British Institute for Libyan & Northern African Studies (BILNAS)

The new round of @bilnas.bsky.social grant applications has just opened and I am particularly pleased that a BILNAS-ACE small grant for research in Algeria will be available this year. Open to applicants of any nationality from the humanities and social sciences:
www.bilnas.org/research-act...

📢 ATTENTION SCHOLARS 📢

It's time to submit your application for a BILNAS research grant.

Click on this link to check your eligibility and to download an application form: bilnas.org/research-act...

📅 Deadline: Friday 27 February 2026.

#Grants #Funding #NorthAfrica #Libya

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In addition, he has examined a Sloane manuscript at @britishlibrary.bsky.social that directly relates to the project and is continuing his research at the @soaslibrary.bsky.social.

Ahmet Tekin is conducting archival research at @natarchivestrust.bsky.social as part of the British International Research Institutes (BIRI) 'Ottoman Mobilities and Interactions' project, focusing on diplomatic correspondence sent from Ottoman territories to England.

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🏛 Journey through the BILNAS Archives

📸 Photographs of Libyan Pottery Fragments in a museum setting.

The items were contained within an envelope labelled "Photos: Libyan Pottery (Provence Unknown)."

© BILNAS Archive: Cedric N. Johns Papers (2 May 1949 - 14 May 1969) BILNAS/D7/2/6

YouTube video by BILNAS Bizarre Dinosaurs from the Middle Jurassic of Morocco: Implications for Armoured Dinosaur Evolution

Last week's BILNAS lecture by Prof Susannah Maidment of @nhm-london.bsky.social, 'Bizarre Dinosaurs from the Middle Jurassic of Morocco: Implications for Armoured Dinosaur Evolution' is now available to stream on the BILNAS YouTube channel.

Click here to view the recording: youtu.be/YleuITbBlyg

Call for Papers for the “Ottoman Mobilities and Interactions” Symposium, 13-14 April 2026 Istanbul, Türkiye Call for Papers BILNAS, as part of the British International Research Institutes (BIRI), and in partnership with Sabancı University, invite paper proposals for a symposium organised as part of the "O...

📣 Call for Papers and Deadline Extension: "Ottoman Mobilities and Interactions" Symposium, Mon 13 –Tues 14 April 2026, Istanbul, Türkiye.

ℹ️ Please note the deadline for submissions has been extended to Friday 23 January 2026.

For more information visit our website at: bilnas.org/event/call-f...

Dorothy Nairn Marshall is pictured here drawing a skeleton in 1952 at a dig sight in Jericho on the West Bank of Palestine.

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As Miriam Davis notes, Marshall was “one of the most important and constant members” of the 1952 Jericho expedition. (Davis, Dame Kathleen Kenyon: Digging Up the Holy Land, p. 108).

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Marshall’s photographic scrapbooks from the 1951 Sabratha expedition offer a rare, personal glimpse into the daily lives of the expedition party. Her professional commitment was so crucial, she served as Registrar for every season of Kenyon’s excavations in Jerusalem from 1952 to 1958!

Aerial view of the Sabratha site, 1946-51.

🏛 Journey Through the BILNAS Archives

📸 Aerial view of the Sabratha site, 1946-51.

Did you know that the unsung heroes of archaeology are often behind the camera? Meet Dorothy Nairn Marshall (1900-1992), a photographer and critical member of Kathleen Kenyon's team.

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Rare Roman coin reveals historical details about the third century AD in Libya Benghazi - Dr. Khaled Mohamed Al-Haddar revealed historical details. He is a faculty member in the Department of Archaeology at Benghazi University. The details

Rare Roman Coin Reveals Historical Details about the Third Century AD in Libya

The coin was found in Qasr Al-Ajouz, near Daryanah, eastern Libya (historically Cyrenaica). The bronze coin dates back to the Emperor Gordian III who ruled the Roman Empire 238-244 AD.

libyaupdate.com/rare-roman-c...

Libya’s National Museum: Inside the daring plan to save its past Long before Libya’s National Museum reopened in 2025, a covert operation in 2011 quietly safeguarded its most precious artefacts from destruction and theft

Libya's National Museum: Inside the Daring Plan to Save its Past

Long before Libya's National Museum reopened in 2025, a covert operation in 2011 quietly safeguarded its most precious artefacts from destruction and theft.

READ: newarab.com/features/lib...

via @thenewarab.bsky.social

journal cover

Libyan Studies Vol. 56 (2025) www.cambridge.org/core/journal... @bilnas.bsky.social
@carolinebarron.bsky.social

Discovering mysterious Middle Jurassic dinosaurs in Morocco | Natural History Museum Discover how new fossils of the unusual dinosaur Spicomellus were found in Morocco.

Visit the @nhm-london.bsky.social website to read more about the research Prof Maidment and her colleagues have been doing into Morocco’s Middle Jurassic:

“By studying this region, we’re putting northern Morocco and the Atlas Mountains on the palaeontology map."

www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/dis...

