SCARCE

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SCARCE: A Project on Early Modern Resources

Image of the 16th century about "Tubal-Cain in his forge"

Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, RP-P-2005-214-9-2, Public Domain.

About SCARCE

SCARCE (Sustained Concerns: Administration of Mineral Resource Extraction in Central Europe, 1550-1850) is a project led by Sebastian Felten and supported by the European Research Council (ERC). It aims to better understand how early modern people conceptualised resources, and how modern approaches to the material world are rooted or not in earlier practices of resource management. Hosted by the History Department — part of the Faculty of Historical and Cultural Studies at the University of Vienna — the project runs from 1 November 2023 until 31 October 2028.

Learn more about SCARCE

Cover illustration for the 1773 work "A Guide to the Art of Mining" (original: Anleitung zu der Bergbaukunst) — Cover illustration for the 1773 work "Anleitung zu der Bergbaukunst" [A Guide to the Art of Mining]

What's new?

SCARCE Colloquium winter semester series

06.10.2026 SCARCE Colloquium

Illustration from the "Schwazer Bergbuch" (1556)

We are happy to announce that our project is about to embark on its fourth Colloquium series. Mark the dates and join us — our hybrid meetings are…

New Associate Researcher!

17.09.2026

From October to November, Dejan Lukić will join us as SCARCE's first Associate Research Fellow!

Three Reflections on the Joint HSS and ESHS Meeting 2026

08.08.2026 Blog post

Group picture of the Minescapes Symposium

Claire, Sebastian, and Sarah share impressions from the joint HSS and ESHS conference in Edinburgh, 2026.

07.08.2026

Short Reflection

What's next?

Reading Nickel into Iron: Ruptures in a Resource History of East Sulawesi

16.12.2026 SCARCE Colloquium

Rough specimen of green-blue garnierite nickel ore from Sulawesi, with brown rocky inclusions, displayed on a white surface.

SCARCE Colloquium

Speaker: Jiahui Zeng (ÖAW)

University of Vienna

Hybrid Event

Literatures of Extraction

11.11.2026 SCARCE Colloquium

Sepia-toned 1855 illustration of miners timbering an underground mine chamber: men with lamps and tools stand beneath a rocky ceiling, a ladder rises along the left wall, and another worker bends over rocks and timber in the foreground.

SCARCE Colloquium

Speakers: Miguel Llanos de la Guardia (IfK) and Philipp Sperner (University of Vienna)

University of Vienna

Hybrid Event

Dr. Copper

21.10.2026

Film Screening

Joint event with GAM - Geschichte am Mittwoch lectures [History on Wednesday]

University of Vienna

Don't forget to check out our blog

Get deeper insights into the workings of our research project!

The Assay

Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, RP-P-2005-214-9-2, Public Domain.

Let's stay in touch!

Funded by the European Union (ERC, SCARCE, Grant number 101076422). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

More information about the ERC grant