Course Programme (subject to possible change)

• The Grammar of Pilgrimage

In this session we will explore the idea of pilgrimage and its artefacts. With so much historical pilgrimage taking place in times when records were relatively scarce, what evidence is there for the forms and meanings of pilgrimage and how can art historians and other researches fill-in the gaps?

• East and West: Pilgrimage and the Crusades

One of the most important sites for pilgrimage by Christians was Jerusalem and the Holy Lands, but for many Western Christians pilgrimage to the Holy Lands only became possible after the capture of territories in the eastern Mediterranean by the Western Crusaders. In this session we will look at some of the influences on Western Christendom of this encounter with the east.

• Saints and Vampires

For All Hallows we have taken a slight detour. What is it about saints and vampires that makes them seem so similar? Are vampires really diabolical saints, and do they also have cult sites? 

• Saints and Shrines

This week we have a task for you. We are going to select three of our "favourite" saints (or least saints that interest us) and talk about their lives and identify a cult centre associated with them. This could be a major cathedral or it might be something as simple as a holy well. We would like each of you to choose one saint, tell us a little about their life and why you chose them, and also identify a cult site associated with them.

• Canterbury and St Thomas Becket

By far the most important pilgrimage site in England for much of the middle ages was Canterbury Cathedral and the shrine of St Thomas Becket. In this session we will look at the rise of Canterbury as a pilgrimage site, the cult of St Thomas Becket and the building and shrine itself as art historical artefacts.

• Roman Holy Days I: Mediaeval Rome

Aside from Jerusalem, Rome was the most important site for mediaeval Christian pilgrimage and in this session we will look at the rise of Rome as a pilgrimage site, accounts by travellers in the middle ages to Rome and the development of the shrine of St Peter into a template for other pilgrimage sites in the West.

• Roman Holy Days 2: Later Rome

Rome remained a key pilgrimage site long after the middle ages, and in this session we will look at the later creations of the architecture of pilgrimage and travellers' accounts of visits to Rome and other Italian pilgrimage sites, such as Assisi.

• The Heavenly City – Jerusalem

As we saw in week two, Jerusalem and the Holy Lands were the supreme location for Christian pilgrimage in at least the early middle ages and in this session we will think about what it meant and what it was like visiting the city in the middle ages, as well as looking at the sometimes confusing religious architecture of the city.

• Communities of Pilgrims

Pilgrimage was not simply a journey during the middle ages, it was also about joining a community - a new community to that into which a person was born. We see this in the community of story-telling travellers in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, but the community was also there for mutual aid, safety, to share expenses such as translators and guides and to keep each other company on what could be a very long and difficult journey. In this session we will also look at what happened if you didn't want to go on pilgrimage - what were the alternatives?

• Pilgrimage in the Age of Romanticism

It might seem a cliche to point out that religious pilgrimage is still present in the modern world, but in this session we want to conclude by thinking about the locations, meanings and artefacts that might be associated with a much broader concept of pilgrimage today - in a post-Romantic Age where we might, for example, go to the countryside or nature to find spiritual sustenance.

Additional Reading

There is no compulsory reading for this course. However, if you would like to read more on the subject you might enjoy:

• Jonathan Sumption, Medieval Pilgrimage (London: Hidden Spring Books, 2013)

Dr Sarah James’s work is focused on medieval hagiography from c.1100-1500. Far from being timeless and aloof, saints in this period are continually being reimagined by writers in ways that perform important social, religious and political work of immediate contemporary relevance. 

To understand that work Sarah explores a range of evidence, including the written lives, documentary records, and representations of the saints in material culture. Her geographical focus is wide-ranging, including both the Latin west and more recently Byzantium; the island of Cyprus in this period is of particular significance to her work at present and is likely to remain so.

