Spring Term
(Jump to Fall Term)
Primarily for Undergraduates
ARCH 0033 Past Forward: Discovering Anthropological Archaeology (ANTH 0500) [CRN: 25168]
Interested students must register for ANTH 0500.
This course offers a broad journey through the human past, from material culture crafted by our evolutionary ancestors to the remnants of the recent historic past. To facilitate this journey, the class explores the methods, concepts, and theories that anthropologists employ in the study of past peoples, places, and things. Case studies stretch across the globe. As a hands-on endeavor, archaeology focuses on tangible evidence. In this course, small-group discussion, laboratory, and field exercises will complement lectures, leading to an understanding of how anthropologists study the past and how that knowledge affects the present. LILE. TTh 9:00-10:20. Instructor: Parker VanValkenburgh.
ARCH 0203 Who Owns the Past? (ANTH 0066D) [CRN: 26095]
Interested students must register for ANTH 0066D.
Examines the role of the past in the present. Using examples from the U.S. and other parts of the world, we will look at how archaeological evidence is implicated in contemporary cultural and political issues. Students will learn that the past is not just the focus of archaeologists' interest and scientific inquiries, but is also a subject romanticized by antiquarians, mobilized in nation-building, marketed for profit, re-enacted as entertainment, consumed by tourists, and glorified in commemoration. Understanding these different and competing valuations, claims, and uses of the archaeological past will provide an introduction to why the past matters in the present and to the future. Enrollment limited to 20 first year students. FYS. DPLL. M 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Patricia Rubertone.
New! ARCH 0340 Bad Things: Archaeologies of New World Vices [CRN: 26387] [Course Website]
Drinking, smoking, prostitution, gambling, chocolate, and witchcraft – this may sound like a lot of fun, but are these bad things? Since the first European contact in the Americas, colonists were introduced to new substances, practices, and worldviews and brought their own vices to new territories. This course will use material culture to analyze the everyday lives of these New World inhabitants who were so good at being so bad; we will also discuss how colonial discourse and histories affect our lives today. MWF 2:00-2:50. Instructor: Matthew Reilly.
ARCH 0402 Muslims, Jews and Christians in Medieval Iberia (HIAA 0460) [CRN: 25247]
Interested students must register for HIAA 0460.
The cultural diversity of medieval Spain and Portugal is proclaimed by their Christian churches, Islamic mosques and Jewish synagogues. The three distinct cultures that produced these buildings lived together for centuries in medieval Iberia, sometimes in peace, sometimes not. For almost eight centuries (711-1492) writers, scholars and artists emerged from a cultural environment of intellectual borrowing nurtured by uninterrupted contact through marriage, conversion, commerce and travel. This convivencia of Jews, Muslims and Christians will be examined from the perspectives of literature, music, art, architecture, archaeology, and history. WRIT. M 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Sheila Bonde.
ARCH 0412 From Gilgamesh to Hektor: Heroes of the Bronze Age [CRN: 25828] [Course Website]
Swift-footed Achilles, god-like Hektor, and Gilgamesh the tall, magnificent, and terrible! They are heroes of the Bronze Age, which produced the world’s first cities, empires, and texts. This class explores the concept of “hero” by placing it within its eastern Mediterranean Bronze Age context, using archaeological evidence alongside contemporary and later textual evidence. MWF 12:00-12:50. Instructor: Muge Durusu Tanriover.
New! ARCH 0525 The Other Side of Rome: Daily Life in the Roman Empire [CRN: 26208] [Course Website]
What did the Romans ever do for us? Toilets, bars, firefighters, and dry cleaning, to name just a few things. Surprisingly, daily life in the Roman empire was not too different from our own. This course will examine numerous aspects of Roman life – including housing, street life, shopping, military, sanitation, and even sex – largely from the perspective of the archaeological evidence, especially from some of the best preserved cities, Rome and Pompeii. MWF 11:00-11:50. Instructor: Margaret Andrews.
For Undergraduates and Graduates
ARCH 1057 Southwestern Archaeology (ANTH 1692) [CRN: 25743]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1692.
