Juan de Lara
Correspondence address:
Khalili Research Centre, 3 St John Street, Oxford OX1 2LG, UK
E-mail address:
Research interests:
Early Islamic Art and Architecture
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Arabian culture and history
Classical and Late Antiquity in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean
Hellenism in the Near East
Religion and faith
Current projects:
The Art and Excavations of Qaryat al Faw (Saudi Arabia)
Golden Splendour: The Art of Goldthread in the Medieval Muslim World (with Ana Cabrera Lafuente)
Selected Publications:
De Lara, J. and Cabrera-Lafuente, A. 2025 (forthcoming). Golden Splendour: The Art of Goldthread in Medieval Egypt. Cairo: AUC Press.
De Lara, J. 2023 (forthcoming). The marzēaḥ of Qaryat al Faw: The Third-Century CE Frescoes and their Egyptian Connections. The 56th Seminar for Arabian Studies, Moesgaard Museum and Aarhus University, Denmark. August 2023.
De Lara, J. 2023 (forthcoming). The City of Paradise: Qaryat al Fāw - An Emporium Between the Classical and Islamic World. Dar al-Athar al-Islamiyyah (DAI) 28th Cultural Season - Lecture Series (September 2023 – April 2024). December 2023.
Behrens-Abouseif, D. and De Lara, J. 2023 (in print). The Mermaid in Fatimid Art. Proceedings from the Online Conference Fatimid Cosmopolitanism: History, Material Culture, Politics, and Religion. The Institute of Ismaili Studies Aga Khan Centre (6–9 December 2021). London: The Institute of Ismaili Studies.
De Lara, J. 2023a (in print). “Set the Gaze on Fire:” Gold-Cloth Furnishing and Sacred Propaganda in the Courts of Early Islam (Published MA dissertation). Journal of Material Cultures in the Muslim World.
De Lara, J. 2023b. Smelling the Past: Incense, Perfumes, and Other Olfactory Miracles from the Incense Routes. Conference Series at the Jeddah Arts Biennale (Diriyah Biennale Foundation): 28 January 2023, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
De Lara, J. 2023c (in print). 3D Physically-based Rendering Applied to the Problem of Translucent Tiles of Marble as Means of Illuminating Classical Greek Temples - The Parthenon as Case Study. Journal of Archaeological Sciences: Reports. VSI: Archaeology of Light.
De Lara, J. 2022a. A 3D Physically-Based Approach for The Problem of Translucent Marble Tiles and the Illumination of Classical Greek Temples. 28th EAA Annual Meeting – Session: From Fire to Light. (Budapest). September 2022.
De Lara, J. 2022b. Cross-culturation with Classical Hellenism in Late Antique Arabia. In: Ozturk, O; Gazi, X; and Bowker, S. (Eds.) Deconstructing the Myths of Islamic Art. New York; London: Routledge. 28–45.
De Lara, J. 2021a. ‘Islamic Hellenism:’ The Emergence of Islamic Art in Arabia within the Globalised Culture of Late Antiquity." VIAHSS: The Virtual Islamic Art History Seminar Series. Harvard University. 26 May 2021 (Online). Available at: https://www.academia.edu/video/kbQbvl
de Lara, J. 2021b. “Experiencing the Parthenon: Temple illumination using 3D physically-based rendering” – British School at Athens. Conference papers: 8 November 2021. Available at: https://www.bsa.ac.uk/videos/experiencing-the-parthenon-3d-rendering/
Behrens-Abouseif, D. and De Lara, J. 2021. Late Antiquity in Fatimid Art. Late Antique Cosmopolitanism: History, Material Culture, Politics, and Religion. The Institute of Ismaili Studies Aga Khan Centre September. 8 December 2021.
De Lara, J. 2020a. From Legends to Sovereigns: The Foundation of the Imperial Vision of Qajar Persia. Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre. 23 October 2020 (Online)
De Lara, J. 2020b. Cultural Diplomacy: A guide through the challenges of cultural charities. 12 November 2019, University of Goldsmiths, London.
De Lara, J. 2021. Converging Paths Podcasts: Arts in Isolation Series – Asia House and Barakat Trust. Available at: https://asiahousearts.org/arts-in-isolation-podcasts-2
De Lara, J. 2019. Trade in the Modern Islamic World. Sotheby’s Institute, London.
Other Affiliations:
Director of The Armenian institute in London
Trustee of Global Learning London
Elected Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society
Member of the International Association for the Study of Arabia
Member of The Egypt Exploration Society
