We are pleased to announce the Symposium
“A Transdisciplinary Approach to Mughal Studies:
A symposium in honour of Professor Ebba Koch’s scholarly works”.

On the occasion of Professor Ebba Koch’s 80th birthday, a symposium will take place at the Academy of Sciences in Vienna. Based on the scientific achievements of the internationally renowned art historian on the Mughal Empire and its exchange with other Empires of its time, new interdisciplinary research approaches will be discussed.

The focus is on studies of Indo-Islamic culture, architecture and garden art, of the relationships between Mughal India and Europe as well as of the Millionenzimmer of Schönbrunn Palace, which take up and critically examine recent developments, particularly in relation to transcultural and global research. For this purpose, international experts from different disciplines are invited: art history, architectural history, global history, Iranian studies, linguistics, and cultural anthropology.

The symposium will be accompanied by an exhibition of Ebba Koch’s archive material (architectural drawings and photographs), some of which have not yet been published. The aim of the symposium is – apart from honoring Ebba Koch’s merits – to revitalize Vienna as a scientific center for research on the Mughal Empire and to strengthen the interdisciplinary collaboration between leading experts of the field.

Friday, 15 March 2024, 9.30 am – 6.00 pm

Venue: Institute of Iranian Studies, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Postsparkasse,
Georg-Coch-Platz 2, 1010 Vienna, seminar rooms 1 and 2, 3rd floor

9:30-10:00 Entrance
10:00-10:15 Christine Nölle-Karimi (Austrian Academy of Sciences, Iranian studies)
Welcome

Panel 1: The Range of Influence of Mughal Art
Chair: Markus Ritter

10:15-10:45 Partha Mitter (Sussex University, Art history)
“Early Indian Photography and the complex legacy of the Mughal Empire”

10:45-11:15 Sara Mondini (Ghent University, Art history)
“Architectural forms and identities: the case of Malabar mosques”

11:15-11:45 Florian Schwarz (Austrian Academy of Sciences, Iranian studies)
“Palaces and gardens in Bukhara”

11:45-12:00 Coffee break

Panel 2: On the Spot
Chair: Barbara Karl

12:00-12:30 Ratish Nanda (Aga Khan Trust, New Delhi, Architectural history)
“Conserving Mughal monuments of Nizamuddin”

12:30-13:00 Ebba Koch (University of Vienna, Art history) und Richard Barraud (New Delhi, Architecture)
Introduction to the exhibition

13:00-15:00 Lunch for participants

15:00-15:30 Stephan Popp (University of Vienna, Iranian studies)
“The development of epistolary style under Jahangir”

15:30-16:00 Jorge Flores (University of Lisbon, Global history)
“From Capital to Capital: Shahjahan on the Move through the European Lens (1638, 1648)”

16:00-16:15 Coffee break

Panel 3: Display of Power
Chair: Corinna Forberg

16:15-16:45 Jos Gommans (Leiden University, Global history)
“Neoplatonic sun-worship in India and Europe”

16:45-17:15 Corinne Lefèvre (French National Centre for Scientific Research, South Asian Studies)
“The king at the window: origins and circulations of a visual topos of Mughal majestas”

17:15-17:45 Elfriede Iby (Schönbrunn Palace, Art history)
“A new interior in memoriam – the so-called Million Room”

17:45-18:00 Ebba Koch
Final remarks

Organizing committee:
Corinna Forberg (corinna.forbergfreenet.de)
Christiane Kalantari (christiane.kalantarioeaw.ac.at)
Simone Wille (Simone.Willeuibk.ac.at)

Convenor: Institute of Iranian studies (Austrian Academy of Sciences)
Funded by: Schönbrunn Palace (Schloß Schönbrunn Kultur- und Betriebsges.m.b.H.); Culture Department of the City of Vienna; Austria Pakistan Society