Pieta van Beek follows in the footsteps of Anna Maria van Schurman, the first female student

Utregs Wijnhuis is a charming establishment situated in a characteristic building located directly behind the Dom Tower. In June, Pieta van Beek chose this place to launch her book, Het wereldwonder van Utrechts Academie, Naam en faam van Anna Maria van Schurman (1636-2025) (The Wonder of Utrecht Academia, Name and Fame of Anna Maria van Schurman (1636-2025), Ed.). Though the reception area was cramped and everyone was in between wine racks, the place couldn't be more special, as Anna Maria van Schurman lived in this house. 

Pieta van Beek laumching her book at Utregs Wijnhuis. Photo by Sjoer Bergervoet

Van Schurman's story is remarkable. Her neighbour, the professor of Theology Voetius, was so charmed by her poetry that he asked her to write a poem for the opening of Utrecht University in 1636, based on his sermon on the usefulness of universities. She was 29 years old at the time. Van Schurman was also allowed to attend lectures during the university's first year, though she had to sit in a gallery so that male students could not see her. Van Schurman gained international fame thanks to her poems and essays. She was fluent in fourteen languages, and her 1648 book, Opuscula Hebraea Graeca Latina et Gallica prosaica & metrica, a collection of short fragments of prose and poetry in Hebrew, Latin, Greek, and French, was distributed worldwide.

My love has been crucified
Van Schurman came from a strict Christian family that moved from Cologne to Utrecht due to religious persecution. When her father taught her brothers Latin, she had already mastered the language on her own. She managed to convince her father to allow her to study religious works and cultivate herself. At that time, it was not at all customary for women to study or attend university. When her father died at the age of 59, he asked her on his deathbed never to marry so that she could devote her life to religion, art and science, under the motto 'my love is crucified'.

The story of Pieta van Beek (1958) has parallels with that of Van Schurman. She also grew up in a very religious Christian family in Kralingen, Rotterdam. Her many brothers were allowed to study, but her father had other plans in mind for her. He saw her more as a maid in the house. "In 1978, I saw the book Het Grote Geheim van Anna Maria van Schurman (The Great Secret of Anna Maria van Schurman, Ed.) by Dieuwke Winsemius, in a bookshop. I asked my brother Kees if I could have it. He said no, noting that it was too expensive. He even considered it too expensive as a birthday gift, so I asked: "What about 2, 3, 4 or 5 birthdays?" He agreed to buy it. I then showed the book to my parents. After all, this woman was allowed to study, and her religious background was more or less the same. My parents were fascinated by everything about the 17th-century theologian Voetius. By the grace of God, they let me study Dutch in Utrecht. So, I owe that to Anna Maria van Schurman.'

‘I discovered freedom of thought in Utrecht, which explains why I have always kept an eye on the position of women and girls in education and developed a sensitivity to the fate of women in general.’

Homesick for Utrecht
The first woman to attend Utrecht University continued to inspire her. Her thesis was about Van Schurman's poem O Utreght Lieve Stadt. ‘I analysed this 144-line poem, which she wrote in 1654 while staying in Cologne and longing for Utrecht. Incidentally, the first lines of the poem can be read on a building on Magdalenastraat. Once I graduated, I treated myself to a third edition of the Opuscula.’

Doctorate in South Africa
After completing her studies, Van Beek moved to South Africa with her husband and worked at the universities of Cape Town and Stellenbosch. ‘It was a temporary position,’ she says. 'I did assistant work and was allowed to teach occasionally. I was also asked to publish articles in renowned journals, although I received only 5 per cent of a man's salary. However, this allowed me to use the university's facilities. In retrospect, the university earned money from the articles and books I published, which is why it was so attractive to them that I studied there and was given a position that would be covered by my publications.'

‘With the Opulscula in my pocket, I immersed myself in the classical languages. So much was said about these works by Van Schurman, but few took the trouble to examine them from the original classical languages.’ This led her to pursue a PhD in 1997. Her first supervisor was from the University of Stellenbosch, and the second from Utrecht University. Her research project was a collaboration between the two universities.

