Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Friday, April 26, 2013

A Trilingual Open Meeting and Kalo Pascha!


The annual Open Meeting of the Institute will take place on Tuesday, May 21st at 7:00 PM in the Italian Archaeological School at Odos Parthenonos 14 in Makriyianni. I will report on the activities of the Institute in 2012/13 and the fieldwork carried out in 2012 under CIG’s auspices. The excavations at Eleon in eastern Boiotia and at Kastro Kallithea in southern Thessaly are the focus of my presentation.

This year the Invited Lecture will be given by two individuals, not one! Prof Jacques Y. Perreault (Université de Montréal) will speak on the results of the Greek/Canadian excavations in the lower city at ancient Argilos in Macedonia. His research colleague and the Director of the excavation, Dr. Zisis Bonias (Director Emeritus, Ministry of Culture) will focus on the work on the Akropolis. The title of the joint lecture in French and in Greek is, “Argilos, colonie d’Andros (VIIème-IIIème siècles av. n.è): Grecs, Thraces et Macédoniens sur le littoral nord-égéen”.

We look forward to you joining us in person or via live streaming on the 21st!

Pascha Recess
The Institute will be closed for its two-week Easter recess from this afternoon, April 26th, until Monday morning, May 13th. Jonathan is heading to Sicily, Gino is traveling to Ioanina and my family is going to Crete. So that you will have something to read on the two Fridays that we are closed we’ll have as guest bloggers, Alisha Adams and Angus Smith.

Kalo Pascha se olous!
David Rupp
Director

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Friday, April 19, 2013

CIG on YouTube and “The Wild Country East of Dikte”


Another barrier to your access to CIG lectures has been breached!!! Our talented and ever-tinkering ICT volunteer Chris Stewart has brought CIG lectures to YouTube. We now have our own YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFJEoGzs3NPPdo-2qa1vNKA .

While at the moment there is only Catherine Parnell’s lecture from last year, “Barbarian Cleavers or Greek Swords? Portrayals and Perceptions of Curved Swords in Ancient Greece", we look forward to a larger selection in the coming year. Don’t forget that you can watch the lectures via live-streaming from our website while they are being given, and this will include the Open Meeting on May 21st.

A Book Launch Tonight on Minoan Archaeology
This evening, the 19th, at 7:00 PM in the Danish Institute at Athens (Chairefontos 14 in Plaka) there will be the launch of the volume edited by Metaxia Tsipopoulou entitled, Petras. Siteia. 25 years of excavations and studies (Monographs of the Danish Institute at Athens vol. 16, Athens, 2012). The speakers at this presentation will be Dr. Rune Frederiksen (Director, Danish Institute at Athens), Dr. Tsipopoulou (Director emerita, National Archive of Monuments, Hellenic Ministry of Culture; Director of the Petras excavations) and Prof. Jan Driessen (University of Louvain, Belgium; Director, Belgian School at Athens). Prof. Driessen, a noted specialist on a variety of Minoan topics and the excavator of Sissi on Crete, will give the main lecture entitled, “The wild country east of Dikte: Contextualizing Minoan Petras”.

To prepare for the presentations you can check out the Petras website at: http://www.petras-excavations.gr. A disclosure is warranted here. Not only have I excavated at Petras, I am also a contributor to the volume among other things. The attendees will be treated to the delicious products of the Siteia region at the reception afterwards.

Cordially,
David Rupp
Director

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

The Fred Winter Collection

Xanthos Letoon, decorated outer end of vaulted passage under cavea of theatre. (Professor Fred Winter 1978)

Friday, April 12, 2013

Crete as seen through the lens of Venetian period maps


The Venetian hegemony over Crete from the 14th through 17th centuries left a lasting imprint on many areas and aspects of the island. It was also spawned many maps. The humanistic foundations of the Renaissance and of the Enlightenment influenced what was depicted on these maps. Thus, they represent an important source of information on the economic and the ideological history of the last two centuries of Venetian rule.

On Monday, April 15th, at 6:30 PM Dr. Kostis S. Christakis (University of Crete) will deliver a lecture for the Syllogos Filon tou Istorikou Archeiou tis Archaiologikis Ipiresias in Greek on the cartographic representations and the historical narratives of Crete in the 16th and 17th centuries. Dr. Christakis’ abiding interest in this topic originates in his extensive personal collection of these maps.

The lecture will be held at the Historical Archive building of Hellenic Archaeological Service at Psaromylingou 22 on the border between the Kerameikos and Psyrri. The Theseion train station is nearby. The public is most welcome to attend!

Cordially,
David Rupp
Director

Friday, April 5, 2013

Ex Oriente Lux in Early Iron Age Greece and Save the Date


The last lecture of the Institute’s Winter/Spring Lecture Program will take place this coming Wednesday, the 10th, at 7:30 PM. The lecture will be given by a former Homer and Dorothy Thompson Fellow of the Institute (2001/2), Dr. Alison Barclay. She is now a professor of Classics at Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The title of her lecture is, “Centre and Periphery: Intercultural Relations in the Eastern Mediterranean, ca. 900-600 BCE”.

“The period from ca. 900-600 BCE is an important one in the development of ancient Greek culture and scholars rely heavily on archaeological remains to reconstruct and interpret the processes of change in this period. Thus, the artistic motifs and the artifacts they decorate are essential vehicles for examining the transmission and, in particular, the reception, of new elements that appear in the artistic repertoire of early Greece at this time – many as a result of expanding intercultural contacts with the Near East and Egypt. These artifacts are also important for tracing the internal diffusion of foreign ideas and their Greek adaptations within the Greek world. One model for interpreting the effect of these interactions is the concept of centre and periphery. While this model is a good starting point for an analysis of artistic and social historical changes during the period, it is just a starting point. To even begin to understand the processes of reception – not only what, but how and why these new elements were used – one has to move beyond this model to a more context-based approach. Established indigenous traditions, social, political and economic trends, ideological structures, economics, and communicability all affect how, why or whether new elements will be incorporated into the receiving culture. It is the analysis of these factors together with the reception of the artistic motifs that give us the greatest insights into the choices, and to some degree the motivations, made by merchant, politician, poet and artist.”

Save the Date!
It is that time of year again and our Annual Open Meeting date is now set! It will be Tuesday, May 21st at 7:00 pm at the Italian School in Makriyianni. Shortly I will provide more details on the Invited Lecturer and the topic.

Cordially,
David Rupp
Director