KAČÍREK, Ľuboš – RAGAČ, Radoslav – TIŠLIAR, Pavol: Múzeum a historické vedy (vysokoškolská učebnica). Krakov : Spolok Slovákov v Poľsku, 2013.