by Cécile Morrisson
September 28, 2017 – Ermanno A. Arslan, renowned Italian numismatist, author of hundreds of articles and monographs on ancient and medieval coinages, especially Late Antique and Lombard, and their archaeological context has been elected a permanent member of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome in July 2017. He has been the curator of or cataloguer in many great exhibits (I Longobardi e la Lombardia (1978), I Goti in Europa (1994) – Iside in Italia (1997) and is involved in the preparation of one more major exhibit on the Lombards due to travel next year from Pavia to Budapest and Saint-Petersburg. He was Director of the Archaeological Museum in Milan (1975-2003), Superintendent of the Castello Sforzesco and Director of the Civiche Raccolte d’Arte in Milan (2003-2005), member of the council of INC (1986-1991), Vice-president (1991-1997) and co-editor of INC print newsletter from 1988 to 1997.
Ermanno Arslan working in the Studium Franciscanum in Jerusalem.
Founded in 1603, the Academy derives its name from its founders’ desire to see into the secrets of nature with a perception as acute as that of the lynx. A motto much appropriate to Galileo who joined it in 1611. The Accademia that had been revived by Pope Pius IX in 1847, was transformed into the “Reale Accademia dei Lincei” in 1870 when Rome became the capital of Italy and enlarged to include a new section of moral, historical and philological science with 30 national members added to the old section of physical and mathematical science, which had 40 national members. Its premises are in the Villa Farnesina in Trastevere, famous for its frescoes by Raphael.
The Lynx symbol of the Academy membership.
In the past, only a few famous numismatists have been considered worthy of being drawn into the prestigious institution.
INC and its members may be proud that a member of our scientific community is thus honored and his merits in our field recognized.
More information on Ermanno Arslan is available on his website.
Here you can find his extensive list of publications.
This is the INC website.
To learn more about the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, please click here.
And to obtain further details on the Villa Farnesina, click here.