This course is an introduction to the archaeology of the native peoples of the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. It discusses the history of the field and examines how it is currently re-engaging with contemporary native peoples. It emphasizes past and present cultural diversity and traces out long-term continuities in beliefs and practices. Special attention is given to comparing and contrasting three formative cultural systems -- Chaco, Hohokam, and Paquimé -- that linked the Southwest into a series of broad social, political, and ideological networks. Students will be introduced to the Southwestern collections of the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology. DPLL. TTh 10:30-11:50. Instructor: Robert Preucel.
New! ARCH 1105 The Face of Power: Representing Roman Emperors [CRN: 26331]
The infallible Augustus; Nero fiddling as Rome burns; Constantine the Christian emperor: the roster of Roman rulers includes some of ancient history’s most beloved and notorious characters. Meet the men (and women!) who ran the Roman state, discover how art and architecture were used to craft a public impression of imperial power, and learn how material and literary sources have shaped emperors’ post-classical reputations. This course will give special attention to how emperors attempted to appeal to diverse factions at home, while ensuring their power was legible to enemy competitors abroad. TTh 10:30-11:50. Instructor: Anne Hunnell Chen.
ARCH 1107 Spectacle! Games, Gladiators, Performance, and Ceremony in the Roman World (HIAA 1304) [CRN: 26189]
Interested students must register for HIAA 1304.
Theaters, amphitheaters, baths, circuses, and imperial residences pepper the former territory of the Roman Empire. Modern films conjure the fantastic, yet ephemeral, events of days long past, amplifying the fascination of these ubiquitous ruins. For the Romans, however, spectacle was not only about fun and games. What really took place in these spaces, and why? Learn to separate fact from fiction as we consider artistic, architectural, and archaeological evidence to understand how and why spectacles were fundamental to Roman daily life. WRIT. T 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Anne Hunnell Chen.
New! ARCH 1125 Building an Empire: The Sacred and Civic Architecture of Ancient Rome [CRN: 26269] [Course Website]
The Colosseum, Pantheon, and imperial palaces loom large in our impression of Roman civilization. Roman architecture set the standard for some of the most iconic buildings in the West. This course will examine the rise and development of Roman architectural principles and analyze how they were employed to create such a lasting image of empire. We will consider technological advancements and territorial expansion, as well as the shifting political and religious dynamics that shaped Rome’s buildings. MWF 1:00-1:50. Instructor: Margaret Andrews.
ARCH 1155 Cities, Colonies and Global Networks in the Western Mediterranean [CRN: 25088] [Course Website]
How did cities develop? This course will explore the connections between colonialism and urbanism In the West Mediterranean of the first millennium BCE. It is taught in close conjunction with a parallel class in Barcelona, and includes a week-long field trip to Barcelona and Catalunya, with practical work at the site and museum of the ancient Greek foundation of Emporion (Spain). Enrollment limited to 12. Instructor permission is required. TTh 10:30-11:50. Instructor: Peter van Dommelen.
ARCH 1175 Archaeology Matters! Past Perspectives on Modern Problems [CRN: 25804] [Course Website]
This is not the first era to face many of today’s global problems — rising temperatures, sea-level change, sustainability, pollution, fire, water scarcity, urban blight, social violence, and more. Archaeology is more than the understanding of peoples long ago and far away, but a discipline whose long-term perspective could offer potential solutions to current crises. Through case studies and discussion of key issues, this class asks how archaeology – and archaeologists – might just change the world. Enrollment limited to 20. TTh 2:30-3:50. Instructor: John F. Cherry.
ARCH 1237 Pre-Columbian Art and Architecture: A World That Matters (ANTH 1030) [CRN: 25604]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1030.
Survey of ancient art and building in ancient America, with a focus on Mexico, Central America, and the Andes. Underlying concepts include: meaning and method, cosmos and kingship, narrative and symbol, personality and authorship, empire and royal court. Rich collections of the Haffenreffer museum will form the focus of work in the class. DPLL LILE. TTh 1:00-2:20. Instructor: Stephen Houston.
ARCH 1287 Holy Places and Sacred Spaces in Ancient Greece (CLAS 1750R) [CRN: 25468]
Interested students must register for CLAS 1750R.
