To Wake the Dead: A Renaissance Merchant and the Birth of Archaeology

by Marina Belozerskaya

How Cyriacus of Ancona—merchant, spy, and amateur classicist—traveled the world, fighting to save ancient monuments for posterity.

At the beginning of the fifteenth century, a young Italian bookkeeper fell under the spell of the classical past. Despite his limited education, the Greeks and Romans seemed to speak directly to him—not from books but from the physical ruins and inscriptions that lay neglected around the shores of the Mediterranean.As an international merchant, Cyriacus of Ancona was accustomed to the perils of travel in foreign lands—unlike his more scholarly peers with their handsome libraries and wealthy patrons, who benefited greatly from the discoveries communicated in his widely distributed letters and drawings. Having seen firsthand the destruction of the world’s cultural heritage, Cyriacus resolved to preserve it for future generations. To do so he would spy on the Ottomans, court popes and emperors, and even organize a crusade.Some images in the ebook are not displayed owing to permissions issues.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Archaeology, Biography, Renaissance

321 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2009

About the author

Marina Belozerskaya was born in Moscow, USSR, and was an award-winning teacher at Harvard, Tufts, and Boston Universities. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband, a curator at the J.Paul Getty Museum, and her own exotic animal, a vizsla named Audrey.

Reviews

[Jo Walton]

This was a ton of fun.

Cyriacus of Ancona was a merchant who became a humanist and wandered around the Mediterranean in the decades immediately before the fall of Constantinople trying to get people to have a crusade to protect ancient ruins from the Turks. He recorded a lot of ancient ruins, found a lot of books and antiquities, and met a lot of people.

There were several bits of information here I didn't have, and lots of nifty gossip.

There's a little much "as he looked at x he must have thought" in this book, which it doesn't need, and a bit too little quoting of primary sources. So it's a good, fun, book, not a great one. I'm trying another by this author anyway.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful history that captures the Mediterranean world in the early Renaissance, with a particular focus on the Italian merchant, Cyriacus of Ancona. Cyriacus had a passion for antiquity, especially the buildings and monuments of the ancient world, which were fast being cannibalized by the surrounding peoples for their own uses. Belozerskaya follows Cyriacus' own letters and sketches of ruins, as well a biography written about the time. In addition, Belozerskaya supplements the story with the important events and major figures the times, which immediately preceded the fall of Constantinople. Belozerskaya makes a strong case for Cyriacus being one of the true fathers of Archaeology. Outstanding and fun to read.

[Christine Rebbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I guess it never occurred to me that in earlier times, people wouldn't have even thought about preserving and protecting ancient buildings, art, etc. Since we do it now, I guess I thought it was always done. But this book tells the story of how it was NOT always done, and if it hadn't been for Cyriacus of Acona, this 15th century guy from Italy south of Venice, we probably wouldn't today have the Forum and the Colisseum in Rome, the Acropolis in Athens, etc. People back then were basically robbing ancient sites to get stones, etc. for new buildings, and if that had continued to the degree it was then, so much more would be gone.

Cyriacus was a merchant, and in his travels, started really "noticing" ruins that everyone else was just passing by. He decided that the deterioration and looting of ancient sites had to stop in the interest of history, heritage, and leaving pieces of the past for the future. He worked with the Pope, the Holy Roman Emperor, and various types of civic leaders throughout the Mediterranean/Aegean world to encourage them to preserve and protect their antiquities. This was, of course, during the Renaissance when the early Greeks and Romans were becoming idealized and imitated, so it really was the perfect time to begin a movement to preserve our past. Cyriacus truly was the "father of archeology".

Obviously, this is a non-fiction work, but it reads like a novel as it follows Cyriacus' travels. The inclusion of some of his detailed drawings of various ancient sites he visited increases the realism.

Overall, I found this book to be enlightening and a real delight. Having been to Rome and swooned over the ruins, I now know the debt we all owe to Cyriacus.

