Levantine Heritage Foundation

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Levantine Heritage Foundation

The Levantine Heritage Foundation (LHF) promotes and supports research, education, and public discourse on the history and community of Levantines.

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/LevantineH?s=09

09/08/2026

Call for papers for our upcoming joint symposium with the Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris to be held in Paris on 29th October 2026 - provisional flyer:https://www.levantineheritage.com/pdf/villes-du-levant-flyer.pdf
call for papers:https://www.levantineheritage.com/pdf/Call-for-papers-Paris-IAM+LHF-symposium.pdf
call for papers French version:https://www.levantineheritage.com/pdf/Call-for-papers-Paris-IAM+LHF-symposium-fr.pdf
Deadline for papers submission: 15 September 2026
Save the date, registration coming soon.

16/07/2026

The Church of St. Anthony of Padua, better known as ‘Saint-Antoine’ is the largest church of the Roman Catholic church in Istanbul and the most eye-catching place of worship in Beyoğlu. The original church on the site, built in 1725 by the Italian community in Istanbul, was later demolished and replaced by the current building – which was designed in the Italian neo-Gothic style by the Levantine architect Giulio Mongeri (a teacher at the Academy of Fine Arts) and constructed between 1906 and 1912. Pope John XXIII preached here for 10 years while serving as the Vatican’s ambassador to Turkey before being chosen as pope; there is a statue of him in the courtyard. The floreats of stone on top of the pillars and the blue vaulted ceilings give it an uplifting feel.
The stone armorials around the outside walls of the forward outbuildings number more than a dozen and seem to point to the coats of arms of various Italian cities. This would suggest they date from a period pre Italian unification of 1861, well before the construction date of the current church. This points to either a nostalgic nod to the places of origin of the various strands of the Italian community were incorporated in this Mongeri building or these emblems were re-used from the earlier church. Some of the identifications in this gallery are tentative, we would appreciate help from those more knowledgeable in this matter - https://www.levantineheritage.com/armorials-st-antoine.html

25/06/2026

Thank you to all of our speakers, contributors and chairs yesterday evening, despite the tropic heat of London!
Second joint School of Advanced Studies / Levantine Heritage Foundation hybrid symposium: ‘Languages of the Levant’, Maureen Freely, Miguel Selvelli and George Vassiadis, chaired by Katia Pizzi and Philip Mansel, 24 June 2026 - Senate House, University of London - also in the centre of the photo George Galdies holding a copy of his book 'A Lexicon of Smyneika' - https://www.levantineheritage.com/george-galdies-submission.html
Event flyer:https://www.levantineheritage.com/pdf/Languages-of-the-Levant-symposium.pdf

22/06/2026

Call for papers for Joint seminar with Travelers in Ottoman Lands (TIOL) - 20-24 April 2027, Salonica, Greece - final date for submission of proposals is 15 November 2026.
Call for papers:https://www.levantineheritage.com/pdf/TIOL4-cfp.pdf

04/05/2026

Latest LHF newsletter, no: 30 Spring 2026, is out:https://www.levantineheritage.com/pdf/LHF-Newsletter-Spring-2026-edition.pdf
Cover photo courtesy of Yavuz Corapcioglu.

28/04/2026

The Great Fire of Smyrna of 1922, the only known contemporary painting of this dramatic event. It is not clear if the artist, Ovide Curtovich, was an eye-witness. Oil painting displayed in the Benaki Museum, Athens.
Ovide Curtovich is almost forgotten in his home city of Smyrna / Izmir yet he was undoubtedly one of the most capable Orientalist style painters to come from that once multi-cultural centre. He was himself part of the mixing pot, from Croatia, mother from Smyrna. For somebody so capable, vital information on him is missing, such as his location of birth (probably Smyrna) and death, place of burial and where he moved post 1922, and this painting maybe the last he created? He was active from at least 1896 and his paintings now command high prices when they come up in auction. His fine style is clearly shown in this gallery and no doubt there are more to be added and hopefully this gallery will act as an impetus for others to be shared here, thus building a fuller picture of his oeuvre.
https://www.levantineheritage.com/curtovich-paintings.html

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