Other Significant Fellowships
Past Fellows
The Durham Residential Research Library Fellowship offered a chance to work with the University’s wonderful collection of early books in a really supportive environment. Between the study spaces, the library and fellowship staff, and especially the cohort of fellows, the month in Durham didn’t just give space to think and write, but offered new connections and lasting friendships. The work I did there inspired new directions in my own research, and is now informing a larger project on the paratextual features of manuscripts and early printed books. This has been a real highlight in my academic career.
Jonathan Zecher
Barker Visiting Fellowship (Australian Catholic University, Australia)
Robert's Wharton's Rome. The Impact of Roman Art in the North-East of England. During my stay in Durham I've worked closely with Prof. Stefano Cracolici and study the tour journals and letters of Rev. Robert Wharton who came to Rome in 1775 and also his correspondence to Rev. Thomas Brand regarding his stay in Rome in 1789-1794. The main question driving the project concerns the exploration of a network of social contacts, patterns of cultural exchange and mutual relation across different nationalities and confessions that only the concerted consultations of several archives allows to recreate. An in-depht analysis of Warton's...
Professor Carla Mazzarelli
Barker Visiting Fellowship (Università della Svizzera italiana,, Italy)
I had a particularly productive time in Durham, during which I carried out research in the Ushaw College, Cathedral, and University Libraries. This was made possible by the generous assistance of staff at each of these locations, who were swift to understand and accommodate the needs of readers. During my time in Durham, I was fortunate to organise an international conference in collaboration with the Classics Department, for which the beautiful surroundings of the city provided the perfect backdrop.
Simon Smets
Holland Visiting Fellowship (PhD University College London/Ludwig Boltzmann Institute Austira, Austria)
Durham Barker Fellowship has been an unforgettable experience, from beginning to end. The fellowship enabled me to consult invaluable archival materials in an inspiring environment and to further my research. My work was facilitated by the library staff, who were very kind and helpful throughout my stay. Apart from enabling me to conduct my research project (Monsters on Durham’s Riverbanks: Bertram Colgrave’s Notebooks on OE and ME Poems), the fellowship also gave me the opportunity to meet the other fellows as well as members of Durham University. The exchange of ideas which ensued was incredibly enjoyable and productive.
Ivana Bicak
Barker Visiting Fellowship (Bilkent University, Turkey)
I would like to express my profound gratitude to the Barkers fellowship, to all the friendly and helpful librarians at the Palace Green, Bill Bryson and Ushaw libraries, to Professors James Kelly and Bennett Zon and to Barbara Jackson for the wonderful and inspiring research stay in Durham. Reading the 19th century letters and rare books has enabled me to gain a clearer picture of the intricacies of the history, culture and politics in Central Asia. The talks my fellow researchers gave at IAS and subsequent discussions were very inspiring for my work. It was a great opportunity to network...
Maria Rybakova
Barker Visiting Fellowship (Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan)
Durham University’s Residential Research Fellowship was a delightful experience. For part of a new book I’m writing on the history of empires and resistance, I used the Sudan Collection, arguably the most important archive of the British Empire in the Sudan. It is an amazing collection. I highly recommend this fellowship program, which brings together different scholars and offers them a rare sense of community in one of England’s most beautiful university settings. It’s world-class, and I want to return!
James Le Sueur
Barker Visiting Fellowship (University of Nebraska, USA)
I am very grateful for the opportunity this fellowship has afforded me to focus on the rich materials available at Palace Green Library. Durham has been a wonderful place to work, and the fellowship scheme is very welcoming and helps you connect with other fellows while giving you plenty of time to get your work done. I have been able to work with materials I couldn’t have found anywhere else and would encourage others to look into what’s available in the amazing collections here.
Joanne Myers
Barker Visiting Fellowship (Gettysburg College, USA)
My Durham Fellowship visit was very fruitful for me, and I am very grateful to the Durham Collections and all the colleagues and friends who helped me and whom I met in Durham. It was one of the most memorable moments in my life. I am deeply thankful for that.
Lu Jiang
Sino British Fellowship (Sun Yat-sen University , China)
My Visiting Fellowship Programme (Oct-Nov, 2025) at the Durham University’s Special Museums Collection provided me with the opportunity to work directly with Mughal objects from the collection, deliver a lecture on my ongoing research and, engage closely with the university’s vibrant academic community, including both faculties and students. This experience enabled me to examine the materiality of the collection firsthand while situating these objects alongside their textual representation. The richness of the collection was further illuminated by museum’s welcoming and intellectually stimulating working environment as well as the invaluable knowledge and insights generously shared by the curator.
Amrita Chattopadhyay
Barker Visiting Fellowship (Leibniz Zentrum Moderner Orient Germany, Germany)