On 22 February, Professor Edhem Eldem (above) will give a talk at the Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul, entitled "From Tughra to Coat of Arms: Redefining Ottoman State Symbolism." This will consider the changing ways in which the Ottomans sought to define themselves through visual means, whether as Islamic rulers or European potentates. Professor Eldem (who, you may be interested to know, is a direct descendant of Osman Hamdi Bey) is a first-class speaker, who can manage to make even the most abstruse topics vitally interesting. A member of the History department at Boğaziçi University, his interests cover Ottoman trade, funerary epigraphy (the subject of a brilliant talk at SOAS last year) and fin de siècle Istanbul, among others. 19.00, free entry, refreshments served afterwards. Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul, İstiklal Caddesi 247, 34433 Tünel-Beyoğlu, İstanbul
