GERALD F. ELSE LECTURE IN THE HUMANITIES

The friendship letters of Johann Joachim Winckelmann (1717 – 1768), the so-called ‘father’ of classical art history, merit attention as an important corpus within canons of gay male history constructed by activists from the 19th century onwards and as a case study of the afterlife of classical literature in vernacular writing of the late early modern era. In this lecture, which forms part of a project on the landscape of Latin, Greek, and vernacular learning that lies behind Winckelmann’s correspondence, Professor Harloe will explore the importance of Winckelmann’s reading of Pindar to his idealisation of ancient Greece and his framing of his relationship to one epistolary friend, the Livonian Grand Tourist, Reinhold von Berg.

Professor Katherine Harloe is the Director of the Institute of Classical Studies within the School of Advanced Study at the University of London. She represents the Institute both at home and abroad, guiding its policies and development in consultation with colleagues to ensure that the Institute fulfills its role in promoting and facilitating research in Classics and related disciplines, nationally and internationally. As the Director, Professor Harloe also serves as the General Editor of the Institute's Publications.