For thousands of years, travelers have been astonished at the physical beauty of Ancient Greek sites such as Olympia, Delphi, and Delos. For anyone who visits these numinous sites, it's easy to see why the Greeks believed that the gods loved them, too. In this course we will be exploring the notion of sacred space in Greek, with emphasis on sanctuaries, topography, archaeological phenomenology, and pilgrimage. We will research and discuss sites and sanctuaries from literary, archaeological, and other material and theoretical perspectives; we will also ask what about certain spaces and places leads us to regard them as 'sacred'. WRIT. MWF 10:00-10:50. Instructor: Johanna M. Hanink.
ARCH 1438 Jerusalem since 1850: Religion, Politics, Cultural Heritage (JUDS 1620) [CRN: 25887]
Interested students must register for JUDS 1620.
This seminar surveys the history of archaeological exploration, discovery, and interpretation in the contexts of social, political, and religious debates from the mid-nineteenth century to the present, with an emphasis on the post-1967 period. It examines the legal settings and ethical precepts of archaeological activity and the developing discourse of cultural heritage. It analyzes the ongoing struggle to discover and define the city's past, to expose its physical legacy, and to advance claims of scientific validity and objectivity against the challenges of religious zeal and political partisanship, the latter both intimately related though not necessarily limited to the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict. M 3:00-5:20. Instructor: Katharina Galor.
ARCH 1441 Ancient Synagogues, Churches, and Mosques in Palestine (JUDS 1670) [CRN: 25888]
Interested students must register for JUDS 1670.
Reviews the discoveries and related scholarship of ancient synagogues, churches, and mosques in ancient Palestine. Focuses on their architectural and decorational as well as their spiritual and religious characteristics, and examines how those institutions influenced each other throughout their history of development. T 4:00-6:20. Instructor: Katharina Galor.
New! ARCH 1605 Holy Spirits: Ancestor Worship in the Ancient Near East and Beyond [CRN: 26330] [Course Website]
Looking at ancestor veneration in both the ancient and the modern world – from Mesopotamia and Egypt, to the Classical World and the Americas – this course will focus on three different angles: individual, communal, and material. We will consider grief, mourning, loss, and death’s impact on families, kin, or elites. How did ancestors shape communities’ social memories, identities, and religious practices? Finally, we will explore spirits’ material traces, examining specific ancestral monuments and landscapes. TTh 2:30-3:50. Instructor: Miriam Muller.
ARCH 1618 Barbarians, Byzantines, and Berbers: Early Medieval North Africa, AD 300-1050 (HIST 1963L) [CRN: 24644]
Interested students must register for HIST 1963L.
This class explores the transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages through the lens of western North Africa. Divided internally by theological disputes and inter-communal violence, and subjected to repeated conquests and reconquests from the outside, in this period North Africa witnessed the triumph of Islam over Christianity; the rise and fall of ephemeral kingdoms, empires, and caliphates; the gradual desertion of once-prosperous cities and rural settlements; the rising strength of Berber confederations; and the continuing ability of trade to transcend political boundaries and to link the southern Mediterranean littoral to the outside world. Enrollment limited to 20. Not open to first year students. M 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Jonathan Conant.
ARCH 1625 Temples and Tombs: Egyptian Religion and Culture [CRN: 25087] [Course Website]
Religion was central to life in ancient Egypt, and this course will examine Egyptian religion through its material culture. Students will explore temples and tombs as the physical settings for priestly ritual and private devotion, including feeding and clothing the gods and communication with the dead. The course will also address evidence for private domestic cult and the overlap between religious and magical practice. TTh 1:00-2:20. Instructor: Laurel Bestock.
ARCH 1768 The Culture of Death in Ancient Rome (CLAS 1420) [CRN: 25199]
Interested students must register for CLAS 1420.
This course examines the way that death and dying were perceived and managed in ancient Roman culture. Primary source readings will include selections from philosophers, poets, inscriptions, and a variety of prose literature (consolations, epistolography, historiography, novels). Secondary literature will focus on demography and social relations, the anthropology of funerary ritual, and material culture, which will be integrated systematically throughout the course, and which will include consideration of artistic representations and iconography, as well the archaeology of Roman mortuary practices. MWF 2:00-2:50. Instructor: John Bodel.
ARCH 1769 Unearthing the Body: History, Archaeology, and Biology at the End of Antiquity (HIST 1835A) [CRN: 24154]
Interested students must register for HIST 1835A.
