Xth International Congress of Egyptologists, Rhodes, 22-29 May 2008 - First Announcement

Dear Colleagues,
In accordance with the decision of the General Assembly of the International Association of Egyptologists during its session in Grenoble, on 10 September 2004, Egyptologists from all countries are cordially invited to take part in the Xth International Congress of Egyptologists, which will be held at Rodos Palace Hotel & Convention Center (www.rodos-palace.gr) in the island of Rhodes, Greece, from 22 to 29 May 2008.

Disciplines & Themes
The work of the Congress will be organized on a series of major themes within Egyptology, with a particular focus on multi-disciplinary approaches to general themes. Participants will be asked to orient their contributions towards one of the major themes, whatever the nature of the evidence and source material they are working with. The list of major themes for the Congress is yet to be decided but suggestions have included the following topics:
Cultural Heritage
Egypt – Greece in Antiquity: ethnicity, cross-cultural interactions and adaptations
Archaeology and History of Art
The Egyptian belief-system: knowledge, sacred and profane
Sociology
Literature and Philology
The Archaic state and the origins of culture
Foreign Relations and Diplomacy
The list is not exclusive. The named themes are merely intended to provide a focus of discussion. Suggestions and comments from potential participants about themes to which they would like to contribute will be most welcome. Papers will be assigned to individual sessions within the wider themes on the basis of abstracts submitted and it is intended, so far as is possible, to associate multi-disciplinary approaches to selected issues. Papers that do not fit this thematic approach will be grouped together under the major disciplines headings of archaeology, art, religion and language. Appropriate slots in the timetable will also be made available for communications giving news of work in progress in all fields of Egyptology. In addition to the papers read, special forums for work-groups will be considered and facilities will be provided for poster sessions and visual displays. Participants should provide the Organising Committee with details of display area required and format of displays at the earliest possible date.
The emphasis will be on the widest academic participation and the highest academic quality that can be achieved for the Congress, within the context of an open forum for all branches of Egyptology and access for juniors as well as senior scholars. In conformance with modern trends in academic conferences, the Organising Committee proposes to administer a refereed Congress. Acceptance on the programme is on the basis of peer review of the abstracts submitted. The eventual publication of papers will also be subject to referee.

Academic Committee (in alphavetical order)
John Baines (Oxford), Christopher J. Eyre (Liverpool), Nicholas Grimal (Paris), Zahi Hawass (Cairo), Yvan Koenig (Paris), Alan B. Lloyd (Swansea), Ludwig Morenz (Leipzig), Joachim Friedrich Quack (Heidelberg), Robert K. Ritner (Chicago), Alessandro Roccati (Rome), Pascal Vernus (Paris).

Abstract Guidelines
Registration and abstracts must be submitted electronically in .doc format (see the congress web site for more information). Abstracts should be between 500 and 800 words in length with single line and normal character spacing and in 12pt Times New Roman (10pt for references) fonts. Each abstract should contain the following information: Title, Name(s) and affiliation(s) of the author(s), Postal and email address of the author(s). The deadline for the submission of abstracts will be 1 September 2007 to allow for printing and distribution to participants in advance of the Congress.

Provisional Programme
Thursday 22 May: Arrival of participants.
Friday 23 May – Wednesday 28 May: Working sessions.
Thursday 29 May: Closing session. General Assembly of the International Association of Egyptologists.

Important Dates
September 2006: first announcement
July 2007: second announcement
1 September 2007: deadline for the pre-registration and submission of abstracts
1 January 2008: deadline for the late registration
February 2008: final announcement with complete programme and participants list

Information
Congress website:
www.rhodes.aegean.gr/tms/congress2008.htm(active from November 2006)
Email:
kousoulis@rhodes.aegean.gr
congress2008@rhodes.aegean.gr (active from November 2006)
On behalf of the Organising Committee
Panagiotis Kousoulis

Panagiotis I.M. Kousoulis, MA/Ph.D (Liverpool)
Lecturer in Egyptology
Archaeology Division
Department of Mediterranean Studies
University of the Aegean
1 Demokratias Av.,
Rhodes 85100, Greece
Tel/Fax: 0030 22410 99341
Mob: 0030 6944945907