Lecture on History of the Holy Grail

Carol Chase, professor Emeritus of French at Knox College and a scholar of medieval French literature, will discuss the "true history" of the Holy Grail, in a free, public talk on October 13 on the Knox campus in Galesburg.

Chase, who taught at Knox from 1977 to 2007, will give the 2011 Johnson Lecture, "The Origins of the Grail," at 4 p.m., Thursday, October 13, in the Alumni Room, Old Main.

A noted scholar of medieval French legends of King Arthur, Lancelot, and the Grail, Chase will focus on the earliest literary appearances of the Grail in medieval French narratives.

The Grail, a legendary sacred object said to be the dish or cup used by Jesus at the Last Supper, has long been a topic for popular culture. The legend first appeared nearly 1,000 years ago in France, in an enormously popular cycle of five books treating Arthur, Lancelot, and the Grail; and more recently in films that have included "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."

Among Chase's numerous publications is a translation of "Estoire del Saint Graal," or "The History of the Holy Grail." Her translation was first published in 1992 and re-issued last year in paperback as part of a book "Lancelot-Grail: The Old French Arthurian Vulgate and Post-Vulgate in Translation."

Numerous times in her Knox career, Chase served as on-site director for Knox's program in Besancon, France. Celebrating its 45th anniversary this year, the program has sent more than 800 American students from Knox and other colleges to study in France. It has also brought a number of students from the University of Besancon to study for a year at Knox. Knox is hosting a reunion on Saturday, October 15 of alumni who studied in Besancon. The reunion is part of Knox's 2011 Homecoming and 175th anniversary festivities

Chase's lecture is sponsored by the Joseph and Clara H.E. Johnson Distinguished Lectureship in Modern Languages. The lecture fund was established by a gift to Knox from Dr. Richard W. Burkhardt and Dorothy Johnson Burkhardt, both 1939 graduates of Knox. Mrs. Burkhardt, a life trustee of Knox College, taught French, Spanish and Russian for many years at Ball State University. The Johnson Lecture is named in honor of her parents.