NAASR Christmas Open House to Feature Illustrated Talk by Christina Maranci

BELMONT, Mass.—Dr. Christina Maranci, the Arthur H. Dadian and Ara Oztemel Professor of Armenian Art and Architecture at Tufts University, will be the featured speaker at the 2015 NAASR Christmas Open House on Thurs., Dec. 10. The open house will begin at 6 p.m., with Maranci’s talk set for 7:30 p.m. The evening’s events will take place at the NAASR Center, 395 Concord Ave., in Belmont.

Cover of Vigilant Powers: Three Churches of Early Medieval Armenia
Cover of Vigilant Powers: Three Churches of Early Medieval Armenia

Maranci’s illustrated talk draws on her recently published book Vigilant Powers: Three Churches of Early Medieval Armenia (Brepols, 2015), which offers in-depth examinations of three important sculpted and inscribed Armenian churches (Mren, Zvartnots, and Ptghni), produced during the “global” wars of the 7th century. In her talk, Maranci will share both her scholarly insights into these remarkable monuments as well as her personal experiences of the trials and tribulations of fieldwork in Western Armenia.

Both before and after the lecture, NAASR’s bookstore will be open and feature a one night-only 20 perent-off sale. Numerous recently published titles will be available. Refreshments will be served.

Vigilant Powers opens to the reader the world of early medieval Armenia: its sacred landscapes, striking churches, and rich literary and religious traditions; and demonstrates the close engagement of Armenia with Byzantine imperial interests and with contemporary events in the Holy Land. The 7th-century monuments of Armenia are important not just as an extraordinary moment of local cultural production; they fill a crucial gap in our knowledge about the medieval traditions of the Christian East at a time from which little survives from Constantinople and the imperial heartland. Vigilant Powers is the first English-language book devoted to the subject.

Admission to the event is free; donations are appreciated. The NAASR Center is located opposite the First Armenian Church and next to the U.S. Post Office. Parking is available around the building and in adjacent areas.

For more information about the open house and program, call (617) 489-1610 or e-mail hq@naasr.org.

 

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