The Hellenic Institute: Past Events



Home News & Events Study Research Members & Staff Publications Friends of the Hellenic Institute Contact Us Centre for Greek Diaspora Studies	Past Events For forthcoming events organised by the Hellenic Institute, see News & Events. 10 February-24 March 2017: The University of London Postgraduate Working Seminar on Editing Byzantine Texts The Warburg Institute, University of London, Classroom 2, Ground Floor, Woburn Square, London WC1H 0AB, Fridays 15:45-17:45 The seminar continued to prepare a new annotated edition and translation of the Letters of George of Cyprus (later Ecumenical Patriarch Gregory II, 1283-1289). For further information please see the seminar webpage 16 March 2017 : Sixteenth Annual Hellenic Lecture The Greek Communities in Turkey: Past, Present and Future Moore Building Lecture Theatre, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX Dr Alexis Alexandris, diplomat and historian, former Consul General of Greece in Istanbul and Ambassador-Representative of Greece to the UN, Geneva, traced the history of the most important Greek communities of the Ottoman Empire and of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople during the transition to republican rule. He also offered insights into more recent developments in Turkey and their impact on the long term future of the Greek Orthodox Community of Istanbul, one of the oldest religious and ethnic minorities in a rapidly changing region. The lecture was followed by a reception in the foyer of the Moore Building and Dinner in honour of Dr Alexandris in the Large Boardroom, Founders Building. This event was co-organised by the Hellenic Institute and the RHUL Events Office. For further information please contact Dr George Vassiadis or Dr Charalambos Dendrinos. 7 February 2017: Annual Dabis Lecture *Writing as a Popularis: Ancient history outside the university* Picture Gallery, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX The author and presenter Tom Holland reflected on how he came to write ancient history for the general reader, and how his books differ – and don’t differ – from those written by academics. He has adapted Homer, Herodotus, Thucydides and Virgil for the BBC. His translation of Herodotus was published in 2013 by Penguin Classics and in 2016 from Allen Lane, a history of Æthelstan published under the Penguin Monarchs series. In 2007, he was the winner of the Classical Association prize, awarded to ‘the individual who has done most to promote the study of the language, literature and civilisation of Ancient Greece and Rome.’ He is the presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Making History. He has written and presented a number of TV documentaries, on subjects ranging from religion to dinosaurs.. The lecture was organised jointly by the Department of Classics and RHUL Events Office. 23 January 2017: Exhibition and Public Lecture by Michael Heslop Where in the Mani was the Frankish castle of Megali Maini (Grand Magne)? A New Synthesis of the Evidence The Hellenic Centre, 16-18 Paddington Street, Marylebone, London W1U 5AS In this lecture Michael Heslop, Honorary Research Associate and member of RHUL Hellenic Institute Steering Group, presented his research on a hitherto overlooked location of the Frankish castle of Megali Maini (Grand Magne) in the Peloponnese. The lecture was illustrated by maps and photos, and was accompanied by an exhibition of photographs entitled “Patrick Leigh Fermor and the Castles of the Mani: Embellishment or Intrusion?”, which included, by kind permission of David McClay and the National Library of Scotland, some of the photos of castles taken by Patrick Leigh Fermor’s wife, Joan Rayner. The lecture was followed by an informal reception. This was a joint event organised by The Hellenic Centre and The Patrick Leigh Fermor Society. For further imormation please contact Michael Heslop. 