BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//UM//UM*Events//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:America/Detroit
TZURL:http://tzurl.org/zoneinfo/America/Detroit
X-LIC-LOCATION:America/Detroit
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:-0500
TZOFFSETTO:-0400
TZNAME:EDT
DTSTART:20070311T020000
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYMONTH=3;BYDAY=2SU
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:-0400
TZOFFSETTO:-0500
TZNAME:EST
DTSTART:20071104T020000
RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYMONTH=11;BYDAY=1SU
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTAMP:20260811T161617
DTSTART;TZID=America/Detroit:20261111T163000
DTEND;TZID=America/Detroit:20261111T180000
SUMMARY:Lecture / Discussion:Guest Lecture | Heritage Forensics: Culture on the Front Lines of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict
DESCRIPTION:This talk introduces the concept of heritage forensics\, a framework for studying abuses of cultural heritage in contexts of conflict\, genocide\, and ethnic cleansing. Drawing on the new co-authored volume\, *Heritage Forensics: Cultural on the Front Lines of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict*\, the presentation examines how cultural sites became entangled in the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh during the interwar period (1994-2020). The talk considers how satellite-based heritage forensics is being deployed prospectively\, to monitor hundreds of Armenian sites in Karabakh following Azerbaijan's 2023 takeover of the region and the displacement of its Armenian population. In doing so\, it asks: how can satellite-based monitoring function as a form of \"counter-forensics\,\" turning surveillance technologies developed for military purposes back on the state? Can heritage forensics move us beyond retrospective documentation to actively deter erasure and support truth\, reconciliation\, and accountability wherever cultural heritage is at stake?\n\nLori Khatchadourian is Professor of Near Eastern Studies and Anthropology at Cornell University\, and co-founder and co-director of Caucasus Heritage Watch. She currently serves as Director of the Cornell Institute of Archaeology and Material Studies. Khatchadourian’s research spans the fields of archaeology\, social anthropology\, and heritage studies\, with a particular focus on Armenia\, the wider South Caucasus\, and neighboring regions. Current projects explore the archaeology of modernity\, including problems of genocide\, deindustrialization\, and the entanglements of cultural heritage and war. She is the co-author of *Heritage Forensics: Culture on the Front Lines of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict* (Cornell\, 2026) and author of Imperial Matter: Ancient Persia and the Archaeology of Empires (UC Press\, 2016). She is also co-editor of *Rethinking Empire: Materiality\, Metaphysics\, and Imperial Politics* (SAR\, 2026) and *Fitful Histories and Unruly Publics: The Archaeology of Eurasia *(2017).\n\nhttps://umich.zoom.us/j/99311308952\n\nIf there is anything we can do to make this event accessible to you\, please contact us. Please be aware that advance notice is necessary as some accommodations may require more time for the university to arrange. Contact: armenianstudies@umich.edu
UID:150145-21908256@events.umich.edu
URL:https://events.umich.edu/event/150145
CLASS:PUBLIC
STATUS:CONFIRMED
CATEGORIES:Area Studies,armenia,Armenian Studies,Discussion,History,Lecture
LOCATION:Weiser Hall - Room 555
CONTACT:
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR