4EU+ European University Alliance Symposium: Transcultural Perspectives on Gift Exchange

Transcultural perspectives on the exchange of gifts will be shared at an international conference taking place at Heidelberg University on 16 and 17 July 2025. The university’s Department of History is hosting it with support from the 4EU+ European University Alliance. Entitled “Innovating (trans)cultural studies through gift exchange” and open to all members of the university, the conference is being organized by Prague historian Prof. Dr Veronika Čapská. She is doing research at Ruperto Carola’s Department of History during the summer of 2025, as part of a three-month 4EU+ Visiting Professorship hosted by Prof. Dr Thomas Maissen and Prof. Dr Guido Sprenger.

Starting from the idea that the reciprocal exchange of presents creates social bonds and contributes to maintaining them – expressed in the early 20th century by French anthropologist and sociologist Marcel Mauss (1872 to 1950) – the conference will explore how this approach has enriched current research in the humanities and social sciences and how it can continue to do so. Academics from South and North America, Asia and Europe will speak on different dimensions of exchanging gifts from the angles of anthropology, history and transcultural studies. They will cover, for example, the significance of gifts for political alliances and settling armed conflicts, or endowments inspired by philanthropical engagement and practical support for museums. The conference will also deal with intangible and ritual gifts, such as passing on artisanal secrets or exchanging relics. The thematic contributions will be preceded by theoretical-methodological reflections on Marcel Mauss and his long-term impact on the research field.

Conference organizer Veronika Čapská is an Associate Professor of Historical Anthropology at the Faculty of Humanities of Charles University in Prague. In the context of her 4EU+ Visiting Professorship at Heidelberg University she is investigating the exchange of gifts in Central Europe during the early modern period. With the Visiting Professorships initiative, the 4EU+ European University Alliance aims to support cross-university activities in research and teaching, and thereby strengthen cooperation within the consortium. Its members are the universities of Prague, Heidelberg, Paris-Panthéon-Assas, Sorbonne/Paris, Copenhagen, Geneva, Milan and Warsaw. 

The English-language conference “Innovating (trans)cultural studies through gift exchange” is open to the university public, including interested students. It is taking place on 16 and 17 July 2025 in the Senate Hall (Senatssaal) of the Old University, Grabengasse 1, starting at 9.30am on both days. Please register with veronika.capska@fhs.cuni.cz.