Transmission, Containment and Transformation. A Sawyer Seminar Podcast
Told through vivid historical accounts each podcast explores the themes of Transmission, Containment and Transformation in early modern cities.
Told through vivid historical accounts each podcast explores the themes of Transmission, Containment and Transformation in early modern cities.
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About
It explores the themes of Transmission, Containment and Transformation in early modern cities – from Florence to colonial Mexico via Delhi. Supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, it aims at expanding our understanding of the multiple ways in which these processes have taken place in history. Told through vivid historical accounts each podcast shines a light on little known stories that enrich our knowledge of the human experience.
The podcast is a companion to the Penn State Sawyer Seminar Lecture Series 2021 – 2022. It was conceived, hosted and produced by Beatriz Véliz Argueta, Andrew W. Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow at the College of Arts and Architecture at Penn State University.
Beatriz is an interdisciplinary scholar interested in storytelling, geography and the construction of place.
We hope you’ll enjoy and share these stories.
Episodes

Nov 6, 2024
Episode 05. Containing "evil women"
Nov 6, 2024
Nov 6, 2024
21 min
Mujeres de mal vivir, which in English translates to "women who live evil lives" was a term used in colonial Guatemala to describe women whose behaviour deviated from Christian norms and were believed to be sorceress.
Martha Few is Professor of Latin American History and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Pennsylvania State University.
Nov 6, 2024
21 min

Nov 5, 2024
Nov 5, 2024
27 min
A corn riot shakes colonial Mexico City in 1692. In this expisode we will explore and understand the strategies used to discipline and colonize sound in and around the Main Plaza.
Alex Hidalgo is Associate Professor of Latin American History at Texas Christian University. He incorporates sound into historical and cartographic research.
Nov 5, 2024
27 min

Nov 5, 2024
Nov 5, 2024
23 min
In this episode we will find out more about the Piazza de San Martino and the people inhabiting it, including vagabongds and storytellers.Niall Atkinson is Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Chicago. His work combines history, architecture and sound.
Nov 5, 2024
23 min

Nov 5, 2024
Nov 5, 2024
28 min
The garden and horticulture of Mughal South Asia will be explored through the fascinating life of an enslaved person:Tahmas Bayg. Nicolas Roth will discuss the garden layout, its literary and fictional significance, and its role in the social ife of the city.
Nicolas Roth completed a PhD in South Asian Studies at Harvard University and co-curated the online exhibition Bagh-e Hind.
Nov 5, 2024
28 min

Nov 5, 2024
Episode 01. On women, music and seclusion
Nov 5, 2024
Nov 5, 2024
24 min
A painting allows a musical historian to piece together an opera written more than 250 years ago. In this episode we will explore eighteen-century Venice Ospidale and the secluded life of the women inside of them.
Marica Tacconi is Distinguished Professor of Musicology and Associate Director of the School of Music at Penn State University. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on music, art, and culture of late medieval and early modern Italy.
Nov 5, 2024
24 min
