Please join us on Thursday February 11, 6-8 pm at UC Irvine's Humanities Gateway 1010 for a lecture and book signing by Dr. Ali Mousavi about his new book Ancient Iran from the Air.
This book features many of the more exceptional landscapes and monuments of Iran as seen through the lens of the world's foremost aerial photographer, George Gerster. The photographs, which were taken between 1976 and 1978, are presented in six chapters, each authored by one or more scholars of international repute, and the work as a whole is edited by two of the main contributors, David Stronach and Ali Mousavi. Ancient Iran from the Air takes the reader on an aerial odyssey that explores the country's infinitely varied landscapes; many of the more noted sites associated with Iran's rich prehistoric past; the storied capitals of the Achaemenid and Sasanian empires; the memorable monuments of Saljuk and Safavid Isfahan; and, last but not least, on a journey that celebrates the age-old virtues of Iran's largely unsung vernacular mud-brick architecture.
Dr. Ali Mousavi studied in Lyon, France, and took his B.A. in Art History, and his M.A. in the Languages, History, and Civilizations of the Ancient World (Langues, histoire et civilisations des mondes anciens ) from the University of Lyon. He obtained his Ph.D. in archaeology of the ancient Near East from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2005. He excavated in France, Turkey, and Iran, and contributed to the nomination of a number of archaeological sites and monuments (including Pasargadae and Takht-e Suleiman) for inscription on the World Heritage List of UNESCO. He is the author of a book on the site of Persepolis (Persepolis: Discovery and Afterlife of a World Wonder), and a number of articles in scholarly journals. He worked as an Assistant Curator of Ancient Near Eastern Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art from 2006 to 2013.
The talk is followed by the book signing and a reception.
The event is free and open to the public.
This book features many of the more exceptional landscapes and monuments of Iran as seen through the lens of the world's foremost aerial photographer, George Gerster. The photographs, which were taken between 1976 and 1978, are presented in six chapters, each authored by one or more scholars of international repute, and the work as a whole is edited by two of the main contributors, David Stronach and Ali Mousavi. Ancient Iran from the Air takes the reader on an aerial odyssey that explores the country's infinitely varied landscapes; many of the more noted sites associated with Iran's rich prehistoric past; the storied capitals of the Achaemenid and Sasanian empires; the memorable monuments of Saljuk and Safavid Isfahan; and, last but not least, on a journey that celebrates the age-old virtues of Iran's largely unsung vernacular mud-brick architecture.
Dr. Ali Mousavi studied in Lyon, France, and took his B.A. in Art History, and his M.A. in the Languages, History, and Civilizations of the Ancient World (Langues, histoire et civilisations des mondes anciens ) from the University of Lyon. He obtained his Ph.D. in archaeology of the ancient Near East from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2005. He excavated in France, Turkey, and Iran, and contributed to the nomination of a number of archaeological sites and monuments (including Pasargadae and Takht-e Suleiman) for inscription on the World Heritage List of UNESCO. He is the author of a book on the site of Persepolis (Persepolis: Discovery and Afterlife of a World Wonder), and a number of articles in scholarly journals. He worked as an Assistant Curator of Ancient Near Eastern Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art from 2006 to 2013.
The talk is followed by the book signing and a reception.
The event is free and open to the public.