Research projects
Research work at the John Rylands Research Institute and Library is continually improving our understanding of people, cultures and societies around the world.
By stimulating interdisciplinary research, as well as activities such as cataloguing and projects, we are unlocking knowledge that makes a difference to people's lives. You can also view our past projects:
Arabic translation of Galen’s On the Usefulness of the Parts of the Body
Kamran Karimullah is Lecturer in Islamic Thought at The University of Manchester and is the Principal Investigator, JRRI Pilot grant 2023-24.
Sleeping Well in the Early Modern World
Sasha Handley is Professor of Early Modern History at The University of Manchester and is the Principal Investigator.
Celebrating the Simons of Manchester
John Ayshford (PhD History Researcher), Martin Dodge (Senior Lecturer in Geography), Stuart Jones (Professor of Intellectual History). All University of Manchester.
Developing Humanitarian Medicine
From Alma Ata to Bio-Tech, a history of norms, knowledge production and care (1978-2020)
Envisioning Dante
PI Professor, Guyda Armstrong (The University of Manchester)
Faith in the Town
Hannah Barker (Professor of British History, The University of Manchester), Jeremy Gregory (Professor of the History of Christianity, University of Nottingham), Kate Gibson (The University of Manchester).
Feathers, Cognition and Global Consumerism in Colonial Amazonia
Stefan Hanß (Senior Lecturer in Early Modern History)
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Fossil Histories: South Asian Natural Heritage in Manchester Museum and beyond
Amelia Bonea, Lecturer in Global History of Science, Technology and Medicine (CHSTM, University of Manchester), is Principal Investigator. JRRI Pilot grant 2023-24.
Gods from Machines
Brian Wallace, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow
Hair, Social Order and Cultural Encounters in the Habsburg World, 1450-1750
Stefan Hanß (Senior Lecturer in Early Modern History)
Scientific Analysis of Early Modern Haircare Recipes
Stefan Hanß (Senior Lecturer in Early Modern History)
Exploring the John Rylands Library’s Hebrew Collections
Philip Alexander (Professor Emeritus of Post-Biblical Jewish Studies, The University of Manchester), Alexander Sameley (Professor of Jewish Thought, The University of Manchester), Zsofia Buda (Research Associate, The University of Manchester)
The Legacies of the British Slave Trade
Dr Edmond Smith, Senior Lecturer in Economic Cultures,Co-I for AHRC funded project
Looked After Children: Fostering and Adopting in Britain, 1700-1839
Kate Gibson (Leverhulme Early Career Research Fellow, The University of Manchester)
A relational museum and its network: mapping the connections of the LYC Museum and its art gallery
Dr Mark Liebenrood, Early Career Fellowship 2022-23.
Unlocking the Mary Hamilton Papers
Hannah Barker (Professor of British History), David Denison (Professor Emeritus of English Linguistics), Nuria Yáñez-Bouza, Sophie Coulombeau (University of York), Tino Oudesluijs, Cassandra Ulph, Christine Wallis (Research Associates, The University of Manchester)
The Oppression of the Nobility
Benjamin Pope, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow
Our Heritage, Our Stories
Linking and searching community-generated digital content to develop the people's national collection.
Persian Manuscripts at The John Rylands Library
Alan Williams (Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Religion, The University of Manchester), Jake Benson (Research Associate, The University of Manchester)
The Philippines in the Making: Spanish Transpacific Chronicles (1590-1621)
Luis Castellvi Laukamp (PI)
The Professional, Religious and Masculine Identities of Anglican Clergymen, c1660-1800
Benjamin Jackson, British Academy post-doctoral research fellowship 2024 - 2027.
Reflecting Devotion: Lustrous Materials in England, Scotland, and Ireland 1603-1700
Catherine Evans (Leverhulme Early Career Research Fellow, The University of Manchester)
Risky Business: Investing in Innovation and Britain’s Economic Development, 1600-1750
Dr Edmond Smith, Senior Lecturer in Economic Cultures, PI for ESRC funded project
![Detail of the earliest extant Apocalypse blockbook Conuersi ab ydolis p[er] predicatione[m] b[ea]ti joha[n]nis drusiana [et] ceteri](/rylands/research/projects/current/werck-image-500x298.jpg)
Werck der bücher: Transitions, Experimentation, and Collaboration in Reprographic Technologies
1440 - 1470. Stephen Mossman (The University of Manchester), Nikolaus Weichselbaumer (Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz), Vincent Christlein (University of Erlangen) and Edward Potten (University of York)