Vendula Hoppe

I am a postgraduate researcher interested in early modern material cultures, textile studies, socio-economic and cultural history. Currently, I am undertaking a PhD in History with a project titled "Velvets in Renaissance Europe: Making Consumerist Cultures, ca 1400-1700", which is supervised by Prof Sasha Handley and Prof Stefan Hanß. In this ESRC funded project I explore the material, societal, and economic significance of velvets in Renaissance Venice and Prague.

I began my studies here in Manchester, completing an undergraduate degree in History with French with First Class Honours in 2019. I then moved to the University of Warwick for my Master's degree at the Centre for the Study of Renaissance. As part of my studies at Warwick, I spent a whole term in Venice, exploring many aspects of Venetian history. Captivated by the city I decided to return to Venice in the summer to focus on my thesis research, which was partially funded by the Dr Greg Wells Award. My thesis, supervised by Dr Luca Molà, titled "The World in a Shop: Foreigners Shopping in Venice, ca.1400-1620" received the Sir John Hale Prize for Best MA Dissertation and I graduated from Warwick in 2020 with a distinction. I returned to Manchester in 2020 to begin my PhD in the History Department. 

During my PhD, I've spent extended periods of time researching in Italian and Czech archives. I've also completed a six month visiting studentship at the European University Institute (Florence), for which I've secured additional funding.

I've presented my research at the annual conference of the Renaissance Society of America in San Juan in spring 2023, at the Workshop for the Early Modern Period at the University of Cambridge in winter 2023, and at the annual Venetian Seminar in summer 2024. 

I've completed a number of training courses mainly focusing on acquiring skills in Renaissance Italian, palaeography, recognition, analysis, restoration, and conservation of textiles.  

This semester I am a Teaching Assistant on a first-year History department module "Forging A New World - Europe c. 1450-1750". I am responsible for designing and delivering weekly seminars as well as marking assignments and providing group and individual feedback to a class of undergraduate students.