International Conference "Silk in Ancient Greece and its Resonance"

Welcome to the international symposium Silk in Ancient Greece and its Resonance organized by the Swedish Institute at Athens, Lund University, ARTEX textile research centre and Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation.

The symposium will take place at the Italian School of Archaeology, Athens, Parthenonos 14, September 19-22, 2019 (Please note the change of venue!)

The study of ancient textiles is a dynamic discipline. Although they are rarely preserved, our source material continues to increase. Furthermore, new awareness of textiles used beyond clothes (e.g. carpets and sails) has lead archaeologists to search for traces elsewhere than graves. Modern technology can evince fabrics that are no longer extant through imprints for example on pottery, which further expands the available sources. Innovative approaches also deepen our knowledge: textile research inspires multi- and interdisciplinary collaboration between the humanities and natural sciences and thereby brings important insights; experimental archeology follows the chaîne opératoire and reveals the toil and time-consumption of textile production.

In this context, the Swedish Institute at Athens, Lund University, the Hellenic Centre for Research and Conservation of Archaeological Textiles ARTEX and Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation will organize an international conference focusing on an enchanting material: silk, loaded with negative as well as positive connotations of wealth, eroticism and exoticism. Researchers will gather in Athens 19-21/09/2019 to discuss new research within a broad framework ranging from the Aegean Bronze Age to Classical Athens, Rome, Byzantium and thence to Viking Age Scandinavia.