Historical Authenticity: A Transdisciplinary Compendium

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Prof. Dr. Martin Sabrow (Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam, Germany) Dr Achim Saupe (Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam, Germany)

Historical Authenticity

A Transdisciplinary Compendium

Prof. Dr. Martin Sabrow (Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam, Germany), Dr Achim Saupe (Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam, Germany)

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English

Bloomsbury Academic
11 December 2025

Reference works; Museums & museology; History: theory & methods; Historiography

Authenticity has become a key concept in the culture of history and memory in the 21st century. This open access book explores the multifaceted nature of ‘historical authenticity’ and its uses in various academic, museum, and historical-cultural contexts. In 70 alphabetically-arranged articles, Historical Authenticity explains how authenticity can enable individuals and societies to locate themselves within time and space and the associated challenges. The book shows how today’s attitudes to the past are characterised by an intense striving for historical authenticity – a phenomenon which began to assume new potency in the last third of the 20th century. It considers how this manifests itself in practical terms, for example, in the value attached to ‘authentic voices’ from the past, ‘authentic objects’ in museums, collections and archives, or to ‘authentic places’ – be they historic buildings, urban architectural ensembles or memorial sites. The volume also reflects on how this desire for the ‘real’, the ‘genuine’ and the ‘original’ has changed over the centuries , and why it is nowadays so frequently linked with a longing to experience history ‘first-hand’, as evidenced in the degree of public attention accorded to surviving witnesses of historic events or the popularity of historical re-enactments. ‘Historical Authenticity’ convincingly makes the case that the analysis of academic, cultural, institutional and political authentification processes is central to a critical understanding of how the past is perceived in the present.

The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by the Leibniz Research Alliance Value of the Past

Edited by: Prof. Dr. Martin Sabrow (Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam Germany), Dr Achim Saupe (Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam, Germany)
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 236mm, Width: 162mm, Spine: 48mm
Weight: 889g
ISBN: 9781350474819
ISBN 10: 1350474819
Pages: 672
Publication Date: 11 December 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Martin Sabrow is Senior Fellow and Former Director of the Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam, Germany. He is the author of numerous books, amongst them biographies on Walter Rathenau and Erich Honecker. Achim Saupe is Research Fellow at the Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam, Germany. He is the co-editor of The Politics of Authenticity and Populist Discourses (2021).

Reviews for Historical Authenticity: A Transdisciplinary Compendium

This fascinating volume offers conceptual, historical, theoretical, and empirical approaches to authenticity from diverse disciplines. Its exposure of English-language readers to German perspectives is especially important. Organized alphabetically around timely issues – from architecture and archives to tradition and virtual reality – this work will be indispensable in the fields of historic preservation, tourism, museums, memory studies, and cultural heritage. * Helaine Silverman, Research Professor Emerita, University of Illinois, USA * 'Historical Authenticity' is an important book. it clarifies and historicises this increasingly contested notion of authenticity through interdisciplinary perspectives and multiple angles, thereby complexifying the debates. It will be useful for both students and researchers in humanities and social sciences. * Sophia Labadi, Professor of Heritage, University of Kent, UK & University of Bonn, Germany *