29 November 2016: Public Lecture by Dr Chrysovalantis Kyriacou Η *φωνή* *του* *μαγγανοπήγαδου: ο κώδικας* Β*-030* *του* *Πολιτιστικού* *Ιδρύματος* *Τραπέζης* *Κύπρου* ως *πηγή* *για* *την* *εκκλησιαστική* *και* *κοινωνική* *ζωή* *στην* *ενετοκρατούμενη* *Κύπρο* / The well-wheel's voice: manuscript B-030 of the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation as a source for the ecclesiastical and social life in Venetian-ruled Cyprus Βank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, 86-90 Phaneromenis Str., PO Box 21995, 1515 Nicosia, Cyprus In this lecture Dr Chrysovalantis Kyriacou presented his research on the hitherto unpublished Report on the errors of Cypriot Christians and other ecclesiastical, administrative and financial matters, composed by an anonymous Latin author in the second half of the sixteenth century. Preserved in the unique manuscript B-030 of the Collection of the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, this document is an important new source for the history of Cyprus under Venetian rule. The lecture was followed by a reception in the foyer of the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation. This was a joint event organised by the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation and RHUL Hellenic Institute, under the aegis of the Italian Embassy in Nicosia. For further information please email D r Ioanna Hadjicosti, Director, Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, Τel.: +35722128114, Fax: +357 22662898. 21 October 2016: Eighth Annual Memorial Lecture for Julian Chrysostomides Teaching Byzantium in London: reflections and recollections on the life and work of the distinguished Constantinopolitan Byzantinist Julian Chrysostomides (1928-2008) Πνευματικό Κέντρο Κωνσταντινουπολιτών / Constantinopolitan Cultural Centre, Dimitriou Soutsou 46, Athens 11521, Greece (near Ambelokipi metro station) Dr Alexis Alexandris, diplomat and historian, former Consul General of Greece in Istanbul and Representative of Greece to the UN, Geneva, delivered the Eighth Annual Memorial Lecture for our teacher and former Director Julian Chrysostomides. Donations towards the Julian Chrysostomides Bursaries Fund in support of students pursuing Hellenic and Byzantine Studies at RHUL can be made online. 14-15 October 2016: Centre for Greek Diaspora Studies Research Conference Greeks and Cypriots in the United Kingdom, 1815-2015: Culture, Commerce and Politics The Hellenic Centre, 16-18 Paddington Street, Marylebone, London W1U 5AS This two day conference was the first time researchers studying the history of the Greek and Cypriot communities in the United Kingdom came together and presented their work. Papers covered a broad range of topics related to social, cultural, commercial and political history and diaspora studies. To download the programme, please click here. Co-organised by the Hellenic Institute / Centre for Greek Diaspora Studies at Royal Holloway, University of London, the Cyprus High Commission, Cultural Section, and the Embassy of Greece, with the support of the Hellenic Centre, under the auspices of the High Commissioner for the Republic of Cyprus, Euripides L. Evriviades, and the Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic, Dimitris Caramitsos-Tziras. 2-3 June 2016: Institute of Classical Studies (IClS) 2016 Byzantine Colloquium Arcadia: Real and Ideal Court Room, Senate House, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU At this two-day international colloquium, scholars from various disciplines explored important elements that contributed to the creation, preservation and promotion of the Arcadian ideal from Antiquity, through the Middle Ages (in East and West) and the Renaissance to the modern world. The discussion focussed on the Arcadian ideal and legacy in dialogue with the geographical, real Arcadia. Speakers included Dr Solon Charalambous (Cyprus), Professor Evangelos Chrysos (Athens), Dr Stefano Cracolici (Durham), Angelos Dendrinos (Athens), Dr George Kakavas (Athens), Dr Pedro Olalla (Athens), Dr Anna Vasiliki Karapanagiotou (Arcadia), Professor James Roy (Nottingham), and Dr Alessandro Scafi (London). For the Programme please click here. This colloquium was co-organised with the ICS and the International Society for Arcadia, with the kind support of the City of Tripolis, the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Cyprus, The Hellenic Foundation, the Friends of the Hellenic Institute and the History Department of Royal Holloway, University of London. 