First Vice President and Vice President for Culture, Julia Parra, remarked, “With this first speech, we join in the commemoration of a momentous day.” An anniversary program will unfold over the coming months, featuring new gatherings in Alicante and in the speaker’s hometown of Novelda. The event will shine a light on a remarkable Enlightenment figure whose impact reached far beyond local shores.
Under the title From empiricism to science: shipbuilding in 18th century Spain, Jorge Juan, an aviation pilot and historian, will present a talk that traces the life of one of the most celebrated figures associated with Alicante. Jorge Juan and Santacilia emerges as a central name in the shipbuilding narrative and as a pivotal Enlightenment scholar in 18th century Spain. The lecture will explore his contributions to maritime engineering and scientific thought during a transformative era.
Javier Vicedo Jover is a scholar whose education spans Spain and the Americas and who has served as an aviation pilot. He has been an active member of the Spanish Air Sports Federation and associated with the USA Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, and has also participated with the Spanish Aeronautical Federation and the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, from which he received a medal. His academic path includes History studies at the University of Alicante, with a focus on archaeological restoration.
Over the years, he has collaborated with multiple institutions, including the National Museum of Maritime Archaeology, the Maritime Museum of Madrid, and the Maritime Museum of Cartagena. In 2011 he led the NEHIPI Project, which studied the Iron Age shipbuilding traditions of the Iberian Peninsula. Known as an authority on Spanish shipbuilding history, he currently writes for various publications and has delivered numerous lectures on shipbuilding techniques from the 15th through the 17th centuries. This profile reflects a long-standing dedication to maritime archaeology and the technical evolution of seafaring craft. — Source attribution: University of Alicante and related maritime history programs.