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.
