Two Great Hellenistic Cities - Alexandria and Pergamon
The Arts Society Chiswick's February Lecture is by James Renshaw
Pergamon is in present day Türkiye
January 28, 2023
Come and find out how in the time of Alexander the Great, in what we now call the Hellenistic Age, two rival cities emerged as centres of extraordinary culture and learning, Alexandria in Egypt and Pergamon in north-west Asia Minor at 8:00pm on Thursday 9 February at POSK.
Classics Teacher and Writer James Renshaw, who teaches at Godolphin and Latymer; where he runs the school’s Ancient World Breakfast Club, explains how Alexandria and Pergamon changed the intellectual and artistic landscape and examines their legacy.
Following a degree in Classics from Oxford University, James has taught Classics at secondary school level since 1998. He has published a number of textbooks related to the classical world, including In Search of the Greeks and In Search of the Romans. In addition to his school teaching, he has also lectured for the V&A Academy, most recently on their Classical World and its Afterlife and Classicism from the Ancients to the Renaissance courses. He is a keen traveller, and says he is lucky enough to have taken many photos of ancient sites, a number of which have been used in his books.
This talk explores how Alexandria and Pergamon changed the intellectual and artistic landscape and examines their legacy. By 323 BC Alexander the Great had conquered the Persian empire and launched a new era of Mediterranean history, known today as the Hellenistic Age. The world had changed, and soon two cities emerged as centres of extraordinary culture and learning. In Egypt, Alexander conceived a vision of a new city to take his name: Alexandria. It soon became the intellectual hub of the ancient world, which saw extraordinary discoveries in science and mathematics, philosophy, and medicine. Its library was the greatest of the ancient world; moreover, its lighthouse was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.
Meanwhile, in north-west Asia Minor, the Attalid kingdom developed a new capital city, Pergamon, as a cultural centre to rival Alexandria. It too had a remarkable library; today the archaeological site is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, while the famed Pergamon Altar has been reconstructed in the Pergamon Museum, Berlin. This talk explains how these two cities changed the intellectual and artistic landscape, and examines their legacy.
Olivia Freeman, Chair, The Arts Society Chiswick said, “We look forward to welcoming members and guests to this fascinating lecture“.
Doors open at 7pm, as does the private bar. The lecture will start at 8pm and guests are welcome paying £10 on the door.
Membership of the Arts Society Chiswick includes 10 expert lectures on the second Thursday of every month (except August and December) and the opportunity to participate in tours, visits, social events and Special Interest Days. For more information see the society's web site.
The Arts Society Chiswick brings people together through a shared curiosity for the arts, to create opportunities for everyone to be part of a diverse community in which they can enjoy, learn about, participate in, and preserve the Arts and Cultural Heritage.
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