ISSE, 58, South William Street, Dublin (2026)

13/10/2026

🎃TONIGHT🎃ISSE HALLOWEEN TALK 🎃
Jay presents The Illustrated Egyptianised Gothic – The uncanny and visually captivating world of Egyptian Gothic book illustrations 🖌️

⏰ 13th October 7pm BST online via zoom

🎃🎃🎃
Appropriately timed for the atmospheric chill of October, this lecture invites you to explore the uncanny and visually captivating world of Egyptian Gothic book illustrations.
📖📖📖
From the provocative works of pornographer Martin Van Maele to the meticulous, atmospheric depictions by Royal Academy painter Maurice Grieffenhagen, the illustrations of the Egyptian Gothic represent a complex art form unto themselves. Steeped in the era’s fascinations and anxieties surrounding the arcane, these works frequently navigate the dark intersections of history, horror, and desire. In this highly illustrated talk, Dr. Jay Sullivan will unwrap the visual narratives of the genre’s bestselling novels through the lenses of gaze theory, gender, and sexuality. By analyzing these haunting visuals, Dr. Sullivan will demonstrate that these illustrations are far from mere decoration; rather, they are grounded in a complex history of how art is utilized to construct meaning, direct the viewer’s gaze, and communicate power.
🪲🪲🪲
About the speaker:
Dr Jay Sullivan is a writer and researcher based in South London. She holds a PhD from the University of Roehampton and a MA in Victorian Studies from Birkbeck College. Egyptian Gothic: 1884-1920 is her first book.
Outside of research, she is a digital expert specialising in public and heritage organisations. She has been in charge of website and social media strategy for organisations such as the London Fire Brigade, Natural History Museum, and the Royal Air Force Museum.
🎟️ tickets! Members go free & no need to book!
Non member tickets, please head to our website issegyptomania.com (link in bio!)

12/10/2026

TOMORROW 7pm BST online!🎃🎃🎃
ISSE Halloween lecture: the Illustrated Egyptianised Gothic by Dr Jay
🪲🪲🪲
About the speaker:
Dr Jay Sullivan is a writer and researcher based in South London. She holds a PhD from the University of Roehampton and a MA in Victorian Studies from Birkbeck College. Egyptian Gothic: 1884-1920 is her first book.
Outside of research, she is a digital expert specialising in public and heritage organisations. She has been in charge of website and social media strategy for organisations such as the London Fire Brigade, Natural History Museum, and the Royal Air Force Museum.
🪲🪲🪲
ISSE members go free & no need to book!
Non members: tickets £5, head to issegyptomania.com (link in bio) to get a ticket!

05/10/2026

ISSE HALLOWEEN TALK 🎃
Jay presents The Illustrated Egyptianised Gothic – The uncanny and visually captivating world of Egyptian Gothic book illustrations 🖌️

⏰ 13th October 7pm BST online via zoom

🎃🎃🎃
Appropriately timed for the atmospheric chill of October, this lecture invites you to explore the uncanny and visually captivating world of Egyptian Gothic book illustrations.
📖📖📖
From the provocative works of pornographer Martin Van Maele to the meticulous, atmospheric depictions by Royal Academy painter Maurice Grieffenhagen, the illustrations of the Egyptian Gothic represent a complex art form unto themselves. Steeped in the era’s fascinations and anxieties surrounding the arcane, these works frequently navigate the dark intersections of history, horror, and desire. In this highly illustrated talk, Dr. Jay Sullivan will unwrap the visual narratives of the genre’s bestselling novels through the lenses of gaze theory, gender, and sexuality. By analyzing these haunting visuals, Dr. Sullivan will demonstrate that these illustrations are far from mere decoration; rather, they are grounded in a complex history of how art is utilized to construct meaning, direct the viewer’s gaze, and communicate power.
🪲🪲🪲
About the speaker:
Dr Jay Sullivan is a writer and researcher based in South London. She holds a PhD from the University of Roehampton and a MA in Victorian Studies from Birkbeck College. Egyptian Gothic: 1884-1920 is her first book.
Outside of research, she is a digital expert specialising in public and heritage organisations. She has been in charge of website and social media strategy for organisations such as the London Fire Brigade, Natural History Museum, and the Royal Air Force Museum.
🎟️ tickets! Members go free & no need to book!
Non member tickets, please head to our website issegyptomania.com (link in bio!)

19/09/2026

📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖
After the ISSE Book Club is before the ISSE Book Club 😊 And our new and wonderful book choices are just waiting to be read. So, what are you waiting for?
Our next ISSE Book Club meeting takes place on 27 JANUARY 2027 at 7pm GMT. The books we are currently reading, selected by our members, are:

📖Fiction: The Shabti by Megaera C. Lorenz
📖Non fiction: Nefertiti Lived Here by Mary Chubb

For more information on the online ISSE Book Club and how it works, see https://www.issegyptomania.com/book-club

Do you love discussing books? Do you want to join us? As this is a members only event – it was important for us to create a safe space for discussion –, you can sign up to be a member at
https://www.issegyptomania.com/membership
We have membership concessions available too. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to get in touch ☺️
📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖📚📖

P.S. Keep your eyes open for the announcement of our next ISSE Book Club Special – Meet the Author 🤫

15/09/2026

TOMORROW 🪲 Join us on 16th September at 7pm BST for a talk by Fatma Keshk titled: About Egyptian Staff Members in the Scene of Antiquities’ Management in Egypt (1880s–1910s)
🪲🪲🪲
About the speaker:
Fatma Keshk is an Egyptologist and a heritage outreach expert. She worked with several local and international institutions and was the director of the archaeology and architecture section at the center of documentation of cultural and natural heritage at the Library of Alexandria. Her recent research concentrates on reconstructing the unknown history of Egyptian Egyptology and on exploring the perceptions of history by contemporary Egyptians. Fatma is an associate researcher at Ifao and corresponding member of the DAI. Since September 2024, Fatma has been the Senior Acquisitions Editor for Archaeology and Ancient Egypt at the American University in Cairo Press.
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About the event:
It is only in 1952, that the high management positions of the “Service des Antiquities” became purely Egyptian. Away from the postcolonial perspectives that mainly stress on the complete absence and/or the rare presence of Egyptian members at the “Service des Antiquites” since its founding in the 19th century and until 1952, this lecture will explore a possible alternative narrative that highlights the different positions held by Egyptian employees at the “Service”, some aspects of their day-to-day work, administrative structure and work environment.

This lecture is an attempt to view these Egyptian members of the “Service des Antiquites” through their professional setting, as an evaluation of their true role in the management of Egypt’s antiquities as documented in the archives. This lecture will present some of the results of the postdoctoral research, “Local Actors, Institutions and Manifested Identity: Exploring the Presence of Ancient Civilisation in Egypt (1830-1930)” funded by the Fritz-Thyssen Stiftung in 2023-2024.
🪲🪲🪲
Members go free & no need to book!
Non member tickets £5: head to issegyptomania.com (or click the link in bio!)

03/09/2026

Join us on 16th September at 7pm BST for a talk by Fatma Keshk titled: About Egyptian Staff Members in the Scene of Antiquities’ Management in Egypt (1880s–1910s)
🪲🪲🪲
About the event:

It is only in 1952, that the high management positions of the “Service des Antiquities” became purely Egyptian. Away from the postcolonial perspectives that mainly stress on the complete absence and/or the rare presence of Egyptian members at the “Service des Antiquites” since its founding in the 19th century and until 1952, this lecture will explore a possible alternative narrative that highlights the different positions held by Egyptian employees at the “Service”, some aspects of their day-to-day work, administrative structure and work environment.

This lecture is an attempt to view these Egyptian members of the “Service des Antiquites” through their professional setting, as an evaluation of their true role in the management of Egypt’s antiquities as documented in the archives. This lecture will present some of the results of the postdoctoral research, “Local Actors, Institutions and Manifested Identity: Exploring the Presence of Ancient Civilisation in Egypt (1830-1930)” funded by the Fritz-Thyssen Stiftung in 2023-2024.
🪲🪲🪲
About the speaker:

Fatma Keshk is an Egyptologist and a heritage outreach expert. She worked with several local and international institutions and was the director of the archaeology and architecture section at the center of documentation of cultural and natural heritage at the Library of Alexandria. Her recent research concentrates on reconstructing the unknown history of Egyptian Egyptology and on exploring the perceptions of history by contemporary Egyptians. Fatma is an associate researcher at Ifao and corresponding member of the DAI. Since September 2024, Fatma has been the Senior Acquisitions Editor for Archaeology and Ancient Egypt at the American University in Cairo Press.
🪲🪲🪲
Members go free & no need to book!
Non member tickets £5: head to issegyptomania.com (or click the link in bio!)

28/08/2026

Today marks one year since we lost our friend and ISSE Ambassador John J. Johnston.

We have felt his absence deeply in the past 12 months and we want to take this opportunity to remember our kind, clever and stylish friend.

Without John’s support, ISSE would not be what it is today. He offered guidance, friendship, knowledge and championed our work. We are blessed to have known such a special man.

We continue to add to our memorial page and encourage the wider community to send in any suggestions or additions so that we may do our small part to keep his memory alive. You can find it over on our website along with our obituary and an interview.

We will always remember John in everything that we do.

To John’s husband John, Augustus, and all of their family and friends, our thoughts are with you today.

Vale, dear John.

09/08/2026

Yesterday was the 5th annual ISSE online conference! 4 panels, 14 speakers, and one hilarious quiz (IYKYK), this year’s conference was full of outstanding research, incredible presentations, and a brilliant welcoming community, we loved every minute of it!
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A huge thank you to the speakers, ambassadors, entire ISSE committee, members, and attendees! Here’s to the next one!
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01/08/2026

Meet the speakers of The Fifth Annual ISSE Online Conference… Classic Conventions, Contemporary Conversations: The Reception of Egypt
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All speaker bios and abstracts are available to read in the conference programme! Head to our website issegyptomania.com (or lick the link in our bio) to read!
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Tickets are now on sale! Head to our website to purchase one!
*Members go FREE! To become a member, head to the membership section on our website!
🪲🪲🪲
See you next Saturday!🤩

26/07/2026

Good news! Tickets are now available to buy for The Fifth Annual ISSE Online Conference - Classic Conventions,
Contemporary Conversations: The Reception of Egypt 🪲
•
The full programme is also available to view on our website: issegyptomania.com (link in bio)
•
ISSE members go free & no booking required. Non - ISSE members, please purchase your tickets from our website issegyptomania.com (link in bio!)
•
See you on 8th August! 🪲
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