A lecture and conversation with Dr. Michelle Rich, The Ellen and Harry S. Parker III Assistant Curator of the Arts of the Americas. Tickets are available here.
In Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age, acclaimed science journalist Annalee Newitz takes readers on an entertaining and mind-bending adventure into the deep history of urban life. Investigating across the centuries and around the world, Newitz explores the rise and fall of four ancient cities, each the center of a sophisticated civilization: the Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük in Central Turkey, the Roman vacation town of Pompeii on Italy’s southern coast, the medieval megacity of Angkor in Cambodia, and the indigenous metropolis Cahokia, which stood beside the Mississippi River where East St. Louis is today.
Through cutting-edge archaeological research, Newitz reveals the mix of environmental changes and political turmoil that doomed these ancient settlements and introduces us to the often anonymous workers—enslaved people, women, immigrants, and manual laborers—who built these cities and created monuments that lasted millennia. This journey into the forgotten past may also reveal something of our own fate.
6:30 p.m.
Enjoy a pre-event tour of the DMA’s exhibition Spirit Lodge: Mississippian Art from Spiro, which includes artifacts with cultural ties to the Mississippian people of Cahokia, one of the cities investigated in Newitz’s book. Due to limited space on the tours, we strongly encourage you to register in advance by contacting Jennifer Krogsdale at jkrogsdale@dma.org.
TICKET PRICES
Horchow seating
Public: $30
DMA Member/Educator: $20
Student: $10
Virtual ticket
Public: $12
DMA Member/Educator/Student: $10
Virtual ticket + Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age
Public: $32
DMA Member/Educator/Student: $30
Please note that books will begin shipping on February 2, the day of the title’s paperback release. Copies of Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age are available for purchase on-site in the DMA Store on the night of the event and here on the DMA website.