22 March 2016: Fifteenth Annual Hellenic Lecture The Gennadius Library in Athens: The Vision of a Greek of the Diaspora, Dr Maria Georgopoulou, Director, The Gennadius Library, American School of Classical Studies at Athens Windsor Building Auditorium, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey, TW20 0EX, 18:15 followed by a reception In 1926 John Gennadius, a retired Greek diplomat in London, offered his 30,000-volume library to the American School of Classical Studies at Athens for the use of “the scholars of all nations” following the example of earlier benefactors from the Greek diaspora. The guiding principle of his collecting was to illuminate the history of the Greek “genius” through the ages. Dr Georgopoulou's lecture assessed the significance that the Gennadius Library has had for the development and growth of post-antique Hellenic studies in the past ninety years and the possibilities and challenges that lie ahead. 15 March 2016: The Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies Spring Lecture Hellenic Studies in Tudor England: An online interactive edition of an unpublished Greek encomium on Henry VIII Room G22/26, South Block, Senate House, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU, 18:00 In this illustrated lecture Charalambos Dendrinos, Philip Taylor and Christopher Wright presented research conducted by The Hellenic Institute on the online edition of the unique sixteenth-century Greek encomium on KIng Henry VIII addressed to Queen Elizabeth I by George Etheridge, Regius Professor of Greek at Oxford. The event was co-organised by The Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies and The Friends of the British School at Athens.To access the edition please click here. 25 February 2016: Public Launch of the Online Electronic Descriptive Catalogue of Lambeth Palace Library Greek Manuscript Collection Lambeth Palace, London SE1 7JU, 18:00 The electronic descriptive catalogue of the fifty-five Greek codices, acquired by Lambeth Palace Library since its founding in 1610, was launched in this special event, in the presence of a large audience of clergymen, students and scholars. The catalogue was published online in Adobe PDF format on the websites of both LPL and the Hellenic Institute, further enhancing the accessibility of, and interest in, this collection among students, scholars and the public worldwide. The cataloguing project was generously sponsored by the A. G. Leventis Foundation. Further information on the project is available here.. 5 February-18 March 2016: The University of London Postgraduate Working Seminar on Editing Byzantine Texts The Warburg Institute, University of London, Classroom 2, Ground Floor, Woburn Square, London WC1H 0AB, Fridays 15:45-17:45 The seminar continued to prepare a new annotated edition and translation of the Letters of George of Cyprus (later Ecumenical Patriarch Gregory II, 1283-1289). For further information please see the seminar webpage. 29 October 2015: London Launch of Discovering Downtown Cairo: Architecture...and Stories (Berlin: Jovis, 2015) Greeks and Others in the Centre The centre of Cairo is a unique, living treasure house of nineteenth and twentieth century residential and commercial architecture. Until the 1950s, it was home to a flourishing Greek community numbering many thousands. Most Cairene Greeks lived downtown, close to their shops, offices, restaurants, schools, churches and clubs. Some Greek-Egyptians still live and work there today. At the London launch of their book, Dr Vittoria Capresi and Barbara Pampe spoke about "The Making of Discovering Downtown Cairo: Architecture...and Stories", Dr Alexander Kazamias (Coventry University) responded with thoughts on "'A Piece of Europe'? Reflections on Khedivial Cairo after the Opening of the New Suez Canal", and Dr George Vassiadis (RHUL) provided an introduction entitled "Greeks and Others in Downtown Cairo from Khedive Ismail to the Arab Spring". This event, organised in cooperation with the Society of Modern Greek Studies and Baladilab, was held at The Hellenic Centre in London. 16 October 2015: Seventh Annual Memorial Lecture for Julian Chrysostomides (1928-2008) Rethinking Innovation in Byzantium, Professor Apostolos Spanos, University of Agder (Norway) Professor Spanos' lecture at The Hellenic Centre in London was attended by over eighty students, staff, friends and supporters of the Hellenic Institute. Donations were received towards the Julian Chrysostomides Bursaries Fund in support of students pursuing Hellenic and Byzantine Studies at RHUL.

