Collection of the Buddhist sculptures of Mongolia of the National Museum of the Republic of Buryatia

В статье впервые рассматривается собранная Национальным музеем Республики Бурятия коллекция буддийской скульптуры Монголии, связанной с именем Г. Дзанабадзара (1635–1723), основоположника монгольской школы в буддийском искусстве. В ходе изучения коллекции использовалась визуальная и сравнительная методика, а также знакомство с авторскими работами Мастера в музеях Монголии. В результате были выявлены три группы буддийских скульптур с характерными особенностями этой школы: цельное толстостенное литье, блестящая позолота, комбинированное золочение, особая техника освящения скульптур. Ярким украшением коллекции является авторская работа самого Дзанабадзара — скульптура Будды долголетия Амитаюса. Кроме того, около тридцати скульптур XVIII–XIX вв. представляют его школу. Третья группа скульптур состоит из поздних работ монгольских мастеров в виде реплик и подражаний. О коллекции монгольской скульптуры музея упоминалось в сообщении автора статьи на научной конференции в Монголии, посвященной 370-летию Дзанабадзара. Целью данной статьи является возможность ознакомить читателей с «эталонными» работами Великого Дзанабадзара и его школы, создавших базу для творчества следующих поколений художников. The collection of the Buddhist sculpture of Mongolia, which is related to the founder of the Mongolian school in the Buddhist art G. Zanabazar (1635–1723), is observed for the first time at this article. The process of research of the collection involved visual and comparative methods as well as conversance with the master’s works in museums of Mongolia. As a result, three groups of the Buddhist sculptures with special features of the school were fetched out: one-piece and heavy-walled casting, lucent gilding, special technic of sculpture consecrating. The collection cherry on top is Zanabazar’s own work — a sculpture of Buddha of longevity Amitayus. Furthermore, about thirty sculptures of 18th – 19th centuries represent his school. The third group of the sculptures consists of late works of Mongolian masters by way of replica and imitating. This collection of the Mongolian sculptures of the museum was mentioned by the article author at scientific conference in Mongolia dedicated to the 350th anniversary of Zanabazar’s birth. The article aim is to introduce to the readers the “reference” works of the great Zanabazar and his school, which prepared a basis for creation for the next generation of artists.

Swedishness on Stage

Globalization, stagflation and economic uncertainty challenged the Swedish welfare model during the 1980s, driving renegotiations of state-market relations domestically as well as re-conceptualizations of Sweden’s place in the world internationally. This article addresses how a key media event – the 1638–1988 New Sweden 350th Anniversary of the New Sweden Colony in North America (New Sweden-88) – reflects these shifts. Drawing upon materials from the National Committee for New Sweden ’88 and various public-private Swedish-American foundations and initiatives as well as Swedish and US media reception, the paper argues that these renegotiations of Swedish self-identity in the late 1980s contributed in certain ways to prepare the intellectual ground for far-ranging reforms of the Swedish welfare model which followed during the globalized 1990s.

Foreword

The Foreword is written by Simon Milne MBE FRSE, Regius Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. He introduces this special edition of Sibbaldia that documents the proceedings of The Sibbaldia & PlantNetwork Conference 2020. The Conference was a major event in the celebration of the 350th anniversary of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE), with the primary aim of promoting excellence in botanic garden horticulture. That aim was most certainly achieved thanks to the impressive line-up of speakers and their expertise, combined with the enthusiasm and interaction of all participants. The Conference was held online due to the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, and whilst in-person contact was absent, the virtual format enabled a broader range of delegates to attend.A total of 250 delegates gathered in their virtual space from 28 to 30 October to hear from ten keynote speakers in the main sessions, seven presenters in two parallel sessions and a broad range of expert practitioners in the free session, and for the grand finale – ‘Horticulture in 2020’. The themes ranged from conservation, curation and cultivation to heritage, plant health and education. The insightful papers contained within this volume artfully weave together these themes, reflecting their connectivity. The depth of botanical, horticultural and pedagogical experience is outstanding, the content of the papers reflecting the authors’ vast experience and knowledge.

