Sara Barker
@sarakbarker.bsky.social
Historian of early modern print, news, translation, pamphlets. Scotland/Yorkshire hybrid. Likes old printed things, France, rugby, embroidery. Always stops to talk to cats and dogs. Series editor MUP Studies in Early Modern European History. She/her.
Five classes i took at university:
Literature in the French Reformation 🥰
The Presidency of Andrew Jackson 😬
Dutch revolt & golden age 😃
Birth of Western Society 🙂 (our tutors were ace, even if I'm no medievalist)
The foundations of modern historical thought 🧐
Literature in the French Reformation 🥰
The Presidency of Andrew Jackson 😬
Dutch revolt & golden age 😃
Birth of Western Society 🙂 (our tutors were ace, even if I'm no medievalist)
The foundations of modern historical thought 🧐
Five classes I took at university
History of the English Language - I fell asleep and dreamed the lecturer was talking about doughnuts (1/5)
History of the English Language - I fell asleep and dreamed the lecturer was talking about doughnuts (1/5)
Five classes I took at university.
The Emergency of English As A Literary Language
Transformational Grammar
Postcolonial Literature
The Novel in Verse
Jewish Mysticism & the Postmodern Novel
The Emergency of English As A Literary Language
Transformational Grammar
Postcolonial Literature
The Novel in Verse
Jewish Mysticism & the Postmodern Novel
January 31, 2026 at 9:21 AM
Five classes i took at university:
Literature in the French Reformation 🥰
The Presidency of Andrew Jackson 😬
Dutch revolt & golden age 😃
Birth of Western Society 🙂 (our tutors were ace, even if I'm no medievalist)
The foundations of modern historical thought 🧐
Literature in the French Reformation 🥰
The Presidency of Andrew Jackson 😬
Dutch revolt & golden age 😃
Birth of Western Society 🙂 (our tutors were ace, even if I'm no medievalist)
The foundations of modern historical thought 🧐
Reposted by Sara Barker
Thanks to @thefnl.bsky.social this exceptionally rare Tudor map of Kingsbridge in Devon has been acquired for public research at the Devon Heritage Centre, after more than four centuries in private hands.
January 30, 2026 at 2:40 PM
Thanks to @thefnl.bsky.social this exceptionally rare Tudor map of Kingsbridge in Devon has been acquired for public research at the Devon Heritage Centre, after more than four centuries in private hands.
Submitted The Thing! Now to peel myself and my nervous system carefully off the ceiling.
Hahahahaha sob. Yup, well, at least I know myself.
This morning I am appreciating the optimism of both the project organisers who have given us a 16 and 23 month heads up about deadlines and myself that I am not going to be frantically writing like a mad thing in 15 1/2 and 22 1/2 months time.
January 30, 2026 at 10:10 PM
Submitted The Thing! Now to peel myself and my nervous system carefully off the ceiling.
The only deadline Ettie cares about is the deadline for sweeties.
January 30, 2026 at 4:35 PM
The only deadline Ettie cares about is the deadline for sweeties.
Reposted by Sara Barker
Also a great nugget for all book historians, professional vintagers worked in revolutionary America to ensure that pamphlets were stained and foxed immediately after printing to look real and „old“. They probably did this in Boston with tea.
January 29, 2026 at 9:35 PM
Also a great nugget for all book historians, professional vintagers worked in revolutionary America to ensure that pamphlets were stained and foxed immediately after printing to look real and „old“. They probably did this in Boston with tea.
Hahahahaha sob. Yup, well, at least I know myself.
This morning I am appreciating the optimism of both the project organisers who have given us a 16 and 23 month heads up about deadlines and myself that I am not going to be frantically writing like a mad thing in 15 1/2 and 22 1/2 months time.
January 30, 2026 at 10:59 AM
Hahahahaha sob. Yup, well, at least I know myself.
Marking + talk last week + deadlines for chapters before and after Christmas = I am basically 95% bread, cake and biscuits right now. I really wish writing & marking didn't make me so hungry. Occasionally this can be offset with walks to get the juices flowing but not v enticing in this weather.
January 30, 2026 at 10:50 AM
Marking + talk last week + deadlines for chapters before and after Christmas = I am basically 95% bread, cake and biscuits right now. I really wish writing & marking didn't make me so hungry. Occasionally this can be offset with walks to get the juices flowing but not v enticing in this weather.
Absolutely bless Jade from the Traitors saying her PhD viva seems a bit less scary after having faced so much flack at the roundtable. That's brilliant.
Also reminds me of wondering if I could go on Big Brother just to get locked away from the world to get my thesis finished...
Also reminds me of wondering if I could go on Big Brother just to get locked away from the world to get my thesis finished...
