Call for Papers: History of Austrian/Austro-Hungarian archaeology in the Balkans and the eastern Mediterranean, mid-19th to mid-20th centuries
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08. January 2026
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Call for papers
History of Austrian/Austro-Hungarian archaeology in the Balkans and the eastern Mediterranean, mid-19th to mid-20th centuries
Symposium
Vienna, 21-22 September 2026
Deadline for submissions: 15 February 2026
In the indicated period, Austrian/Austro-Hungarian archaeology, conducted by researchers from whatever part of the empire, was formalized in new institutions such as the Central Commission for Monuments (1850), the Academy of Sciences’ Prehistoric Commission (1878), and the Austrian Archaeological Institute (1898). Archaeological and related activities also increased in the Austrian Balkans (Carniola, Istria, Dalmatia), and began in the newly occupied Bosnia-Herzegovina. From the 1870s onwards, they were extended to Greece, Asia Minor, the Levant, and Egypt.
At the symposium, we want to discuss these archaeologies within and beyond the Habsburg Empire/Austria in their colonial and imperial contexts. Like other European powers, Austria(-Hungary) used archaeology to exercise power in respective territories, gain international prestige, and fill the Vienna museums. In the Austrian Balkans, archaeology and historic artefacts moreover served to strengthen inhabitants’ loyalty to the rulers. On the other hand, certain local archaeologies within the empire advanced nationalist purposes.
Please send your paper proposal on these or other issues with an abstract (max. 250 words) and a short biographical note to maximilian.georg@oeaw.ac.at and felix.hoeflmayer@oeaw.ac.at. Deadline: 15 February 2026.
Organizers
Maximilian Georg (Institute of Culture Studies)
Felix Höflmayer (Austrian Archaeological Institute)
Agnes Woitzuck (Austrian Archaeological Institute)
Contact
maximilian.georg@oeaw.ac.at
The complete call for papers can be found at H-Soz-Kult.
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