The Cambridge Architectural History Seminars

Our final lecture of the academic year will take place onMonday 11th May in our usual spot (Old Hall, Queens’ College)at 6pmwith Professor Roland Mayer presenting 'Ruins of Rome'.
The ruins of Rome have rightly been characterised as ‘prototypical’. Their preservation and conservation are aspects of that prototypical character, because they were the first ruins anywhere to be accorded official protection, and subsequent conservation. Conservation of the ruins presented a challenge, since there was no model to be followed. In the event, the early conservators, such as Raffaele Stern and Luigi Valadier had to devise novel methods of conservation, including some rebuilding. These methods were then adopted, perhaps unconsciously, by later conservation teams, such as the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB). This lecture will illustrate the course of ruin preservation and conservation in Rome.

Roland Mayer is an emeritus professor of Classics in King’s College London. His research activity has generally taken the form of commentaries on classical Latin authors (Horace, Seneca, Lucan, and Tacitus). He also has an interest in reception studies, particularly of Seneca and Tacitus. His enthusiasm for the ruins of ancient Rome was fired in him as a boy, and developed along with his academic career. He is delighted to have survived long enough to investigate their ‘reception’ in greater detail.

Online Registration:https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/6b9e8fe2-c837-4a28-9504-2095aaa7c690@49a50445-bdfa-4b79-ade3-547b4f3986e9

Time of all lectures: From 6pm In person with drinks & online

Location: Old Hall, Queens' College and via Zoom.

For more inofrmation visit: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/cambridge-architectural-history-seminars-115056922861

Cambridge Architectural History Seminars, founded in 2019, are organised for the promotion of the study of architectural history, research and debate, and its dissemination to interested postgraduates and professionals. They are organised by Professor James Campbell, Jeremy Musson FSA and Dr Jana Schuster, supported by India Wright, Matt Cooper, Luka Pajovic and Samantha Carrie.