Bizarre Dinosaurs from the Middle Jurassic of Morocco: Implications for Armoured Dinosaur Evolution by Susannah Maidment The Middle Jurassic is a critical time in the evolution of the dinosaurs because it witnessed the radiation of many groups, giving rise to a diversity of familiar forms such as the plated stegosaurs a...

Prof Susannah Maidment, Principal Researcher in Fossil Reptiles at the @nhm-london.bsky.social, will be delivering the next BILNAS lecture on Tuesday 13 January, at 5pm. This promises to be a fascinating presentation. Follow this link for more info and to register:

www.bilnas.org/event/bizarr...

Season’s Greetings and a Happy New Year from everyone at BILNAS 🎉

Start the New Year by becoming a BILNAS member or support us through donations!

For membership visit our website at: bilnas.org/membership/

For donations and sponsorship opportunities: bilnas.org/donations/

Here's to a great 2026!

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As Christmas is celebrated around the world, one is reminded of the traditions that connect people across continents and centuries, like this fascinating archive photo of Christmas Day in Lepcis Magna, 1910.

© BILNAS Archive: Olwen Brogan Papers (19th cent-1989) BILNAS/D41/3/11/42

🎅 Journey Through The BILNAS Archives

📸 Christmas Day 1910 at Lepcis Magna, shows DeCou, Norton, Hoppin, Curtis, Mott, Camillieri, Sladden and George Morgan.

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YouTube video by British School at Rome Understanding Ancient Tripolitania: Research, Partnerships & Knowledge Sharing (BSR/BILNAS Workshop)

Reminds me of this wonderful video interview we recorded with Joyce (her last?) for a very special @bsrome.bsky.social / @bilnas.bsky.social workshop a few years ago. Her reflections on early post-war BSR days, and working with Ward-Perkins in North Africa are amazing.
youtu.be/-cHRfEaBhnU?...

Event Programme: Pottery Production and Circulation in Northern Africa from Late Antiquity to the Post-Medieval Period.

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The event was a great success with over 60 attendees in Tunis from across the Mediterranean and the UK.

Presentations were of a high level and the discussions were lively and stimulating. Attendees left with new ideas and perspectives, as well as plenty of material for further discussion.

Attendees and speakers at “Pottery Production and Circulation in Northern Africa from Late Antiquity to the Post-Medieval Period”

BILNAS is proud to have co-sponsored the international conference “Pottery Production and Circulation in Northern Africa from Late Antiquity to the Post-Medieval Period,” which took place earlier this month, 2-4 December 2025.

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“Volubilis, Remains of the North gate and the flanking tower on its E. side. The town of Moulay Idriss can be seen in the distance, in the valley of the O. Khroumane."

© BILNAS Archive: David J. Smith and Jeremy Johns Material (Jan 1950-14 July 1978) BILNAS/D4/2/3/2

🏛 Journey Through the BILNAS Archives

📸 Photographs Relating to Roman Morocco Expedition Report.

The photos were contained within an envelope with the manuscript label "B. Roman Morocco - Expedition Report." Several of them feature manuscript notes on verso 32.

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Museum housing Libya's ancient treasures reopens for first time since 2011 uprising that toppled Gadhafi Libya's National Museum in Tripoli, housed in the Red Castle, has reopened for the first time since ...

Libya's National Museum in Tripoli, housed in the Red Castle, has reopened for the first time since the 2011 uprising. It showcases 5,000 years of Libyan history. #Libya #News

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Her crystal-clear illustrations transformed complex excavations on paper into stunning 2- and 3-D reconstructions that brought these excavated places to life.

© BILNAS Archive: Miscellaneous Records from the Newcastle Archive (1 May 1951 - 6 February 1974) BILNAS/D38/5

🏛 Journey Through The BILNAS Archives

Sheila Gibson Cyrene drawings, this one shows a frieze section from Cyrene.

Sheila Gibson (1920-2002) occupied a special place in the worlds of archaeology and art by virtue of her extraordinary gifts as an architect and draughtsperson.

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...and Dr Martin Longden CMG OBE, former British Ambassador to Libya, spoke with the LBBC president, Peter Millett CMG.

A drinks reception followed, which provided a good opportunity for everyone to get together and discuss shared interests.

We look forward to the next BILNAS-LBBC event!

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Thanks to all who attended the Libya-UK Reception: Celebrating Collaboration in Business, Culture & Heritage, with the LBBC and BILNAS

This brought together organisations and individuals passionate about strengthening Libya-UK relations.

Professor Anna Leone presented the work of BILNAS...

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Looking forward to our next @ics.bsky.social – British Museum seminar with another terrific group of speakers, incl @hardeepdhindsa.bsky.social @drmaimusie.bsky.social, Eleanor Newman & Joe Skinner. Register at link below!