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Holdings
↑ Up one levelFirst International Conference on the History of Ethiopian Art
Identity area
Reference code
GB 891 RP-RP/4
Publication status
Published
Level of description
Series
Extent and medium
1 archival folder, typed material.
Date(s)
- 1986 (Creation)
Context area
Name of creator
(3 December 1927 – 16 February 2017)
Biographical history
Richard Pankhurst (1927-2017), was a historian and founding member of the Institute of Ethiopic Studies. Pankhurst’s mother was the suffragette and anti-fascist Sylvia Pankhurst and his grandparents were Emmeline and Richard Pankhurst. It was through his mother’s protests concerning the Italian invasion of Ethiopia that he first became interested in the country. Growing up he met many Ethiopian refugees in London. Pankhurst studied economic history at the London School of Economics and in 1956 he went to Ethiopia to teach at the University College of Addis Ababa, subsequently becoming the founder and director of the Institute of Ethiopic Studies.
In 1976, after the death of Haile Selassie and the start of the Ethiopian Civil War, Pankhurst returned to England, teaching at SOAS and LSE but, in 1978, he became the Librarian at the Royal Asiatic Society, a position he kept for several years before returning to Ethiopia in 1987 and resuming his work at the Institute. He published numerous books and articles on a wide variety of topics related to Ethiopian history.
Pankhurst led the campaign for the return of the Obelisk of Axum to Ethiopia. It was re-erected in Axum in 2008. He was given an OBE in the Diplomatic Service and Overseas section of the 2004 Queen's Birthday Honours. He was married to Rita (née Eldon) Pankhurst and had two children, Helen and Alula.
Repository
Royal Asiatic Society Archives
Content and structure area
Scope and content
The First International Conference on the History of Ethiopian Art was the first conference specifically devoted to the study of Ethiopian art. It was convened by Richard Pankhurst at the Warburg Institute in October 1986, and was sponsored by the Royal Asiatic Society. The Proceedings were published by Pindar Press in 1989. The archival material consists of abstract and summaries of some of the papers delivered at the conference. These are:
* 'The Annunciation in Ethiopian Art: Its Iconography from the 13th to the 18th Century', author unknown.
* 'Skunder and Modern Ethiopian Art' by Wendy Kindred, Professor of Art, University of Maine.
* 'Notes on the Ethiopian Story Painting about the Visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon of Judea' by Winthrop Palmer Boswell, Hillsborough, Califormia.
* 'The Illuminated Manuscripts of Lake Zway' by Paul B. Henze.
* An Aksumite Survival in Late Medieval Ethiopian Miniatures' by Bent Juel-Jensen, St. Cross College, Oxford.
* 'Le portrait inédit du negus Lebna-Dengel ayant appartenu à la historien Paolo Giovio (1483-1552)' by Salvatore Tedeschi.
* 'Ethiopian Illuminated Ornament' by Csilla Fabo Perczel.
* 'Gondar-Sty;e Architecture and its Royal Patrons' by LaVerle Berry, Alexandria, Virginia.
* 'The Battle of Adwa in Traditional Ethiopian Art: Changing Historical Perspectives' by [Richard Pankhurst].
* 'Observation on the iconology of the so-called "Four apocalyptic Creatures" on the stone altar of the Trinity Chapel in Lalibela' by [P. Scholtz].
* 'The ancient tradition of Ethiopia's painting developed a new branch during the rule of Menelik II...', untitled summary. 'Dr Ranning' has been added at the head of the summary.
Conditions of access and use area
Language of material
- English
- French
Additional information
Description identifier
gb891 rp/4
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