How was the physical human body imagined, understood, and treated in life and death in the late ancient Mediterranean world? Drawing on evidence from written sources, artistic representations, and archaeological excavations, this class will explore this question by interweaving thematic lectures and student analysis of topics including disease and medicine, famine, asceticism, personal adornment and ideals of beauty, suffering, slavery, and the boundaries between the visible world and the afterlife, in order to understand and interpret the experiences of women, men, and children who lived as individuals—and not just as abstractions—at the end of antiquity. MWF 1:00-1:50. Instructor: Jonathan Conant.
ARCH 1771 Archaeology of Death (ANTH 1623) [CRN: 25158]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1623.
Examines death, burial, and memorials using comparative archaeological evidence from prehistory and historical periods. The course asks: What insight does burial give us about the human condition? How do human remains illuminate the lives of people in the past? What can mortuary artifacts tell us about personal identities and social relations? What do gravestones and monuments reveal about beliefs and emotions? Current cultural and legal challenges to the excavation and study of the dead are also considered. MWF 11:00-11:50. Instructor: Patricia Rubertone.
ARCH 1772 The Human Skeleton (ANTH 1720) [CRN: 25160]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1720.
More than simply a tissue within our bodies, the human skeleton is gateway into narratives of the past -- from the evolution of our species to the biography of individual past lives. Through lecture and hands-on laboratory, students will learn the complete anatomy of the human skeleton, with an emphasis on the human skeleton in functional and evolutionary perspective. We will also explore forensic and bioarchaeological approaches to the skeleton. By the course conclusion, students will be able to conduct basic skeletal analysis and will be prepared for more advanced studies of the skeleton from medical, forensic, archaeological, and evolutionary perspectives. Enrollment limited to 20. Not open to first year students. Instructor permission required. MW 3:00-4:20. Instructor: Andrew Scherer.
New! ARCH 1854 Handmade: An Archaeological Exploration of Materials and Making [CRN: 26364] [Course Website]
This interactive course provides an introduction to the archaeology of materials and making. With the goal of developing an embodied appreciation for the archaeological record, we will engage in a series of hands-on activities, each dedicated to the exploration of a different type of material (e.g., clay, stone, wood, and bone). We will also examine theoretical perspectives on the topic and archaeological case studies that highlight the range of techniques employed to transform these materials into objects of use and value. Enrollment is limited to 15. Th 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Tate Paulette.
ARCH 1857 Metals and Engineering Design in the Ancient World [CRN: 25779] [Course Website]
Metals are among the oldest and most ubiquitous materials in human history -- just think of the Bronze and Iron Ages. Understanding metal production and uses and the development of metallurgical practices provides a long-term perspective on technological development and innovation. Studying ancient metal objects also reveals how they were designed, and the design principles that ancient engineers and craftsmen may have employed. The course will consist of both a lecture and a laboratory component. Enrollment is limited to 15. M 3:00-5:30. Instructors: Clyde Briant and Brett Kaufman.
Primarily for Graduates
ARCH 2110F Greek Palaeography and Premodern Book Cultures (GREK 2110F) [CRN: 24936]
Interested students must register for GREK 2110F.
Introduction to pre-modern Greek book culture and the study of Greek literary scripts from classical antiquity to the Renaissance. Students become acquainted with the history of books, the context and agents of their production, and the transmission of Greek (classical as well as postclassical) literature. Training is provided in reading and dating different scripts and in editing ancient texts. Th 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Stratis Papaioannou.
ARCH 2154 Anthropology of War and Violence in the Archaeological Past (ANTH 2580) [CRN: 25622]
Interested students must register for ANTH 2580.
This course is an overview of anthropological archaeological approaches to war, violence, and peace. We will begin by reviewing past and current social scientific thinking on the past six million years of human war and violence. We will consider in greater detail how anthropological archaeologists conduct research regarding ancient war and violence. Special attention will be given to the role of war and violence in statecraft and the (de)construction of society. We will consider some of the methodologies employed in the study of ancient violence including, landscape archaeology, art and iconography, and bioarchaeology. T 6:00-8:30. Instructor: Andrew Scherer.