January 27, 2026 at 12:10 PM
Absolutely bless Jade from the Traitors saying her PhD viva seems a bit less scary after having faced so much flack at the roundtable. That's brilliant.
Also reminds me of wondering if I could go on Big Brother just to get locked away from the world to get my thesis finished...
Also reminds me of wondering if I could go on Big Brother just to get locked away from the world to get my thesis finished...
Reposted by Sara Barker
Historians work across higher education - and not just in 'traditional' History departments. We welcome applications for Fellowship / Associate Fellowship from all those working historically - in the UK and internationally bit.ly/45vEmeJ
Next closing dates for applications: 9 March & 11 May, 1/2
Next closing dates for applications: 9 March & 11 May, 1/2
January 24, 2026 at 10:54 AM
Historians work across higher education - and not just in 'traditional' History departments. We welcome applications for Fellowship / Associate Fellowship from all those working historically - in the UK and internationally bit.ly/45vEmeJ
Next closing dates for applications: 9 March & 11 May, 1/2
Next closing dates for applications: 9 March & 11 May, 1/2
I wish I'd had this picture before my HA talk, where I mentioned that digitised works did allow me to work from the comfort of my desk, sometimes with feline help. This is exactly what I meant.
January 24, 2026 at 4:48 PM
I wish I'd had this picture before my HA talk, where I mentioned that digitised works did allow me to work from the comfort of my desk, sometimes with feline help. This is exactly what I meant.
York was dead pretty, and the talk was fun - lovely setting at Bootham School too
January 23, 2026 at 8:36 AM
York was dead pretty, and the talk was fun - lovely setting at Bootham School too
Reposted by Sara Barker
Grants!
We are offering small grants (maximum £500 each) to support projects in book history & bibliography. We particularly encourage early-career applicants and projects that use Oxford collections.
Application is brief; deadline is 27th February 2026.
Details at oxbibsoc.org.uk/grants/
We are offering small grants (maximum £500 each) to support projects in book history & bibliography. We particularly encourage early-career applicants and projects that use Oxford collections.
Application is brief; deadline is 27th February 2026.
Details at oxbibsoc.org.uk/grants/
Grants
Previous grant recipients If you would like to help us support early career scholars in bibliography, please email our Treasurer ([email protected]) to discuss how you can help. Any donatio…
oxbibsoc.org.uk
January 8, 2026 at 11:52 AM
Grants!
We are offering small grants (maximum £500 each) to support projects in book history & bibliography. We particularly encourage early-career applicants and projects that use Oxford collections.
Application is brief; deadline is 27th February 2026.
Details at oxbibsoc.org.uk/grants/
We are offering small grants (maximum £500 each) to support projects in book history & bibliography. We particularly encourage early-career applicants and projects that use Oxford collections.
Application is brief; deadline is 27th February 2026.
Details at oxbibsoc.org.uk/grants/
Off to do a @histassoc.bsky.social talk in York about printing in early modern France, with a wee bit of how we do book history now, and only one holiday snap, which is pretty good for me
January 22, 2026 at 5:29 PM
Off to do a @histassoc.bsky.social talk in York about printing in early modern France, with a wee bit of how we do book history now, and only one holiday snap, which is pretty good for me
I slightly hated myself for buying this last week but it's been the most useful £12 I've spent this month
January 22, 2026 at 4:37 PM
I slightly hated myself for buying this last week but it's been the most useful £12 I've spent this month
Today I am in another happy place for the morning, getting some writing done, before heading to the IHR for our History UK event on the difficult second album sorry project
January 13, 2026 at 11:18 AM
Today I am in another happy place for the morning, getting some writing done, before heading to the IHR for our History UK event on the difficult second album sorry project
Yesterday was ace: did a fun, work-related thing (there were some excellent prints) before SSFH meeting and a really good lecture about migration & women in C18/19 Indian ocean by @renaudmorieux.bsky.social (yes, I did get very excited when questions came up about translation)
January 13, 2026 at 11:15 AM
Yesterday was ace: did a fun, work-related thing (there were some excellent prints) before SSFH meeting and a really good lecture about migration & women in C18/19 Indian ocean by @renaudmorieux.bsky.social (yes, I did get very excited when questions came up about translation)
Doing a lot of module admin and updating today, including going over all the Alt Text for lecture slides and how have I only just realised that I have a massive mental block over how to spell "soldier"?
January 7, 2026 at 12:54 PM
Doing a lot of module admin and updating today, including going over all the Alt Text for lecture slides and how have I only just realised that I have a massive mental block over how to spell "soldier"?
