The Bibliographical Society of the University of Virginia is seeking applications for its second round of Battestin Fellowships, a program of summer fellowships in bibliographical and textual studies.

Named for Martin C. Battestin, emeritus professor of English, and his wife Ruthe, the fellowships are intended to support research in the collections of the U.Va. Library by U.Va. graduate students, with an emphasis on physical or textual bibliography. The society is prepared to award up to three fellowships of $3,500 each for the summer of 2014.

Proposals may concern books and documents in any field as long as the primary focus is the physical object (in whatever form) as historical evidence. Potential fellowship topics include studies in the history of book production, publication, distribution, reception or reading; the history of collecting or bibliographical scholarship; and the tracing of a work’s textual history or the establishment of its text from the extant witnesses. Projects that incorporate the application of digital methodologies to the study of books and documents, and their texts, are also encouraged.

The fellowships do not support projects of enumerative bibliography – i.e., the preparation of lists.

The awards are limited to current students who will be continuing their graduate studies at U.Va. in the fall 2014 semester.

Students interested in applying are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the profile of the Bibliographical Society of the University of Virginia and the fellowship guidelines at www.bsuva.org.

Applications are due Feb. 1 and should consist of the following: an application (available at www.bsuva.org), a project proposal of no more than 1,000 words, the applicant’s curriculum vitae and two signed letters of recommendation. 

Questions about the Battestin Fellowships should be sent to Anne Ribble at bibsoc@virginia.edu.

Winners will be announced by April 1.

The Bibliographical Society of the University of Virginia, founded in 1947, exists to encourage and support the study of books as physical objects and has an international membership. It publishes the journal Studies in Bibliography and has an active program of publishing books in both printed and electronic form. It also sponsors a biennial student book-collecting contest.