For forthcoming events organised by the Hellenic Institute, see News & Events.

10 February-24 March 2017: The University of London Postgraduate Working Seminar on Editing Byzantine Texts

The Warburg Institute, University of London, Classroom 2, Ground Floor, Woburn Square, London WC1H 0AB, Fridays 15:45-17:45

The seminar continued to prepare a new annotated edition and translation of the Letters of George of Cyprus (later Ecumenical Patriarch Gregory II, 1283-1289). For further information please see the seminar webpage

Liverpool 16 March 2017 : Sixteenth Annual Hellenic Lecture

The Greek Communities in Turkey: Past, Present and Future

Moore Building Lecture Theatre, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX

Dr Alexis Alexandris, diplomat and historian, former Consul General of Greece in Istanbul and Ambassador-Representative of Greece to the UN, Geneva, traced the history of the most important Greek communities of the Ottoman Empire and of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople during the transition to republican rule. He also offered insights into more recent developments in Turkey and their impact on the long term future of the Greek Orthodox Community of Istanbul, one of the oldest religious and ethnic minorities in a rapidly changing region.

The lecture was followed by a reception in the foyer of the Moore Building and Dinner in honour of Dr Alexandris in the Large Boardroom, Founders Building. This event was co-organised by the Hellenic Institute and the RHUL Events Office.

For further information please contact Dr George Vassiadis or Dr Charalambos Dendrinos.

7 February 2017: Annual Dabis Lecture

Writing as a Popularis: Ancient history outside the university

Picture Gallery, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX

The author and presenter Tom Holland reflected on how he came to write ancient history for the general reader, and how his books differ – and don’t differ – from those written by academics. He has adapted Homer, Herodotus, Thucydides and Virgil for the BBC. His translation of Herodotus was published in 2013 by Penguin Classics and in 2016 from Allen Lane, a history of Æthelstan published under the Penguin Monarchs series. In 2007, he was the winner of the Classical Association prize, awarded to ‘the individual who has done most to promote the study of the language, literature and civilisation of Ancient Greece and Rome.’ He is the presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Making History. He has written and presented a number of TV documentaries, on subjects ranging from religion to dinosaurs..

The lecture was organised jointly by the Department of Classics and RHUL Events Office.

23 January 2017: Exhibition and Public Lecture by Michael Heslop

Where in the Mani was the Frankish castle of Megali Maini (Grand Magne)? A New Synthesis of the Evidence

The Hellenic Centre, 16-18 Paddington Street, Marylebone, London W1U 5AS

In this lecture Michael Heslop, Honorary Research Associate and member of RHUL Hellenic Institute Steering Group, presented his research on a hitherto overlooked location of the Frankish castle of Megali Maini (Grand Magne) in the Peloponnese. The lecture was illustrated by maps and photos, and was accompanied by an exhibition of photographs entitled “Patrick Leigh Fermor and the Castles of the Mani: Embellishment or Intrusion?”, which included, by kind permission of David McClay and the National Library of Scotland, some of the photos of castles taken by Patrick Leigh Fermor’s wife, Joan Rayner.

The lecture was followed by an informal reception. This was a joint event organised by The Hellenic Centre and The Patrick Leigh Fermor Society.

For further imormation please contact Michael Heslop.

29 November 2016: Public Lecture by Dr Chrysovalantis Kyriacou

Η φωνή του μαγγανοπήγαδου: ο κώδικας Β-030 του Πολιτιστικού Ιδρύματος Τραπέζης Κύπρου ως πηγή για την εκκλησιαστική και κοινωνική ζωή στην ενετοκρατούμενη Κύπρο / The well-wheel's voice: manuscript B-030 of the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation as a source for the ecclesiastical and social life in Venetian-ruled Cyprus

Βank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, 86-90 Phaneromenis Str., PO Box 21995, 1515 Nicosia, Cyprus

In this lecture Dr Chrysovalantis Kyriacou presented his research on the hitherto unpublished Report on the errors of Cypriot Christians and other ecclesiastical, administrative and financial matters, composed by an anonymous Latin author in the second half of the sixteenth century. Preserved in the unique manuscript B-030 of the Collection of the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, this document is an important new source for the history of Cyprus under Venetian rule.