 

Dr Michael Paraskos is a very experienced adult education tutor, having taught for over twenty-five years. He is a Visiting Professor at York St John University and holds a Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and also teaches art history to students at the City and Guilds of London Art School. Michael is a writer of both fiction and non-fiction and has published very widely on art of this period, as well as reviewing exhibitions and novels for BBC Radio 4’s Front Row and The Spectator magazine. His first novel In Search of Sixpence was published in 2016 and his second, called Barfrestone is due to be published in autumn 2023.He is a writer of both fiction and non-fiction and has published very widely on art of this period, as well as reviewing exhibitions and novels for BBC Radio 4’s Front Row and The Spectator magazine. He is the Lead Convenor for Othello's Island: The Annual Conference on Medieval and Renaissance Studies held in Cyprus.

Weeks	Standard Rate	Internal Rate	Associate Rate
10	Early Bird: £226 Full price: £252	Early Bird: £135 Full price: £150	Early Bird: £178 Full price: £198
All fee rates quoted are for the whole course. Early Bird rates available 1 August to 30 September only. Part-payments are not possible.

 

Rate Categories and Discounts

Standard Rate

• Available to all except those who fall under the Internal Rate or Associate Rate category.

Internal Rate

• Current Imperial College students and staff (incl. Imperial NHS Trust, Imperial Innovations, ancillary & service staff employed on long-term contracts at Imperial College by third-party contractors)
• People enrolling under our Friends & Family scheme
• Alumni of Imperial College and predecessor colleges and institutes, including City & Guilds College Association members
• Students, staff and alumni of the Royal College of Art, Royal College of Music and City, UAL and the City and Guilds of London Art School
• Students, staff and Governors of Woodhouse College and the IC Mathematics School

Associate Rate

• Austrian Cultural Forum staff
• Co-operative College members
• Francis Crick Institute staff, researchers and students
• Friends and Patrons of the English Chamber Orchestra
• Friends of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens
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• National Health Service (NHS) employees
• Natural History Museum staff
• Residents of postcodes SW3, SW5, SW7, SW10 and W8
• Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council staff
• Royal Geographical Society staff
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• Staff of Exhibition Road Cultural Group (Discover South Kensington) organisations
• Students (non-Imperial College)
• Teachers and other staff of UK schools
• Tutors and other staff of institution members of the Association of Colleges
• Tutors and other staff of other universities and higher education institutions
• Victoria and Albert Museum staff

Late enrolment

It is possible to enrol on many of our adult education courses after the course has already started. For non-language courses this is subject entirely to agreement by the tutor. For language courses it is subject to agreement by the language coordinator conducting level assessment. If you want to join a course late do bear in mind there might be work you will need to catch up on, particularly in language courses.

Friends and Family Scheme

This course is eligible for allowing Imperial College students and staff to share their discount with their friends and family.

Web enrolment starts 1 August 2023. Early bird discounts are available from 1 August to 30 September 2023

Enrolment and payment run through the Imperial College eStore. When enrolling:

• Do check on the drop down menu above called "Course Fees and Rate Categories" to see if you are eligible for a discounted rate and also do make sure you select that rate when enrolling on the eStore
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What is sent	When is it sent	What does it contain
1. Payment confirmation	Is sent straight away following submission of your online application	This is a receipt for your payment and includes payment date, order number and course title Confirmation of your place on your chosen course will follow later as long as the course recruits enough students to run. If not you will receive a refund of your payment.
2. Enrolment confirmation	Is usually sent within 10 working days. Please treat your payment confirmation as confirmation that your applicant details and payment have been received	Confirms your course choice Shows your course's term dates Confirms the day and time of your course
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	If you need further help with the above information please ring 020 7594 8756 / +44 20 7594 8756. All enrolments are provisional until the course is confirmed to run. This will be dependent on the course reaching the minimum number of enrolments. All enrolments are subject to our Terms and Conditions. It is not possible to join one of our courses without agreeing to be bound by our Terms and Conditions.

If you have any questions about the academic content or teaching of this course please contact the Course Tutor, Dr Michael Paraskos, m.paraskos@imperial.ac.uk 

If you have any questions about your enrolment or payment processes please contact the Programme Administrator, Christian Jacobi, eveningclass@imperial.ac.uk