Reposted by Sara Barker
some news 👇
we're going to find out how to overcome the numerous practical and ethical problems we face when researching the nameless.
we're going to find out how to overcome the numerous practical and ethical problems we face when researching the nameless.
BCDSS Professors Julia Hillner and Pia Wiegmink, together with former BCDSS Guest Researcher Jamie Wood (University of Lincoln), have been granted funding by the VolkswagenStiftung for their collaborative project "The Nameless in History".
@unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de @volkswagenstiftung.de
@unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de @volkswagenstiftung.de
December 15, 2025 at 9:36 AM
some news 👇
we're going to find out how to overcome the numerous practical and ethical problems we face when researching the nameless.
we're going to find out how to overcome the numerous practical and ethical problems we face when researching the nameless.
Reposted by Sara Barker
Ongoing decimation of British universities part 252:
Apx. 1000 academic staff at University of Essex just received formal ‘risk of redundancy’ letters via email.
Please share @ucuessex.bsky.social @ucu.org.uk
Apx. 1000 academic staff at University of Essex just received formal ‘risk of redundancy’ letters via email.
Please share @ucuessex.bsky.social @ucu.org.uk
December 11, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Ongoing decimation of British universities part 252:
Apx. 1000 academic staff at University of Essex just received formal ‘risk of redundancy’ letters via email.
Please share @ucuessex.bsky.social @ucu.org.uk
Apx. 1000 academic staff at University of Essex just received formal ‘risk of redundancy’ letters via email.
Please share @ucuessex.bsky.social @ucu.org.uk
I am so SO close to finishing two things I should have done actual months ago, so obviously my body has decided this is the perfect time to embrace a head cold. I'm chosing to believe this is going to make my writing much more direct and therefore engaging, rather than a written up fever dream.
December 4, 2025 at 11:27 AM
I am so SO close to finishing two things I should have done actual months ago, so obviously my body has decided this is the perfect time to embrace a head cold. I'm chosing to believe this is going to make my writing much more direct and therefore engaging, rather than a written up fever dream.
Reposted by Sara Barker
Really interesting to hear about the new HistoryUK resource, 'History in Practice', which is a space to collectively share, reflect, and collaborate on all things related to history teaching in universities 🗃️ #skystorians
www.history-uk.ac.uk/history-in-p...
www.history-uk.ac.uk/history-in-p...
History in Practice
‘Doing the Readings’ – Will Pooley ‘Escaping the Lecture: Using game-based learning to engage History students’ – Rebecca Andrew and Sam Chadwick ‘Using Fo…
www.history-uk.ac.uk
November 28, 2025 at 12:58 PM
Really interesting to hear about the new HistoryUK resource, 'History in Practice', which is a space to collectively share, reflect, and collaborate on all things related to history teaching in universities 🗃️ #skystorians
www.history-uk.ac.uk/history-in-p...
www.history-uk.ac.uk/history-in-p...
Ah, "Champagne Problems", I was quite enjoying you taking the piss out of people's obsessions with places like Café de Flore, but then you came up with some of the *worst* Paris geography i have *ever* seen.
November 23, 2025 at 7:51 PM
Ah, "Champagne Problems", I was quite enjoying you taking the piss out of people's obsessions with places like Café de Flore, but then you came up with some of the *worst* Paris geography i have *ever* seen.
Well, the Barker family WhatsApp was fun ce soir
a cartoon of a unicorn holding a scottish flag on its back
Alt: a cartoon of a unicorn holding a scottish flag on its back
media.tenor.com
November 18, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Well, the Barker family WhatsApp was fun ce soir
I have just found out that Mallomars, which i mainly know about from "When Harry Met Sally", which informed me that they are the greatest cookie in the world, are only available in bits of the US for part of the year.
I will never take my ready access to a Tunnocks Teacake for granted ever again.
I will never take my ready access to a Tunnocks Teacake for granted ever again.
November 14, 2025 at 10:58 PM
I have just found out that Mallomars, which i mainly know about from "When Harry Met Sally", which informed me that they are the greatest cookie in the world, are only available in bits of the US for part of the year.
I will never take my ready access to a Tunnocks Teacake for granted ever again.
I will never take my ready access to a Tunnocks Teacake for granted ever again.
Reposted by Sara Barker
I’m pretty pleased by this riff on a @iamdylanlewis.bsky.social / @umdbooklab.bsky.social print I worked up for my “Writing with Robots” class’ visit to @skeuomorphpress.org today
November 13, 2025 at 6:01 PM
I’m pretty pleased by this riff on a @iamdylanlewis.bsky.social / @umdbooklab.bsky.social print I worked up for my “Writing with Robots” class’ visit to @skeuomorphpress.org today