Details of Dr Charlotte Trumpler's Munro lecture. Event details Lecture title: Archaeology and Politics - From Kaiser Wilhelm to Gertrude Bell Date: 25 February 2010, 5.15pm Venue: Archaeology Lecture Theatre, Old High School, Infirmary Street, Edinburgh Lecture abstract The spectacular excavations which brought to light the bust of Nefertiti and the Pergamon Altar and the passionately conducted discussions about the demands for their return, call for an elucidation of the background circumstances of their discovery and legal status. The lecture “Archaeology and Politics - From Kaiser Wilhem to Gertrude Bell” examines the question why individuals such as Sven Hedin, Lawrence of Arabia, Gertrude Bell and Carl Humann were prompted to subject themselves to exhausting - and to some extent life-threatening - expeditions in order to study ancient cultures and excavate their treasures. Contrary to what is generally assumed, archaeology and politics, towards the end of the 19th and at the beginning of the 20th century, were intimately linked. Rivalry, religion, the Military and nationalism determined the choice of sites for excavation just as much as acquisition. This article was published on 2024-08-28
