Dr. Konstantin Akinsha

The proposed project dedicated to the Italian ecclesiastic architecture in the British Mandate for Palestine/the state of Israel investigates charged relations between international politics, ideology of mapping/reclaiming the holy sites,  architecture and interpretation of sacred. The projected is focused on activity of such architects who worked for La Custodia di Terra Santa as Antonio Barluzzi (1884 – 1960) and Govanni Muzzio.

The project will address the following topics:

• The Age of Empires: Cathedral as a Fortress and the Marker - Drafting the National Borders in the Holy Land
• Filling the Void - Italian Architecture in the Interbellum Palestine  
• Who Owns the Tomb of Jesus? 1930s Plans of Reconstruction of the Church of Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.
• Saints among the Enemies: Architectural Projects of La Custodia di Terra Santa during the First Decades of the State of Israel.