The lecture was followed by a reception in the foyer of the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation. This was a joint event organised by the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation and RHUL Hellenic Institute, under the aegis of the Italian Embassy in Nicosia.

For further information please email D r Ioanna Hadjicosti, Director, Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, Τel.: +35722128114, Fax: +357 22662898.

Julian Chrysostomides (1928-2008) 21 October 2016: Eighth Annual Memorial Lecture for Julian Chrysostomides

Teaching Byzantium in London: reflections and recollections on the life and work of the distinguished Constantinopolitan Byzantinist Julian Chrysostomides (1928-2008)

Πνευματικό Κέντρο Κωνσταντινουπολιτών / Constantinopolitan Cultural Centre, Dimitriou Soutsou 46, Athens 11521, Greece (near Ambelokipi metro station)

Dr Alexis Alexandris, diplomat and historian, former Consul General of Greece in Istanbul and Representative of Greece to the UN, Geneva, delivered the Eighth Annual Memorial Lecture for our teacher and former Director Julian Chrysostomides.

Donations towards the Julian Chrysostomides Bursaries Fund in support of students pursuing Hellenic and Byzantine Studies at RHUL can be made online.

14-15 October 2016: Centre for Greek Diaspora Studies Research Conference

Greeks and Cypriots in the United Kingdom, 1815-2015: Culture, Commerce and Politics

The Hellenic Centre, 16-18 Paddington Street, Marylebone, London W1U 5AS

This two day conference was the first time researchers studying the history of the Greek and Cypriot communities in the United Kingdom came together and presented their work. Papers covered a broad range of topics related to social, cultural, commercial and political history and diaspora studies. To download the programme, please click here.

Co-organised by the Hellenic Institute / Centre for Greek Diaspora Studies at Royal Holloway, University of London, the Cyprus High Commission, Cultural Section, and the Embassy of Greece, with the support of the Hellenic Centre, under the auspices of the High Commissioner for the Republic of Cyprus, Euripides L. Evriviades, and the Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic, Dimitris Caramitsos-Tziras.

Et in Arcadia ego, painting by Nicolas Poussin

2-3 June 2016: Institute of Classical Studies (IClS) 2016 Byzantine Colloquium

Arcadia: Real and Ideal

Court Room, Senate House, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU

At this two-day international colloquium, scholars from various disciplines explored important elements that contributed to the creation, preservation and promotion of the Arcadian ideal from Antiquity, through the Middle Ages (in East and West) and the Renaissance to the modern world. The discussion focussed on the Arcadian ideal and legacy in dialogue with the geographical, real Arcadia. Speakers included Dr Solon Charalambous (Cyprus), Professor Evangelos Chrysos (Athens), Dr Stefano Cracolici (Durham), Angelos Dendrinos (Athens), Dr George Kakavas (Athens), Dr Pedro Olalla (Athens), Dr Anna Vasiliki Karapanagiotou (Arcadia), Professor James Roy (Nottingham), and Dr Alessandro Scafi (London). For the Programme please click here.

This colloquium was co-organised with the ICS and the International Society for Arcadia, with the kind support of the City of Tripolis, the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Cyprus, The Hellenic Foundation, the Friends of the Hellenic Institute and the History Department of Royal Holloway, University of London.

