Postcards from the erection of the IDA Arch of Palmyra

These postcards were created during a three-day event (19th-21st April 2016) in Trafalgar Square, London that saw the installation of a replica of part of the triumphal arch from the archaeological site of Palmyra, Syria.

A team from the Department of Classics at Royal Holloway, University of London (who were not involved in the creation of the arch by the Institute of Digital Archaeology), led by Lecturer in Roman Archaeology Dr Zena Kamash, invited visitors to write postcards on which they were able to share any memories of the site and any thoughts, hopes and fears for its future, including whether it should be reconstructed or not.

The ‘Postcard to Palmyra’ project forms part of a wider project run by Dr Kamash called 'Remembering the Romans in the Middle East and North Africa' https://rememberingromans.wordpress.com #RetroProject. This project aims to encourage people to make memorable encounters with Roman archaeology through writing, drawing and photography. This is an academic project and does not espouse particular religious or political views.

The transcription of the postcards will form a significant element of analyses that Dr Kamash will publish about how people responded to the installation of the arch in Trafalgar Square. If you would like to use the postcards in research, or would like more information on Dr Kamash’s research, please contact her directly on: Zena.Kamash@rhul.ac.uk or @ZenaKamash.

This project is on behalf of:

This application is on behalf of Royal Holloway, University of London.

Find the code on GitHub: