Journeys of enlightenment: exploring archaeological perspectives through the 19th century diaries of Maria Constança da Câmara, Marchioness of Fronteira

Activity: Talk or presentation › Oral presentation

Description

Maria Constança da Câmara (1801-1860), Marchioness of Fronteira by marriage, was a Portuguese aristocrat who left us one of the few known examples of Portuguese nineteenth-century diaries written by women. Written between 1826 and 1842, it covers the Portuguese and European revolutionary periods. The couple’s attachment to constitutional ideas led to their forced exile between 1823-1826 and 1829-1833, during which time they travelled around Europe, in territories now belonging to the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Austria, Germany and Italy. Although these journeys did not formally constitute a Grand Tour, as they were usually undertaken by unmarried men up to the age of 21, they nevertheless have some similarities. In addition to the social origins of those involved, the trips of the marquises of Fronteira, apart from the usual socialising with other members of the international aristocracy - dinners, soirées, attending the opera houses - included various visits to places of heritage, artistic, scientific, and Archaeological interest, such as palaces, churches, museums, and factories. The contact with new realities and the visits to these places are, like other forms of sociability, a characteristic element of the European aristocracy, as a social group, regardless of their geographical origin, especially at a time when there was an intense migratory flow caused by political instability in many of the southern European kingdoms. Analysing these visits to museums and other places of heritage interest, allows us to deepen our knowledge of various subjects in non-formal educational contexts and permitting us to see the existence of the production and reproduction of a transnational aesthetic and shared cultural and artistic consumption.
Period31 Aug 2024
Event title30th European Association of Archaeologists annual meeting: Persisting with Change
Event typeConference
Conference number30
LocationRome, ItalyShow on map
Degree of RecognitionInternational

Keywords

  • Grand Tour
  • Egodocuments
  • Marquesa de Fronteira
  • Aristocracy
  • Diário
  • travelogue
  • Travel literature
  • Travel
  • Italy
  • Cultural heritage
  • Cultural History
  • cultural education
  • Classical Education
  • Renaissance
  • Classicism
  • Archeology
  • Arqueologia Romana
  • Arqueologia Vesuviana
  • Elites europeias
  • Aristocracia
  • Educação
  • Educational Research
  • Educação; Abandono Escolar; Escolaridade; Formação ao longo da Vida; desigualdades educativas; Insucessos escolares
  • Educação Patrimonial

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