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What is...Iconoclasm?

A Folger Institute event

Early modern print showing religious objects being removed from a church and burned and statues pulled down — Folger Shakespeare Library. Digital Image File Name 8128.

Booking and details

This event has passed.

Dates Thu, Nov 02, 2023, 3pm

Tickets Free; registration required

Duration 2 hours

A Zoom access link will be provided to registered participants closer to the date. This virtual event will take place in Eastern Time (ET).

This virtual conversation asks how the early modern history of religious iconoclasm — the intentional destruction of images and symbols — might help us better understand our present moment. Where do contemporary acts of violence against secular monuments and art fit within this history?

Graduate students are encouraged to join a separate breakout Q&A at the conclusion of the session.

The Folger Institute is a center for advanced research in the early modern humanities at the Folger Shakespeare Library. Learn more.

About the “What is…?” Series

The “What is…” series of virtual afternoon workshops invites you to join an open conversation on important early modern ideas and how they relate to our modern world. In this first round of workshops, scholars from a range of disciplines will guide individual sessions on “Secularity,” “Consent,” “Iconoclasm,” and “Revolution.” Their conversation will be followed by space for participant discussion and questions.