[Vahid Askarpour · Rating 5 out of 5]

سیریاکوس بازرگان و عتیقه‌شناس آنکونایی سده‌ی پانزدهمی، یکی از نخستین هواداران و مشوقان کشف و شناسایی، حفظ و نگهداری آثار پیشینیان، به‌ویژه مردمان و تمدن‌های پیشامسیحی بود. در اوج اختلافات میان مسیحیان کاتولیک لاتین و ارتدوکس یونان، فعالیت‌های سیاسی گوناگونی را پی می‌گرفت تا جهان مسیحی را بار دیگر علیه ترکمانان عثمانی مسلمان متحد کند. از هر فرصتی بهره می‌برد تا به سرزمین‌های دیگر سفر کند و همراه با بازرگانی و نگارش و تصویرگری هر آنچه از آثار باستانی و عتیقه به نظرش می‌رسید، برای امپراتور مقدس روم جاسوسی کرده و در گسترش حوزه‌ی نفوذ مسیحیت در شرق بکوشد.
این روایت کوتاه در لابه‌لای پیگیری و شرح کارهای سیریاکوس، آگاهی‌های ارزشمندی را از دقایق و جزئیات رنسانس ایتالیایی-لاتین در اختیار می‌گذارد. جالب‌توجه‌ترین به‌ویژه برای من شرحی است که از تلاش کلیساهای کاتولیک و یونانی در فلورانس برای اتحاد می‌شود و در حاشیه‌ی آن متفکران و انسان‌گرایان «نوکافر» جهان لاتین با ادبیات و میراث‌های فکری یونانیان آمده از قسطنطنیه آشنا می‌شوند. نکته‌ی مهمی است که دانشگاه‌هایی، به‌ویژه توسط مدیچی به سنت افلاطونی بر پا می‌شود که نه در اسلام ریشه دارد و نه مسیحیت، و مسیر رشد آکادمی نوع سوم را می‌گشاید.
از طرفی فرار یونانیان از قلمرو عثمانی پس از فتح آسیای کوچک به دست آنها، مهمترین عامل در نوزایی اندیشه‌های یونان باستان، به‌ویژه در جمهوری‌های ایتالیا بود.
نکته‌ی دیگر اینکه سیراکیوس همواره حامی مونارکی بود. در زمانه‌ی او در سراسر ایتالیا مباحث پر دامنه‌ای میان متفکران در دو جبهه‌ در جریان بود که یک گروه‌شان هوادار جمهوری بودند و گروه دیگرشان به ترویج مونارکی می‌پرداختند. و او در این میان، حامی بلامنازع امپراتوری روم بود.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stumbled upon this book on a shelf in my local library; I cannot recommend it highly enough. Non fiction written like a novel makes a man living in the 1400's come alive, makes a period I as a Greek American knew little about fascinating. I read non-fiction to continue learning, learn new things; I did both with this book. She's an excellent writer.

[Mel · Rating 3 out of 5]

As interesting as it was to meet the father of archealogy, I didn't like him very much. Despite his interest and passion for studying the remains of Greek and Roman buildings, he also agitated for a really disasterous war.

[randall h. elam · Rating 5 out of 5]

To wake the dead!

Very thought provoking as you realize wars and competition for land cause great destruction to both sides. The vision that this man had was remarkable! Enjoyed the book! Read it with a map at your side!

[Lauren Albert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think it is a misnomer to call Cyriacus an archaeologist. What he did greatly benefited later archaeologists since many of the sites he drew and described had since been destroyed or further deteriorated. But he was an antiquarian rather than an archaeologist since except for his meticulous notes and drawings, he used no scientific methodology. But Belozerskaya does us a service by bringing him to light--it is amazing that so much that would have been lost to modern times was only preserved culturally by this one man and his notebooks and yet I'd never heard of him. She is also honest in her portrayal of him even when it does not show him at his best such as when he promoted a crusade against the Ottomans.

[Sandy · Rating 1 out of 5]

The force was not strong enough in me…… I was a little more than halfway through last night, looked up at Rob and said “This book sucks.” I took this book back to the library this morning. This book should come with a warning that it is extremely hard to engage in, even if it is a subject you are so very interested in. At first I was making excuses for the author thinking it was translated from Russian, but alas its first language is English. I am saddened that I only now know a small bit more than I did before about this (could be) interesting and little known Renaissance Merchant, his “discovery” of Archaeology and how he brought to life a general interest in ancient cultures…………………….

[Sue Myers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nonfiction about the life of Cyriacus, father of Archaeology. I found his story fascinating. As a shipping accountant for an Italian port in the 1400's, Cyriacus was a collector of artifacts and through his travels, drew, sketched and described many of the treasures of the ancient world. He influenced a pope to launch a Crusade against the Turks, he traveled extensively in hostile territory, and fervently pushed for a reconciliation between the Christian church in Rome and the one in Constantinople. Many of the structures that he drew have been destroyed and his notes and drawings are all we have left.

[Larry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book about Cyriascia (?) 1400s Italian merchant who provoked interest in saving antiquities of the ancient world of Greece/Italy. He also spied and helped push forward the fifth (?) and last (?) Crusade. He got around.