ARCH 2250 Island Archaeology in the Mediterranean [CRN: 25086] [Course Website]
The Mediterranean is a world of islands, par excellence, and the island cultures that have developed there over the millennia have great archaeological distinctiveness. This seminar will consider the concept of insularity itself, in cross-cultural archeological, anthropological, and historical perspective. We will then turn to the rich, specifically Mediterranean literature on island archaeology (exploring issues of colonization, settlement, interaction). M 3:00-5:30. Instructor: John F. Cherry.
ARCH 2744 Egyptian Art in New England Museums [CRN: 25784] [Course Website]
This seminar will be an in-depth, in-person study of Egyptian art from before the New Kingdom focusing on the entire life-history of Egyptian art in all available media and genres. The course will alternate between meeting in the classroom and meeting in museums. Classroom days will be devoted to discussion of the contexts, meanings, and uses of Egyptian art. Museum days will be devoted to the close observation of that art, and discussion of both its formal properties and the technological processes that were used in its creation. Consideration of conservation and display will also be of paramount importance. W 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Laurel Bestock.
ARCH 2857 Archaeology in the Digital Age (ANTH 2201) [CRN: 26153]
Interested students must register for ANTH 2201.
In the 21st Century, digital tools are as integral to archaeological research as the trowel and the field notebook. This course combines essential training in digital archaeology with critical discussions of how digital methods are impacting the conceptual dimensions of archaeological research. Topics include topographic survey, GNSS, tablet-based recording systems, database design, digital photogrammetry, and intermediate level archaeological GIS. Demonstrated proficiency in ArcGIS or open-sourced GIS software (the equivalent of an introductory course, preferably Anthropology 1201) and previous archaeological field experience are prerequisites. Th 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Parker VanValkenburgh.
Fall Term
(Jump to Spring Term)
Primarily for Undergraduates
ARCH 0100 Field Archaeology in the Ancient World [CRN: 16179] [Course Website]
Always wanted to be Indiana Jones? This course, focusing on the Mediterranean world and its neighbors in antiquity, interprets field archaeology in its broadest sense. In addition to exploring “how to do” archaeology – the techniques of locating, retrieving and analyzing ancient remains – we will consider how the nature of these methodologies affects our understanding of the past. MWF 1:00-1:50. Instructor: Laurel Bestock.
ARCH 0152 Egyptomania: Mystery of the Sphinx and Other Secrets of Ancient Egypt [CRN: 16891] [Course Website]
The pyramids, tombs, and mummies discovered during the first excavations in Egypt created a colorful but highly romanticized image of this Land of the Pharaohs. More recent archaeological research has unearthed new details about the daily lives of the workers who built those pyramids, or Egypt’s cultural and economic connections throughout the Mediterranean. This course will explore how both early and recent archaeology has enriched our perception of the Gift of the Nile, while still leaving more mysteries yet to solve. FYS. MWF 9:00-9:50. Instructor: Miriam Muller.
ARCH 0270 Troy Rocks! Archaeology of an Epic [CRN: 16182] [Course Website]
What do Brad Pitt, Julius Caesar, Dante, Alexander the Great, and countless sports teams have in common? The Trojan War! This course will explore the Trojan War not only through the archaeology, art, and mythology of the Greeks and Romans but also through the popular imaginings of cultures ever since, to figure out what "really" happened when Helen ran off and Achilles got angry and the Greeks came bearing gifts. FYS. TTh 9:00-10:20. Instructor: Margaret M. Andrews.
ARCH 0563 Toward a Global Late Antiquity: 200-800 CE (HIAA 0321) [CRN: 16275]
Interested students must register for HIAA 0321.
Competing empires, the division of the eastern and western halves of Roman territory; long distance trade, the rise of monotheism, the spread of Buddhism: how did these factors affect the art and architecture associated with the Roman west, Constantinople, Ctesiphon, Alexandria, the Han Dynasty capitals, and Gandhara? This course takes an expanded view of Late Antiquity, extending beyond typical that associate the period with the post-classical west, to explore the dynamic creativity and intercultural connectivity of an era once considered a "Dark Age" in a world history. WRIT. TTh 9:00-10:20. Instructor: Anne Hunnell Chen.
ARCH 0643 The Architecture of Islam (HIAA 0041) [CRN: 15481]
Interested students must register for HIAA 0041.