The musical Annemarije
Van Beek organised a reunion for UU alumni in South Africa, which unexpectedly led to another assignment. 'The university's anniversary celebrations in 1986 included a performance of the musical Annemarije, which linked the life of Anna Maria van Schurman to the life of UU students at the time. The play was written by Nelly Gispen-Jouwersma, the daughter of rector Willem Hendrik Gispen, who was very excited about my research on Van Schurman when I told him about it at that alumni meeting. He arranged for me to write a book about Van Schurman on behalf of UU. It was published in 2004 under the title De eerste studente, Anna Maria van Schurman (1636) (The first female student, Anna Maria van Schurman (1636), Ed.). It is actually the only thing for which I have ever received money from Utrecht University. And I was very happy about that.'

In this sense, Pieta van Beek is following in Van Schurman's footsteps. Although she remained connected to Utrecht University and Stellenbosch, she never had a regular paid job in either university, not even when she returned from South Africa. She does a lot of research into the life of Anna Maria Schurman and often visits the places the famous writer once visited. She gives lectures, participates in meetings of research groups at Utrecht University and publishes numerous articles about Van Schurman, the poet Gerrit Achterberg and Ida Gerhardt, a poet with whom she corresponds. In 2019, she also published a collection alongside Annemarie van Niekerk, titled My mother's mother's mother, with stories of South African women from 1652 to the present day.

Scroll
Utrecht University, VU University Amsterdam and Stellenbosch University all allow her to present herself as a researcher, even though she is participating from the sidelines. She has been given a guest appointment, which means her work is unpaid. In addition to her work as a researcher, Van Beek teaches classical languages, Dutch, Afrikaans and art at several secondary schools, which brings us to her most recent book. 

'This project started in 2016. UU was celebrating its anniversary, so I asked Rector Bert van der Zwaan if UU would be interested in creating a scroll about the name and fame of Anna Maria van Schurman through the years. Her influence has been immense, which is also reflected at Utrecht University. From 1636 to 2016, I identified 76 occasions where people paid attention to Anna Maria Schurman, including books, conferences, a memorial stone, or as a character in a novel. These moments were then printed on a roll with an image and a short text. The roll has since been digitised. My idea was to add some more information to accompany the images, and transform it into a book, but things went completely wrong. I had a serious cycling accident that left me unable to work for a long time. After a few years, I slowly picked up where I left off, and the book continued to grow. It has now been published and features 340 pages, with additional chapters that expand the information up to 2025. The university reimbursed me for the expenses incurred for the scroll, but didn't seem interested in the book. At least, they did not want to invest any money in it. I decided to keep going out of a sense of loyalty. 

Van Beek shows the scroll alongside former UU Rector Bert van der Zwaan. Photo: DUB

Anti-acknowledgements
The book was self-published in June. It was self-published and based on the guidance of experts, particularly historians. 'It was a huge investment for me. I really regret that Utrecht University decided not to get involved.'

Notably, the book included 'anti-acknowledgements', a section where Van Beek reveals that she discovered her manuscript had already been copied before publication. 'I was stunned. I don't understand how this could have happened. I didn't have a deadline, and I sent parts of the book to interested parties. I guess one of them must have passed it on. But how, to whom, and why? When I asked Utrecht University for help, I was told that lecturers are responsible for plagiarism checks. At the end of August, I was asked to peer review an article about Anna Maria van Schurman. I saw fragments of my text in it. But peer reviews are anonymous.'

In the book, Van Beek sticks to the 76 points on the list, but additional chapters provide information all the way to 2025. Among other things, she mentions the plan to name the new education building in the city centre after Anna Maria van Schurman. ‘A wonderful idea. That way, the first woman to study in Utrecht can remain in the memory of the current generation of students. I have been asked to come up with some ideas to make that visible in the building as well. I have made a quotation for that because, financially, UU has left me out in the cold for years. Unfortunately, I have not yet received a response to that quotation.’
 

Pieta van Beek, The World Wonder of Utrecht Academy, Name and Fame of Anna Maria van Schurman (1636-2025). Provily Press. 80 euros. You can order the book by sending an email to p.vanbeek@uu.nl

Unpaid research agreements at Utrecht University
Pieta van Beek has been employed as an unpaid researcher at three universities. How is this possible? Upon enquiry, it appears that Utrecht University works with two types of unpaid appointments: hospitality agreements and ICT user agreements. Hospitality contracts contain a clear list of agreements about the purpose, the work and what is and is not permitted. ICT user agreements only provide a Solis ID.