Friday, March 22, 2019

Representations of Mothers and Infants in Funerary Commemoration

The Institute’s fifth lecture of 2019 will take place on Wednesday 27 March, starting at 7.30 pm in the in the library of the Institute (Dionysiou Aiginitou 7, ground floor, Ilisia. Metro: Megaro Moussikis). Barbara N. Scarfo (Homer and Dorothy Thompson Fellow, The Canadian Institute in Greece; Ph.D. candidate, Department of Classics, McMaster University) will give a lecture entitled, Representations of Mothers and Infants in Funerary Commemoration: A Cross-Cultural Study”.

“This paper will explore the depictions of mothers and infants on Classical Attic funerary monuments. By pairing mothers and infants, the monuments’ iconography helped to convey that the woman depicted had either achieved, or attempted to achieve, the goal that was set out for her by the Athenian polis and her oikos: she had become a mother to a legitimately recognized heir, an Athenian citizen. In certain cases, however, the absence of an inscription makes it more difficult to interpret the iconography. This paper will attempt to fill in the gaps that such ambiguities present and will discuss the social and cultural circumstances that surrounded motherhood in Classical Athens and the expectations that were placed on women within their own oikoi and by the state, chiefly marrying and reproducing at a relatively young age. The paper will also analyze these monuments alongside ones from the Roman period that feature mothers and infants, a comparison to the Attic material that can help further our understanding of these monuments.”

You are all most welcome to join us next Wednesday evening for what promises to be a most interesting presentation.

Jonathan Tomlinson
Assistant Director

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

The Fred Winter Collection

Olympia: remains of Gymnasium seen from N (Professor Fred Winter, 1983)

Tuesday, March 5, 2019

The Fred Winter Collection

Olympia: Palaistra: interior of W portico seen from S (Professor Fred Winter, 1983)

Friday, March 1, 2019

Ancient Argilos: Shops, workshops and houses of the merchants' quarter

The Institute’s fourth lecture of 2019 will take place on Wednesday 6 March, starting at 7.30 pm in the library of the Institute (Dionysiou Aiginitou 7, ground floor, Ilisia. Metro: Megaro Mousikis). Drs Zisis Bonias (Director Emeritus, Hellenic Ministry of Culture) & Jacques Y. Perreault (Professeur titulaire d'archéologie grecque, Université de Montréal) will give a talk entitled, Ancient Argilos: Shops, workshops and houses of the merchants’ quarter.

“Since 2012, the Greek-Canadian synergasia at Ancient Argilos has been excavating a group of large buildings situated in the coastal area of the city. A few of these date to the mid 6th century B.C. and all remain occupied until the conquest of Philip II in 357 B.C. They attest to the economic dynamism of the Northern Greek colonies during the Archaic and Classical periods and give us valuable information on the urbanistic development of these cities.”

You are all most welcome to join us next Wednesday evening to learn more about the Institute’s fieldwork in northern Greece.

Jonathan Tomlinson
Assistant Director