The course examines the sources and 'invention' of Islamic architecture in the seventh and eighth centuries, and explores its varied manifestations to the present day. WRIT. MWF 12:00-12:50. Instructor: Sheila Bonde.
ARCH 0775 Farm to Table: Foodways and Gastro-Politics in the Ancient Near East [CRN: 17136] [Course Website]
This course provides an introduction to the culture, economy, and politics of food in the ancient Near East. We will not only investigate the day-to-day mechanics of food production, cooking, and consumption; we will also develop an appreciation for changing food fashions, for the etiquette of eating and drinking, and for the complex world of gastro-politics. We will even explore the ancient kitchen using our own hands, mouths, and stomachs as a guide. MWF 2:00-2:50. Instructor: Tate Paulette.
For Undergraduates and Graduates
ARCH 1054 Indians, Colonists, and Africans in New England (ANTH 1624) [CRN: 16200]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1624.
The course explores the colonial and capitalist transformation of New England's social and cultural landscapes following European contact. Using archaeology as critical evidence, we will examine claims about conquest, Indian Extinction, and class, gender and race relations by studying the daily lives and interactions of the area's diverse Native American, African American, and European peoples. TTh 10:30-11:50. Instructor: Patricia Rubertone.
ARCH 1101 Age of Augustus: Topography, Architecture, and Politics (CLAS 1120T) [CRN: 15941]
Interested students must register for CLAS1120T.
Augustus Caesar boasted that he had found Rome a city in brick, but left it in marble. This course explores the transformation of Rome from an unadorned village to the capital of an empire. Was Rome's first emperor trying to fashion himself a Hellenistic monarch on the model of Alexander and his successors? Was he simply operating within republican traditions, which had been established through centuries of aristocratic competition at Rome? Our source materials will include ancient works of art and architecture, literary accounts, maps, and critical urban theory. TTh 10:30-11:50. Instructor: Lisa Mignone.
ARCH 1128 The Long Fall of the Roman Empire (HIST 1205) [CRN: 14904]
Interested students must register for HIST 1205.
Once thought of as the "Dark Ages," this period of western European history should instead be seen as a fascinating time in which late Roman culture fused with that of the Germanic tribes, a mixture tempered by a new religion, Christianity. Issues of particular concern include the symbolic construction of political authority, the role of religion, the nature of social loyalties, and gender roles. TTh 10:30-11:50. Instructor: Jonathan Conant.
ARCH 1140 The Death of the Ancient City? Roman Cities After the Fall of Rome [CRN: 17103] [Course Website]
As in our own increasingly urban-based world, cities were the engines driving the political and economic success of the Roman empire. But what happened to such places after the empire disintegrated and "fell"? This course will explore the varied fate of Roman cities in Late Antiquity (4th-7th centuries C.E.), a period witnessing numerous changes — from political fragmentation and "barbarian" invasion to "Christianization" — that directly impacted both the roles of cities and the organization of urban space. TTh 1:00-2:20. Instructor: Margaret M. Andrews.
ARCH 1233 Ancient Maya Writing (ANTH 1650) [CRN: 16201]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1650.
Nature and content of Mayan hieroglyphic writing, from 100 to 1600 CE. Methods of decipherment, introduction to textual study, and application to interpretations of Mayan language, imagery, world view, and society. Literacy and Mesoamerican background of script. MWF 11:00-11:50. Instructor: Stephen Houston.
ARCH 1518 Women and Families in the Ancient Mediterranean (HIAA 1302) [CRN: 16271]
Interested students must register for HIAA 1302.
What was life like for the women of the ancient Mediterranean? What rights, roles, responsibilities, and expectations defined their lives? Why is the examination of art and architecture such an important source for answering these questions? This course will provide a comparative perspective exploring Greek, Etruscan, and Roman case studies. WRIT. T 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Anne Hunnell Chen.
ARCH 1525 Struggle and Domination in the Prehistoric Mediterranean: Sex, Power, God(s) [CRN: 16784] [Course Website]
Humans seek to survive, adapt, develop, and thrive. Yet our species is also prone to power struggles, violence, and domination. This strife can be seen in the findings of the latest archaeological and ethnographic research – which casts doubt on the peaceful, egalitarian societies sometimes imagined in the prehistoric past. This course will examine power and inequality in the prehistoric Mediterranean, considering such vectors as religion, human-nonhuman relationships, monument building, technological innovations, death, and sexuality. TTh 2:30-3:50. Instructor: Clive Vella.