Garden Profile: The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh at 350

The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) was founded in 1670 and celebrated its 350th anniversary in 2020. In Edinburgh, Scotland, the institution has occupied four different sites in that time and has been at the current site in Inverleith since 1823. Three other gardens in Scotland are also part of RBGE: Dawyck in Peebleshire, Benmore in Argyllshire and Logan in Dumfries & Galloway. 13,750 species from 2721 genera representing 344 families are cultivated in these four gardens and this article describes some of these collections. It also describes the issues facing the Garden today in common with many large and botanic gardens, those of plant health, implementing environmentally sustainable working practices, and managing collections in the face of a changing climate and growing visitor numbers. The Garden is also planning an exciting future with ambitious plans for new buildings and the refurbishment of historical structures to not only improve plant cultivation facilities, but also to increase visitor engagement and education about the value of plants for a healthy future.

Spinoza's not so quiet influence: the Theological-political treatise 350 years on

In this review essay I reflect on the centrality of Spinoza's thought to political modernity on the combined occasion of the 350th anniversary of the original publication of his first political treatise, the Tractatus theologico–politicus, and of the publication this year of George Eliot's English translation of Spinoza's Ethics, which had been lying in a drawer for almost a century and a half. His influence is both substantial and methodological. It owes to the singular way in which he calibrated the relationship between reason, or the natural human need to understand, and faith, or the need to believe. But, over a century before the social sciences were invented, Spinoza also laid the foundations for the interpretative methods that would become central to these sciences and to the study of international politics. He remains essential reading for understanding our world.

Christian 5.s parforcejagt i 1600-Tallets aviser

Kristoffer Schmidt: Christian V’s par force hunt in 17th century’s newspapersThe year 2020 marks the 350th anniversary of the foundation by Christian V of the par force hunt (also known as chasse à courre) in Denmark. This type of hunting was a spec-tacular sight, where riders and a pack of hunting dogs, imported from England, would hunt a selected animal (often a stag) through large, artificially adapted hunting areas such as the open landscapes at Jægersborg Dyrehave or the geometrically shaped hunt-ing routes at Gribskov or Store Dyrehave. After a pursuit lasting usually several hours the animal would collapse from fatigue. The king would then finish off the exhausted beast with a hirschfænger – a large dagger – or a spear. Studies of the royal hunt tend to depict the Danish stag hunt as primarily a means for absolute rulers to showcase a symbolic power. It enabled the absolute ruler to exhibit athletic strength, exemplary riding skills and extreme courage, and thus to paint the picture of a heroic ruler.Although participation in these hunts was limited to a small group of royal hunts-men, court members and foreign guests (for example, ambassadors and royalty), news of the king’s hunting adventures were conveyed through contemporaneous, partly state-controlled newspapers such as Anders Bording’s Den Danske Mercurius and Ahasver-us Bartholin’s Mercurius.This article examines how the royal hunt – primarily the stag hunt – was covered in Den Danske Mercurius and later Mercurius. It reveals that reports on the stag hunt seem to have two main purposes. On the one hand, the newspaper reports underscore the assess-ment of the royal hunts as a symbolic manifestation of power, combining a description of the hunting skills of Christian V with a more general depiction of him as the hero-king. On the other hand, the reports also reveal a need of the Danish-Norwegian absolutist regime to justify the King’s numerous hunting adventures. In several instances Bording, in particular, pointed to the fact that the hunt was considered a pastime for the King and the court. Therefore, Bording and Bartholin stressed that this type of pastime did not interfere with the King’s other, more important duties, such as affairs of state. In other words, the picture of the athletic hero-king did not carry more weight than the image of the King as a capable and efficient ruler. Thus, it appears that the stag hunt, despite its public grandeur, also had a recreational and more private purpose, and that Christian V withdrew from his more formal duties to go hunting.

350 Jahre Universität Innsbruck

This volume brings together the contributions to a conference organised by the research centre 'Federalism (Politics and Law)' in Prösels (South Tyrol) in May 2019, on the occasion of the 350th anniversary of the University of Innsbruck. Adopting an interdisciplinary approach, the authors deal with the concept of 'Landesuniversität' (a state university) from a wide variety of perspectives: some in general, some with special reference to the University of Innsbruck. In addition, general reflections are made on the challenges universities are facing in a rapidly changing society. With contributions by Karlheinz Töchterle, Martin P. Schennach, Walter Obwexer, Esther Happacher, Reinhold Gärtner, Anton Pelika