Séminaire commun axes 2 et 4 : “Revisiting archaeological photography”

La prochaine séance commune des séminaires de l’axe 2 “Savoirs” et de l’axe 4 “Imaginaires”, intitulée “Revisiting archeological photography”, aura lieu le lundi 23 mars de 16h30 à 18h30 en salle 829 du bâtiment OdG.

Lors de cette séance nous entendrons deux présentations :

Brittany Ellis (Ph.D. Candidate, Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture, MIT Department of Architecture): “Proving Ground: The Development of Photography and Archaeology in the Middle East, 1839-1880”

Ahmet A. Ersoy (Associate Professor at the History Department at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul): “History in the Circulating Image: Antiquities and the Late Ottoman Reading Public”

 

Vous trouvererez ci-dessous les résumés de ces deux interventions :

 

Proving Ground: The Development of Photography and Archaeology in the Middle East, 1839-1880

Brittany Ellis (Ph.D. Candidate, Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture, MIT Department of Architecture)

This presentation introduces Brittany Ellis’ doctoral research on the intertwined histories of French photographic and archaeological work in the “Orient,” specifically the Ottoman-controlled lands of Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine, during the mid-nineteenth century. Taking the case study of an 1864 photographic expedition to the Dead Sea, the talk will show how novel photographic techniques were pursued as a means of securing the contested terrain and historical narratives of the region against threats of material loss and illegibility.

 

History in the Circulating Image: Antiquities and the Late Ottoman Reading Public

Ahmet A. Ersoy (Associate Professor at the History Department at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul)

This study traces out definitions and popular perceptions of antiquities in the late Ottoman realm by focusing on local print media. I concentrate particularly on illustrated journals published in Ottoman Turkish and Armenian from the 1880s into the early twentieth century. The journals provided extensive coverage on archaeological activity around the world, with specific emphasis on ancient remains located within the imperial domain. Such an open arena of debate and knowledge production contrasts with the vision of Ottoman heritage management as an official and diplomatic affair, with no contribution from the local publics. What I observe in the journals is the rise of an open-ended archival endeavor, collectively assembled by writers, journalists and a non-professional but highly engaged reading public.