John Gennadius in Greek costume, from the Gennadius Library Archives

22 March 2016: Fifteenth Annual Hellenic Lecture

The Gennadius Library in Athens: The Vision of a Greek of the Diaspora, Dr Maria Georgopoulou, Director, The Gennadius Library, American School of Classical Studies at Athens

Windsor Building Auditorium, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, Surrey, TW20 0EX, 18:15 followed by a reception
In 1926 John Gennadius, a retired Greek diplomat in London, offered his 30,000-volume library to the American School of Classical Studies at Athens for the use of “the scholars of all nations” following the example of earlier benefactors from the Greek diaspora. The guiding principle of his collecting was to illuminate the history of the Greek “genius” through the ages. Dr Georgopoulou's lecture assessed the significance that the Gennadius Library has had for the development and growth of post-antique Hellenic studies in the past ninety years and the possibilities and challenges that lie ahead.

15 March 2016: The Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies Spring Lecture

Hellenic Studies in Tudor England: An online interactive edition of an unpublished Greek encomium on Henry VIII

Room G22/26, South Block, Senate House, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HU, 18:00
In this illustrated lecture Charalambos Dendrinos, Philip Taylor and Christopher Wright presented research conducted by The Hellenic Institute on the online edition of the unique sixteenth-century Greek encomium on KIng Henry VIII addressed to Queen Elizabeth I by George Etheridge, Regius Professor of Greek at Oxford. The event was co-organised by The Society for the Promotion of Byzantine Studies and The Friends of the British School at Athens.To access the edition please click here.

Lambeth Palace Library Greek Manuscript 1214, Fol. 90V

25 February 2016: Public Launch of the Online Electronic Descriptive Catalogue of Lambeth Palace Library Greek Manuscript Collection

Lambeth Palace, London SE1 7JU, 18:00
The electronic descriptive catalogue of the fifty-five Greek codices, acquired by Lambeth Palace Library since its founding in 1610, was launched in this special event, in the presence of a large audience of clergymen, students and scholars. The catalogue was published online in Adobe PDF format on the websites of both LPL and the Hellenic Institute, further enhancing the accessibility of, and interest in, this collection among students, scholars and the public worldwide. The cataloguing project was generously sponsored by the A. G. Leventis Foundation. Further information on the project is available here..

5 February-18 March 2016: The University of London Postgraduate Working Seminar on Editing Byzantine Texts

The Warburg Institute, University of London, Classroom 2, Ground Floor, Woburn Square, London WC1H 0AB, Fridays 15:45-17:45
The seminar continued to prepare a new annotated edition and translation of the Letters of George of Cyprus (later Ecumenical Patriarch Gregory II, 1283-1289). For further information please see the seminar webpage.

29 October 2015: London Launch of Discovering Downtown Cairo: Architecture...and Stories (Berlin: Jovis, 2015)

Greeks and Others in the Centre

The centre of Cairo is a unique, living treasure house of nineteenth and twentieth century residential and commercial architecture. Until the 1950s, it was home to a flourishing Greek community numbering many thousands. Most Cairene Greeks lived downtown, close to their shops, offices, restaurants, schools, churches and clubs. Some Greek-Egyptians still live and work there today. At the London launch of their book, Dr Vittoria Capresi and Barbara Pampe spoke about "The Making of Discovering Downtown Cairo: Architecture...and Stories", Dr Alexander Kazamias (Coventry University) responded with thoughts on "'A Piece of Europe'? Reflections on Khedivial Cairo after the Opening of the New Suez Canal", and Dr George Vassiadis (RHUL) provided an introduction entitled "Greeks and Others in Downtown Cairo from Khedive Ismail to the Arab Spring". This event, organised in cooperation with the Society of Modern Greek Studies and Baladilab, was held at The Hellenic Centre in London.

16 October 2015: Seventh Annual Memorial Lecture for Julian Chrysostomides (1928-2008)

Rethinking Innovation in Byzantium, Professor Apostolos Spanos, University of Agder (Norway)

Professor Spanos' lecture at The Hellenic Centre in London was attended by over eighty students, staff, friends and supporters of the Hellenic Institute. Donations were received towards the Julian Chrysostomides Bursaries Fund in support of students pursuing Hellenic and Byzantine Studies at RHUL.