Introduction. The Oriental School of Rome: Research Areas

The ongoing research project at the ISO titled The Oriental School of Rome: History, Figures, Cultural Scene, Manuscript and Book Collections aims to examine the last two centuries of Oriental Studies in Rome. The project focuses on three main areas: the general history and perspectives of Oriental Studies in Rome, the prominent figures in the field whose contributions are relatively unknown internationally, and the significant manuscript and book collections preserved in Rome. The project has enabled the examination of a sequence of pertinent and hitherto unexplored historical queries. These encompass three separate yet intimately linked subjects: the adjacency between Oriental Studies in Rome and the political domain, the ideological correlation between Oriental Studies in Rome and Italian colonialism, and the continuity of Oriental Studies in Rome before and after the city’s capture.