Dear colleagues and friends of the EFEO

The exceptional circumstances due to the Covid-19 outbreak forced us, following government directives, to close the Maison de l’Asie the 16th of March, including its library, and to suspend scheduled courses and conferences. The administrative services were also closed and teleworking was introduced to ensure continuity of service. Concerning teachings, each teacher-researcher has proposed, when possible, an alternative arrangement, the details of which are given in this letter and on our website. In addition, our Centres in Asia have taken the necessary steps, in accordance with ministerial and local requirements, mostly by suspending public access. We hope that this interruption will be as short as possible and that we will be able to give you better news in the next letter in May. In the meantime, I wish you all courage and patience as you face the weeks ahead.

Christophe Marquet, Director of the EFEO

As part of the Kyoto lectures, Alistair Swale (University of Canterbury, New-Zealand) presents: "Gesaku Literati and Early Meiji Print Culture: Remaking Popular Culture for the Masses".

At 6 p.m., at the EFEO Center in Kyoto (opened to all with reservation).

Conference subject to confirmation. Please check with: efeo.kyoto@gmail.com

Photo ©International Research Center for Japanese Studies Library

As part of the Kitashirakawa EFEO Salon, the fourth lecture of the 2019-2020 cycle, whose theme is At the Frontier of Faith and Knowledge in Japan from the Middle Ages to the Modern Age, is presented by Andrea Castiglioni (Nagoya Municipal University) on the topic: "Corps et objets dans le culte du mont Yudono (17e-19e c.)" (in Japanese without translation).

At 6 p.m., at the EFEO Center in Kyoto (opened to all with reservation).

Conference subject to confirmation. Please check with: efeo.kyoto@gmail.com

This year, the excavation campaign of the Yasodharâçrama mission took place from February 17th to March 13th and was aimed at studying two buildings in Prasat Khna (Preah Vihear province), potentially linked to âçrama from the 9th and 11th centuries.

This research program is co-directed by Dominique Soutif (EFEO), Julia Estève (Mahidol), Chea Socheat (APSARA) and Edward Swenson (University of Toronto) and funded this year by the excavation commission of the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs, the ERC Dharma (grant agreement No. 809994) and the Hal Jackman Foundation.

Legend: Vîrâçrama bedrock.

Legend: A stelae found near the Yasodharâçrama chapel.

The excavation work at Vat Sang'O 5, located north of the "Ancient City" of Vat Phu, began on March 9th, after clearing the site and will be completed in early April. It is directed by Christine Hawixbrock (EFEO, Director of the French Archaeological Mission in Southern Laos) and is part of the CHAMPA (Cultural Heritage Management, Protection and Attractiveness) project financed by the French Development Agency (AFD) for the development and attractiveness of Southern Laos.

The archaeological research is being carried out in collaboration with the Heritage Department of the Lao Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism and the Vat Phu-Champassak Development and Management Service, which manages the entire site classified by UNESCO in 2001. Lao graduate students from Don Dok University in Vientiane and interns from INHA and Paris-Sorbonne University are contributing to the excavations.

The Vat Sang'O 5 site consists of a 150 m long and 30 m wide earth embankment, oriented north/south. After the excavation of the north side (2014, 2017 and 2018), of a high-rise building on stilts made of perishable materials that have disappeared, this fourth campaign focuses on the central area of the levee, dedicated to domestic activities and workshops.

Also as part of the CHAMPA project financed by the AFD in collaboration with the Vat Phu Champassak World Heritage Site Office, the EFEO carried out an excavation campaign, under the direction of Nicolas Nauleau (archaeologist associated with the EFEO in Siem Reap), in the ancient town of Vat Phu, Laos, on the site of Huay Sa Houa 2, where an important brick sanctuary had been unearthed in the 1990s by Marielle Santoni's team.

The diagnostic operation of the site started on March 9th. It was scheduled to last five weeks and was prematurely interrupted on March 30th. The work team was made up of three Cambodian archaeologists (two from the Ministry of Culture and one from the archaeology department of the Apsara Authority), one archaeologist from the Laotian Ministry of Culture and 45 local workers. The work site welcomed trainees from INHA and Paris-Sorbonne University and three Laotian students.

Using the login id and password of the Maison de l'Asie reader's account it is possible to access the Bulac online collections.

These collections can be accessed directly from the menu on the home page. You can refine your search by geographical areas and by types of documents (encyclopaedias and reference works / journals / electronic books / bibliographic databases).

You will have access to two types of resources: paid resources to which we are subscribed and open-access resources.

The photographic holdings of the photo library remain available on the photo library website.

Legend: Sculptures (guardian lion, garuda on naga) of the eastern causeway of the Bayon, Angkor Thom, Cambodia (EFEO_FINL00049).

As part of its support for international cooperation activities, the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MESRI) awards five doctoral contracts each year in partnership between a Doctoral School and one of the five Écoles françaises à l’étranger (EFE).

Details and the procedures for submitting applications to the EFEO can be found here.

Application documents may be sent until April 30, 2020, 3:00 p.m. (Paris time), according to the procedures specific to each EFE. The results will be sent before the end of June.