How are Byzantine monuments reinterpreted in the modern world?
The Columbia Global Center Athens invites you to a public lecture by Professor Holger Klein, Lisa and Bernard Selz Professor of Medieval Art History and Department Chair at Columbia University.
In this lecture, Professor Klein will explore two of the most celebrated monuments of Byzantine art and architecture—Hagia Sophia and the Chora Monastery. Through their long and complex histories, these iconic structures have served not only as places of worship but also as powerful symbols shaped by shifting political, cultural, and religious priorities.
Focusing on questions of preservation, interpretation, and public memory, the lecture will examine how monuments from the Byzantine past continue to be redefined in the present. What does it mean to preserve such sites? Who decides how they should be used, displayed, or protected? And how do contemporary political contexts influence the ways these monuments are understood and experienced today?
By tracing the intertwined histories of these monuments, Professor Klein invites audiences to reflect on the enduring legacy of Byzantine heritage and the ongoing debates surrounding its stewardship in the modern world.
The lecture will be conducted in English.
