Peter P. Kahane

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Peter P. Kahane (born February 18, 1904 in Berlin , † February 12, 1974 in Basel ) was an Austrian-born Israeli classical archaeologist .

Life

Peter P. Kahane was born into a middle-class, artistically committed family. His father was Arthur Kahane , a dramaturge from Vienna who worked closely with Max Reinhardt . Stefan Zweig and Hugo von Hofmannsthal , among others, frequented his house . It was not until late that he decided to study classical archeology, which he began at Berlin University . After a short time, Kahane went to the University of Würzburg , and a little later to the University of Munich . Ernst Buschor became the most important academic teacher in Munich . In 1933 he was forced to emigrate and first went to Athens . There he wanted to work on his dissertation on Attic - geometric vase painting , but was no longer given access to the Athenian department of the German Archaeological Institute . Since he was a citizen of Austria, Kahane, like other emigrants such as Paula Philippson , Berta Segall and Willy Schwabacher , found friendly reception at the Austrian Archaeological Institute headed by Otto Walter . In 1936 he went to Switzerland to study with Ernst Pfuhl at the University of Basel , where he submitted his completed dissertation, with which he received his doctorate summa cum laude in 1937 . But then he had little prospect of a job. As a young scientist he was in competition with other German archaeologists who had emigrated, such as Georg Karo , Paul Jacobsthal , Margarete Bieber , Otto J. Brendel or Karl Lehmann-Hartleben , who had already made a name for themselves. So he first went to Athens again and worked at the British School at Athens . In 1938 he finally went to Palestine through the placement of the British School .

The British Mandate Government had established a well-organized antiquity service in Palestine. Kahane found his first job in the Department of Antiquities at the Rockefeller Museum in Jerusalem . First he was an assistant , later a senior assistant . Since 1946/47 he also taught at the Hebrew University . When the State of Israel was founded in 1948, Kahane became Chief Curator of the Rockefeller Museum and the overseer of the museums of the State Antiquities Authority. In this role he helped set up many local museums, for example in Tel Aviv , Megiddo , Nir David and Haifa . Not infrequently he had to contend with resistance of a financial, ideological and local nature. Towards the end of the 1950s, plans arose for a large international museum. Kahane was appointed to plan the archaeological part of the museum, and the Israel Museum was opened in 1965 . He headed the museum's archaeological department for four years before retiring. Now he was able to concentrate more on his studies of Attic-geometric vase painting. Only during a research semester in the winter of 1958/59 at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Princeton did Kahane have more time to devote himself to this topic. In 1970 he accepted a visiting professorship at the University of Missouri in Columbia at the request of his friend Saul Weinberg . Several attempts to get support from German institutions failed, so on the advice of Karl Schefold he went to Basel in 1972 , where he was supported by private sponsors. But now, for health reasons, he could hardly devote himself to his studies. Kahane died on February 12, 1974.

Kahane left a comparatively small amount of written work, not even his dissertation was printed, only an excerpt appeared in the American Journal of Archeology in 1940 . Although minor changes in the absolute dating have to be made today, Kahane's work is still relevant today, the periodization that has been developed remains unchanged. After moving to Israel, he had to turn to completely new areas of work, which he often had to develop anew. He had to continue his education in the field of prehistory , the archeology of the Near East, the Roman provincial archeology and the late antique - early Christian art up to the beginning of the Islamic period. Kahane's achievements can be measured primarily in terms of museum work. His handwriting can still be measured in many archaeological collections today, especially in the antiquities department of the Israel Museum. He also organized several important exhibitions in America and Europe, including From the Land of the Bible and Synagogue . In his later days, Kahane devoted himself increasingly to iconology .

literature

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personal data
SURNAME Kahane, Peter P.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kahane, Penuel Peter; Kahane, Peter Penuel; Kahane, PP
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian-born Israeli classical archaeologist
DATE OF BIRTH February 18, 1904
PLACE OF BIRTH Berlin
DATE OF DEATH February 12, 1974
Place of death Basel