Egyptology Seminar on Robert Hay, and Berwickshire Art Exhibition

Duns Castle

Tickets are now available for a fascinating series of events to be held in Duns from 10 to 12 April in person or via Zoom about Robert Hay who was born in Duns Castle, Berwickshire in the Scottish Borders, and first visited Alexandria in 1818. In November 1824 he set off for Egypt again to record inscriptions and make architectural plans of all the major monuments there. Hay stayed in Egypt until 1828 and lived there again from 1829 to 1834. With a wide circle of interesting friends, he employed many now famous artists and was a fine water-colourist himself.

The Robert Hay Seminar will include lecture sessions and discussions with speakers both local and international. It brings together experts and enthusiasts from many different parts of the world and is a truly interdisciplinary event, with experts ranging from archaeologists to conservationists, art historians and language experts. Most of the invited speakers will be attending in person. These include our two keynote speakers, Larry Berman, the Norma Jean Calderwood Senior Curator of Ancient Egyptian, Nubian, and Near Eastern Art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, on ‘Hay’s Boston Collections’, and the well-known historian and writer, Jason Thompson, on ‘Robert Hay and his friendship with Edward W. Lane’. Please see https://www.astene.org.uk/current-events/hay-seminar  for further information and book via Eventbrite on the link provided on this website.

In addition, there will be a special Middle Eastern themed Seminar dinner to be held in Duns Castle itself, plus two exhibitions and a film show as part of the programme to be held at Duns Volunteer Hall and Duns Castle. All welcome.

It is particularly exciting to be able to run this event that focuses on Egypt. This event was originally scheduled for the summer of 2020 but was delayed due to the pandemic. It has been a great pleasure to work with the two major organisations involved in arranging the Seminar — ASTENE, Duns Castle (and DCC700), with additional support from other local organisations including A Heart for Duns, and Duns Film Club. We are particularly grateful for grants from the Blackhill Windfarm Community Fund specifically donated to support local participation. We are grateful to them all for their support for the Seminar, both financial and otherwise, and trust that all participants will have a fruitful and enjoyable stay in Duns.

As we begin to recover from the restrictions of the last two years, we also hope to use this opportunity to raise funds to support Edinburgh Direct Aid, so please join us on any or all of the days of the Seminar and visit the exhibitions too.

Find out more and book tickets