Junia Kattrup
My name is Junia Asnæs Kattrup. I’m a newly started PhD candidate, working on the project “Different Contexts of a Fictitious Bishop: The Manuscripts of Corpus Agathonicum (6th-11th century) in Light of Material Philology.” Under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Daniëlle Slootjes, Dr. Dylan Burns, and Dr. Liana Saif. Here I will study the different material contexts of the texts attributed to the (possibly) fictitious Bishop Agathonicus of Tarsus and their contribution(s) to the relationship between Christianity and “pagan” ideas and practices specifically regarding the production of parabiblical literature in Egyptian monasteries.
I have a Master’s degree in Theology from Aarhus University in Denmark where I wrote my Master’s thesis on the reception of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon in 10th century Coptic poetry. My main research interests are in Coptic studies, papyrology, codicology, and the religious and linguistic diversities of late antique and early medieval Egypt. In my spare time I enjoy playing music, going to concerts, cooking and playing video games.

Tessa Jaspers
Hello everyone! My name is Tessa Jaspers. I recently joined ASH and the UvA as a PhD researcher in ancient history, after completing both a BA and Research Master in Classics at Leiden University. My PhD research will be part of the FGW Starting Grant Project “Urban Landscapes in Late Antiquity”, led by Dr Konstantin Klein and supervised by himself, Prof. Dr Daniëlle Slootjes and Dr Martijn Icks. I will study the urban identity and collective memory and identity of (the inhabitants of) multiple cities in the Eastern Roman Empire. To do this, I will employ digital reconstructions of their landscapes and analyses of textual sources such as inscriptions. I am excited to meet everyone at ASH!

Raoul van Stipriaan Luïscius         
Hi everyone, I have recently started as an external PhD candidate in Urban History. My research examines the history of new town Almere since its conception in the 1960s, particularly the under-explored 1995-2020 period, to introduce a new interpretation for understanding and categorizing new towns. It explores what shapes Almere’s identity as a new town and identifies the key players in this process by focusing on the interplay between the city’s urban governance, social fabric and urban fabric. The project challenges the negative perception of new towns by emphasizing their unique histories and development, positioning them as a distinct category rather than ‘incomplete projects’ in comparison to older cities.

Combining this research with my work as an advisor in urban development at the Municipality of Almere provides a wonderful opportunity to enrich my ‘practical’ work, as well as the work of the policymakers of Almere in general, with theoretical and historical insights.

If you’re curious about my project, feel free to contact me! r.vanstipriaanluiscius@uva.nl 

Annelies van der Meij

My name is Annelies van der Meij and I recently started a PhD project at ASH about the complex relationship between feminism and psychiatry. I will investigate feminist theorizing and activism around psychiatry in the Netherlands in the second half of the 20th century, on the basis of archival material and oral history interviews. Specifically, I want to find out how we can explain the various and even contradictory stances that different feminists have taken vis-à-vis psychiatry, which range from radical critiques to appeals for inclusion and strategic instrumentalization. The project has emerged from the observation that feminists of the Second Wave (roughly between 1960 and 1990) radically critiqued psychiatry and the ‘medicalization’ of women’s problems, whereas today feminists seem to embrace psychiatric diagnoses to fight for recognition and care. I have a background in Philosophy and Gender Studies and have worked for several years as a book editor before starting my PhD journey. My brilliant supervisors are Prof. dr. Manon Parry and Prof. dr. Geertje Mak and I am very excited work with them in the coming years and join the ASH community.