Founded in Constantinople in the late nineteenth century, the Russian Archaeological Institute became an important center for Byzantine history and archaeology through its research activities in Ottoman territories. Operating between 1894 and 1917, the Institute hosted Russian Byzantinists and archaeologists conducting research across the Ottoman world, while also shedding light on the political and intellectual climate of the period.
Presented by academic Pınar Üre, the seminar explores the history of the Russian Archaeological Institute in Constantinople from its establishment to its closure. Through the Institute’s activities, the seminar examines the institutionalization of academia in imperial Russia, particularly in the fields of archaeology and Byzantine studies, while also addressing the relationship between archaeological research in Ottoman lands and Russian state policies. In addition, the reaction of Ottoman authorities to Russian archaeologists is discussed in order to trace the transformation of Ottoman perspectives on cultural heritage during the nineteenth century. The seminar also focuses on the Institute’s activities during the First World War and its closure following the Bolshevik Revolution, shedding light on the political and intellectual transformations that accompanied the collapse of the imperial order.
This event is part of the Joint lecture series « Hubs, networks and trajectories. The making of global cooperation in the humanities in Istanbul and beyond », with the partnership of the American Research Institute in Turkey (ARIT), the Deutsches Archäologisches Institut (Dainst), the Institut français d’études anatoliennes (IFEA), the Nederlands Instituut in Turkije (NIT), the Orient-Institut Istanbul, the Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul (SRII).