Constantino Brumidi’s Roman-Style Wall Paintings for the US Capitol Dr. Elise Friedland (George Washington University, D.C.) The US Capitol—America’s central federal building—echoes ancient Greece and Rome, not only in its architecture and architectural sculpture, but even in its decorative murals. This talk presents new research on the 1858 fresco cycle in the Senate wing’s Naval […]

Dr. Kevin Dicus (University of Oregon) Roman imperial ambitions began with the occupation of Italy. The Etruscans, once the dominant civilization, experienced great cultural and political upheavals. Foreign traditions, goods, and belief systems entered their territories, challenging and changing their ways of being. Scholars have referred to the process as “Romanization”: conquered peoples adopt Roman […]

Dr. Cyler Conrad (University of New Mexico) The popular Hollywood film, The Bridge on the River Kwai, portrays an important series of events for prisoners of war during World War II in Thailand, also known as the infamous China-Burma-India theater of conflict. While the film’s creative story garnered acclaim and praise after its release in […]

Dr. Gloria London (Independent Scholar, Seattle WA) Lecture in Memory of Dr. Sarah Keller A Danish police officer, who volunteered for the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus, spent his spare time documenting traditional technologies, especially those related to pottery production, farming, and bread. Knud Jensen recorded over 60 pitharia, the immense jars for fermenting […]

The archaeological exploration of ancient Egypt's royal New Kingdom cemetery, the Valley of the Kings, offers a rich history of fascinating discoveries made by determined and often eccentric individuals including Howard Carter, who was well involved in the Valley decades before he encountered the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922. In this lecture, Don Ryan will […]