Ernst Herzfeld Society

For Studies in Islamic Art and Archaeology

Author: Redakteurin EHG

Announcement

ELEVATING THE WORD.
Bimah – Ambo – Minbar – Pulpit as Spaces of Sacred Speech.

Munich, Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte, July 22-23 2026

The Word stood at the center of religious practice in the medieval sacred sphere. Its proclamation took place on privileged stages that varied according to culture and confession: the Jewish bimah, the Christian-liturgical ambo, the Islamic minbar, and the Christian pulpit. From these sites, theological teachings, moral instruction, and communal messages were delivered in performative acts shaped not only by voice and gesture, but also by their architectural and visual settings. Viewed as dynamic components of religious communication, these monuments reveal important acoustic, visual, aural, and audiovisual dimensions. The international conference Elevating the Word. Bimah – Ambo – Minbar – Pulpit as Spaces of Sacred Speech examines these structures within a transreligious perspective and with particular attention to their audiovisual qualities. Drawing on textual, visual, and material evidence, the conference explores how sacred speech was materially, spatially, and sensorially staged across the three monotheistic religions before c. 1500 CE. The contributions examine a wide range of monuments and religious contexts, from early Christian sanctuaries on the Iberian Peninsula and churches of the eastern Mediterranean to the Romanesque ambos of southern Italy, Mamluk minbars in Cairo, and late medieval pulpits in northern Germany. Through this combination of visual, material, and acoustic approaches, the conference seeks to open new perspectives on the intersensory experience of sacred communication in the monotheistic religions.

Further information…

Program

Graduate Student Meeting – Call for Papers

21st Colloquium of the Ernst Herzfeld-Gesellschaft | Ernst Herzfeld Society

The graduate student meeting offers an opportunity for graduate students in the fields of Islamic Art History, Archaeology, and Architecture to present their ongoing research while providing a platform for discussion and networking. It is organised by Salma Azzam of Vienna University. It will take place at the Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main on the 2nd of July in conjunction with the 21st Colloquium of the Ernst Herzfeld Society for Studies in Islamic Art and Archaeology.

Deadline: 31.01.2026

Further information…

Announcement

Islamic Medieval Wall Paintings: towards an Interdisciplinary Approach

International on-line Conference, September 4-5, 2025

Organized by:

Dr. Ana Marija Grbanovic, Centre for Heritage Conservation Studies and Technologies (KDWT), University of Bamberg

Dr. Agnieszka Lic, Institute of Mediterranean and Oriental Cultures, Polish Academy of Sciences

Further information…

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University Assistant postdoctoral 

As a postdoc university assistant, you will join the international team on Islamic Art History led by Professor Markus Ritter. The team’s research interests focus on works, media, and contexts of images, architecture, and objects of Islamic art and the early historiography of Islamic art.

Deadline: 04.09.2025

Link to apply

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University assistant predoctoral 

As a university assistant predoc, you will join the international team on Islamic Art History led by Professor Markus Ritter. The team’s research interests focus on works, media, and contexts of images, architecture, and objects of Islamic art and the early historiography of Islamic art.

Deadline: 20.08.2025

Link to apply

Graduate Student Meeting – Call for Papers

20th Colloquium of the Ernst Herzfeld-Gesellschaft | Ernst Herzfeld Society

Cairo (Egypt) 3 July 2025

Are you a graduate student in Islamic Art, Architecture, or Archaeology? Are you interested in meeting other students working on related topics? Would you like to discuss your research with your peers? How about presenting a paper based on your research at the graduate student meeting of the Ernst Herzfeld Society?

The graduate student meeting offers an opportunity for graduate students in the fields of Islamic Art History, Archaeology, and Architecture to present their ongoing research while providing a platform for discussion and networking. It is organised by Salma Azzam of Vienna University. It will take place at the American University in Cairo, Tahrir Campus on the 3rd of July in conjunction with the 20th Colloquium of the Ernst Herzfeld Society for Studies in Islamic Art and Archaeology.

Further information…

Conference Announcement – Call for Papers

We cordially invite you to participate in the 35th Deutscher Orientalistentag (DOT) at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, 8-12 September 2025.The section on Material Culture, Art History and Archaeology is open for papers referring to periods and regions covered by Oriental Studies at large, although traditionally there has been a focus on Islamic cultures. The section will be organized by Ilse Sturkenboom (LMU Munich) and Lorenz Korn (University of Bamberg). This is an opportunity to meet and to discuss ongoing research and to be in touch with other areas of SWANA-related academia.

Please submit your abstract through the conference portal until 31 January 2025. Pre-organized panels on specific topics are also welcome.

For all technical issues concerning registration, submission of abstracts etc. please refer to the conference website: https://www.dot2025.fau.eu/