Anke te Heesen

Professor Anke te Heesen is Chair of the History of Science with a focus on the history of education and the organization of knowledge in the 19th and 20th centuries at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. She has held this position since 2011 and is also the spokesperson (since 2024) of the DFG Center for Advanced Studies 'Applied Humanities – Politics and Genealogy,' alongside Professor Viktoria Tkaczyk. Previously, she served as Professor for Empirical Cultural Studies at the University of Tübingen (2008-2011) and founding director of the Museum of the University of Tübingen (2006-2008). Her academic career includes research positions at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin (1999-2006), the German Hygiene Museum Dresden (1998-1999), and the Research Center for the European Enlightenment (1996-1997).

Professor te Heesen's research spans multiple interconnected fields including the history of humanities, natural history in the early modern period, museum and exhibition history, organization and notation methods of sciences, and the relationship between science and art. She has a particular interest in how knowledge is formed, organized, and presented through various material and institutional practices. Her work often examines the intersection of academic knowledge production with material culture, focusing on objects, collections, and exhibition practices as sites of knowledge formation.

Her recent publications reveal a strong focus on the history of interviews as research methodology, the development of exhibition catalogs as scholarly monographs, and the material history of knowledge practices. The analysis of her 15 most recent articles shows consistent engagement with themes of materiality, the organization of knowledge, and the historical development of scholarly practices, particularly in the humanities. Her work frequently bridges historical analysis with contemporary scholarly concerns about knowledge production and dissemination.

• Spokesperson of the DFG Centre for Advanced Studies 'Applied Humanities: Genealogy and Politics' (since 2024)
• Senior Fellow, Collegium Helveticum, Zurich (WS 2023/24)
• Visiting Scholar, Max Planck Institute for History of Science (since 2021)
• Dibner Research Fellowship, Huntington Library (2020)
• Senior Research Fellowship, Lichtenberg Kolleg (2020)

Professor te Heesen has held significant leadership roles including Ombudsperson of Humboldt University of Berlin (since April 2024) and Head of the Commission for Studies and Teaching at the Institute of History (since April 2024). She serves on multiple advisory boards including the Scientific Advisory Board of the project 'Serious Donations' at the Museum of Natural History in Berlin (since 2020), the DFG Review Board for History (2020-2024), and the Robert K. Merton Center for Science Studies at Humboldt University (since 2019). She is also a member of the editorial boards of several scholarly journals including Reports on the History of Science and History of Science and Humanities.

Her work extends to museum practice and curation, with significant contributions to understanding how universities can leverage their collections to create meaningful educational experiences that connect historical context with contemporary research. She has initiated important publication series including 'Sonderdruck' (since 2016) and 'Minima Literatur- und Wissensgeschichte kleiner Formen' (since 2020).