Out of the Shadow: Biographical Details of Elisabeth Krämer-bannow

Monter, Sven (2008-08-12). Out of the Shadow: Biographical Details of Elisabeth Krämer-bannow. Graduate Conference Day. Department of History.

• Has attachment: File:2YK4RESI.pdf

Abstract: In January 1904 the German Navy surgeon and ethnologist Dr. Augustin Krämer married Elisabeth Bannow in Berlin. This union was an important event not only in regard to Krämer‟s private life, but also for his professional career. In Elisabeth, Krämer-Bannow had not only found a supporting and caring wife, but also a dedicated fieldworker and traveling companion. Elisabeth Krämer-Bannow accompanied her husband on his three subsequent expeditions to the Pacific between 1906 and 1910. On the later two, the Deutsche Marine Expedition from 1908 to 1909 and the Hamburg Südsee Expedition from 1909 to 1910, she was even employed as an official crew member. Despite these, for the time exceptional circumstances, Elisabeth Krämer-Bannow‟s person as well as her contribution to Augustin Krämer‟s work has largely been overlooked. By paying special attention to „the woman behind Augustin Krämer‟, this presentation however aims to redress this imbalance. It will provide a biography of Elisabeth, bringing her out of the shadows and into the light. It will further investigate her role in the field and her contribution to Augustin‟s ethnological work in Oceania. This presentation will demonstrate that Elisabeth‟s existence in the shadows was indeed a reflection of her surrounding social environment and her time.