ARCH 1621 History of Egypt I (EGYT 1430) [CRN: 15199] [Course Website]
Interested students must register for EGYT 1430.
A survey of the history and society of ancient Egypt from prehistoric times to the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty (ca. 5000-1300 BC). Readings include translations from the original documents that serve as primary sources for the reconstruction of ancient Egyptian history. WRIT. MWF 11:00-11:50. Instructor: Laurel Bestock.
ARCH 1707 The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World (CLAS 1120Q) [CRN: 16026] [Course Website]
Interested students must register for CLAS 1120Q.
"Everyone has heard of the Seven Wonders of the World," wrote Philo of Byzantium two millennia ago, and it's still true today. But what is a "Wonder"? And why seven of them? Why make such a list anyway, then or now? This class will use ancient texts, explorers' accounts, and archaeological investigations to travel through several thousand years of history in the Mediterranean and Near Eastern world. We will consider how the Seven Wonders captured past imaginations; the aura of technological achievements; the intersections of history, memory, invention, and myth; and how members of one culture view another culture's monuments. MWF 12:00-12:50. Instructor: John F. Cherry.
ARCH 1772 The Human Skeleton (ANTH 1720) [CRN: 16202]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1720.
More than simply a tissue within our bodies, the human skeleton is gateway into narratives of the past--from the evolution of our species to the biography of individual past lives. Through lecture and hands-on laboratory, students will learn the complete anatomy of the human skeleton, with an emphasis on the human skeleton in functional and evolutionary perspective. We will also explore forensic and bioarchaeological approaches to the skeleton. By the course conclusion, students will be able to conduct basic skeletal analysis and will be prepared for more advanced studies of the skeleton from medical, forensic, archaeological, and evolutionary perspectives. Enrollment limited to 20. Not open to first year students. Instructor permission required. TTh 6:40-8:00. Instructor: Andrew Scherer.
ARCH 1870 Environmental Archaeology [CRN: 16729] [Course Website]
How has climate change affected the development of human society? How have people changed or destroyed their environments in the past? What does "sustainability" mean over the long term? Environmental archaeology is the study of these questions and more through the use of scientific techniques to analyze soils, plants, and animal remains from ancient archaeological contexts. A combination of class and hands-on teaching will introduce these methods and how they allow us to interpret human-environmental interactions in the past. TTh 1:00-2:20. Instructor: Brett Kaufman.
ARCH 1881 An Introduction to GIS and Spatial Analysis for Anthropologists and Archaeologists (ANTH 1201) [CRN: 16730]
Interested students must register for ANTH 1201.
This course serves as an introduction to the concepts, techniques, and (to a lesser extent, the histories) that motivate geographic information systems and their employment in anthropological and archaeological scholarship. GIS brings together traditional cartographic principles, computer-assisted analytical cartography, relational database design, and digital image processing and analysis to enable people to develop geospatial databases, analyze those databases, and use maps and other visual representations as part of this analysis. No previous work in GIS or computer programming is necessary. Previous computer experience with MS Windows operating systems is helpful. DPLL LILE. TTh 9:00-10:20.
ARCH 1900 The Archaeology of College Hill [CRN: 16180] [Course Website]
A training class in field and laboratory techniques. Topics include the nature of field archaeology, excavation and survey methodologies, archaeological ethics, computer technologies (such as GIS), and site and artifact analysis and conservation. Students will act as practicing archaeologists through the investigation of local historical and archaeological sites in the College Hill area (e.g. the First Baptist Church of America and the John Brown House). M 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Catherine Steidl.
Primarily for Graduates
ARCH 2006 Principles of Archaeology (ANTH 2501) [CRN: 16206]
Interested students must register for ANTH 2501.
Examines theoretical and methodological issues in anthropological archaeology. Attention is given to past concerns, current debates, and future directions of archaeology in the social sciences. F 9:00-11:30. Instructor: Robert Preucel.
