EIGHTH COLOGNE WHALING MEETING Cologne, Germany Friday, 13 – Sunday, 15 November, 2009 The triennial Cologne Whaling Meetings are one of only two regular international conferences on the cultural history of human-cetacean relations, worldwide, from prehistoric times to the present day. Presentations traditionally cover topics from mythology, literature, art, archaeology, music, law, technology of whale products and whaling methods, the history and maintenance of whaling collections and monuments, historical strandings, early cetology, whaling history, personal recollections of whaling veterans, to current whaling policy. In the past, they have attracted between 60 and 80 participants from up to 13 countries. The program customarily starts on Friday evening with the traditional „greasy gossip“, a casual warm-up reunion in a Cologne pub, where you can meet old friends and make new ones from all over the whaling world. Saturday will feature an all-day conference programme of eight presentations, with coffee and lunch breaks in between. There will be a Saturday night dinner (at participants’ own expense), followed by a concert of whaling-related music. Sunday morning will be devoted to four more presentations. The conference will close between noon and 1:30 PM. As usual, participants can expect to see a specially arranged exhibition. Current plans aim at compiling a pioneering, ambitious exhibition on „Tales of humans and whales as told by the Dieter Kuesgen collection of whaling postcards“. This year, speakers from seven European and overseas countries have volunteered to give the following presentations: 1. Matthias Bode, Marburg, Germany: “Mediterranean cetacean lore and whale use in Antiquity” 2. Susan A. Lebo, PhD, Honolulu, Hawaii: “Photographic evidence of whale bone architecture among Iñupiat communities of Arctic Alaska, 1880 – 1960” 3. Dr. Uwe Schnall, German Maritime Museum (retired): “Witches, sorcerers, and whales. The marine monsters of old Norse literature” 4. Prof. Bernhard Stonehouse, Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge: “Triumph and disaster: British whalers in Baffin Bay, 1817-1840” 5. Dinah Molloy Thompson, Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge: “Whalers forecasting our climate" 6. Dale Chatwin, Brisbane, Australia: “’A Trade so Uncontrollably Uncertain’. English whaling in the South Pacific, 1815-1860” 7. Thierry du Pasquier, Paris, France: “The last French involvements in whaling, 1860s – 1960s” 8. Seiji Ohsumi, PhD, Taiji Whale Museum, Taiji, Japan: “History and present status of dolphin fisheries in Japan” 9. Ole Sparenberg, University of Göttingen: “New research on German whaling in the 1930s” 10. Dale Vinnedge, Director, and past president of the Friends of the National Maritime Museum Library, San Francisco, California: “The Onassis connection to northern California whaling” 11. Dr. Rip Bulkeley, Exeter College, Oxford: “Cold War whaling: the origin and early deployment of the SLAVA flotilla” 12. Dr. Joost Schokkenbroek, Dutch Maritime Museum, Amsterdam: “Moving a whaling collection. The transfer of the Zuiderzeemuseum’s whaling artefacts and books to the Dutch Maritime Museum” Dinner talk: Nick Redman, Whales’ Bones Worldwide, London: “The whales’ bones of Germany” After-dinner concert: Sigrid Alvestad, Bergen, Norway: Tunes on the Hardanger fiddle. The CONFERENCE FEE will be 100 Euros per person, regardless of the duration of your participation, student status, personal, professional or institutional affiliation. The fee i.a. covers snacks and beverages during conference breaks, and conference lunch on Saturday, as well as your conference package with name badge, handouts, and a souvenir. Not included in this fee is the optional buffet-style dinner on Saturday night. PLEASE NOTE THAT PARTICIPATION IS BY PERSONAL INVITATION ONLY! If you are not already known to the convener, Klaus Barthelmess, you have to apply for an invitiation, outlining your interest in the history in human-cetacean relations, naming institutional affiliations & websites, giving references, etc., in an email without attachments. The convener reserves the right to refuse participation. Upon invitation, participants hitherto unknown may be expected to remit the non-refundable conference fee by bank transfer or Paypal (no checks, no credit cards). Upon receipt of payment, you will be sent directions, list of conference hotels, etc. Thank you for your understanding! Cheers Klaus Barthelmess Cologne, Germany barthval at t-online.de