Latest Event Recordings now Available
We have now made available on YouTube, recordings of four of our lectures and book talks held in March. If you missed the opportunity to attend the event in-person or online last month, or would like to revisit its content, you can find the video recording and a description of the event below. Do check out our YouTube channel for recordings of other previous events!
Dr Charlotte Horlyck – The Emergence of the Korean Art Collector and the Korean Art Market (4 March)
In this talk, Dr Charlotte Horlyck, Reader in the History of Korean Art at SOAS, charted the development of the Korean art market since the 1870s and offered a fresh perspective on the biases surrounding its collecting practice. The discussion centered on the collecting of celadon ceramics, green or light turquoise glazed stoneware originated in China and later adopted in Korea, and explored how their acquisition and ownership fed into the complex power dynamics between the Koreans, Japanese, Americans and Europeans. The content of the talk was mainly drawn from Dr Charlotte Horlyck’s recently published book, which is available through open access here.
Anabel Loyd – The Dervish Bowl: The Many Lives of Arminius Vambéry (6 March)
The legacy of Hungarian Turkologist and traveller Ármin Vámbéry (1832-1913) is little remembered these days, but he was seen as the authority for insight into Central Asia in his time, especially on the subjects of linguistics, literature and culture. Vámbéry was also a prolific writer, authoring not only autobiographies and linguistics works but also numerous travel accounts, some of which are held in the RAS Library. His recognition by the British government, however, led to the suspicion of him being a British secret agent. Using primary sources including private correspondence, columnist and author Anabel Loyd explored in this book talk the many lives of this legendary traveller, unravelling the mystery surrounding his identity.
Prof Nick White – The decolonisation of Malaysia and Singapore: A maritime perspective (13 March)
This lecture was organised in honour of Prof Tony Stockwell, a three-time President of the RAS and leading historian of the late British Empire and decolonisation period in Malaysia, and was delivered by Nick White, Professor of Imperial and Commonwealth History at Liverpool John Moores University, who earned his PhD under Tony’s supervision. In honouring Tony’s work, this lecture combined Prof Nick White’s current research interests in the decolonisation of Southeast Asia and ocean-going shipping.
Prof Doris Behrens-Abouseif – Men’s fashions in Medieval Cairo (20 March)
Prof Doris Behrens-Abouseif, Research Professor at SOAS, has written extensively on Islamic architecture and culture, urbanism, aesthetics, the decorative arts, mainly in Egypt and Syria, from the early period to the 19th century. In this talk, she took us through the flourishing dress culture in Cairo during the Medieval period, highlighting the involvement of regional rulers in the design of uniforms and ceremonial outfits. Among the various parts of costume discussed in her talk was a double-horn headwear which would have been used to reinforce the dignity of the wearer, but – somehow defying its purpose – might amuse a modern viewer with its resemblance to a snail!
James Liu, 4 April 2025.