ARCH 2010G Ethical Issues in Archaeology [CRN: 16184] [Course Website]
Graduate students will certainly confront ethical, legal, and professional issues in the course of their own doctoral research and subsequent careers. This seminar offers a forum for open, but well-informed, discussion of a variety of significant ethical problems and dilemmas currently facing the discipline of archaeology worldwide. We will give attention to practical matters arising from archaeological field research, as well as a wide range of difficult questions concerning ownership and presentation of the past. W 3:00-5:30. Instructor: John F. Cherry
ARCH 2041 Mesoamerican Archaeology and Ethnohistory (ANTH 2520) [CRN: 16878]
Interested students must register for ANTH 2520.
Seminar focusing on current issues in the archaeology and history of Mesoamerica, including Mexico and Northern Central America. Draws on rich resources at Brown, including the John Carter Brown Library. M 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Stephen D. Houston.
ARCH 2114 Archaeologies of Text (AWAS 2800) [CRN: 14847]
Interested students must register for AWAS 2800.
An interdisciplinary seminar that examines the interplay between ancient texts and archaeology in the study of the ancient world. The emphasis will be on articulating the research methods and assumptions distilled from case studies set in the ancient Near East, Mediterranean, East Asia, and the Americas. Topics will include: canons of literature as/versus ancient inscriptions; materiality of text; texts on display, in deposits, in archives, in libraries, as refuse; literacy and education; practices of documentation and analysis; writing, language, and 'ethnicity'; historical geography; fakes and forgeries; ancient texts and archaeological ethics. No prerequisites. Intended primarily for graduate students. W 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Matthew Rutz.
ARCH 2245 Rural Landscapes and Peasant Communities in the Mediterranean [CRN: 16645] [Course Website]
The broad aim of this course is to explore rural settlement and agrarian production in the Mediterranean, in both the ancient and recent past. The archaeological starting-point is provided by the numerous scatters of surface remains that archaeological surveys across the Mediterranean have collected and that are usually interpreted as 'farmsteads' broadly datable to Classical Antiquity. We will look well beyond these scatters to examine the social and economic significance of rural settlement through comparison with ethnographic and historical rural studies from across the Mediterranean and elsewhere in order to explore rural household and community organization as well as agrarian production in the both the ancient and recent past. Th 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Peter van Dommelen.
ARCH 2425 In Ruins: Traces of the Past in the Present [CRN: 16906] [Course Website]
Ruins -- the debris and skeletons of monuments from the past -- constitute the leftovers of people and places that once were. Yet archaeologists have not thought critically about this seemingly essential concept. Ruins and ruination are fundamental to deeper understandings of culture contact, the rise and fall of civilizations, state power and political factionalism, urbanism, colonialism, capitalism, and deindustrialization. This course will examine, across a broad geographic and temporal scope, ruins as things, as well as ongoing processes, that affect the landscape. T 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Matthew Reilly.
ARCH 2502 Historical Archaeology: From Colony to City (ANTH 2540) [CRN: 16879]
Interested students must register for ANTH 2540.
Examines historical archaeology as a complex field of inquiry that engages multiple sources of evidence and incorporates a wide range of theoretical and methodological approaches. The seminar will consider the range of evidence available to historical archaeologists, and draw on examples from colonies and cities around the world to explore how the richness and diversity of the evidence is used. Th 4:00-6:30. Instructor: Patricia Rubertone.
ARCH 2553 Introduction to Public Humanities (AMST 2650) [CRN: 15016]
Interested students must register for AMST 2650.
This class, a foundational course for the MA in Public Humanities with preference given to American Studies graduate students, will address the theoretical bases of the public humanities, including topics of history and memory, museums and memorials, the roles of expertise and experience, community cultural development, and material culture. Enrollment limited to 20 graduate students. W 3:00-5:30. Instructor: Steven D. Lubar.
Additional Resources
You may also visit Courses@Brown listings for up-to-date information on courses and room assignments. Check under: Area of Study: "Archaeology and the Ancient World”
For a listing of all courses ever taught in Archaeology and the Ancient World (or in Old World Archaeology, its predecessor), please visit the "All Courses" page on this website. To browse the web pages and Canvas sites -- including syllabi -- for most ARCH courses, please see our "Course Websites" page.