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According to Hawkes (1954), religion or ideology is the most difficult part of social life to access archaeologically. Luckily, not all scholars agree; according to Fogelin (2008) 'religion is not something people think about, but something people do¿. Thus, archaeology, an inherently multidisciplinary subject that studies material culture, is well suited to delve into religion and its underpinnings.nThis course will explore religious practices, as they can be defined and interpreted from archaeological contexts spanning the Paleolithic to historic periods. Definitions of religion differ from author to author but they mostly agree that religion is a fully integrated and thus integral part of human social life. Politics, economics, identity and social class influence religion, and religion influences how these forces play out in society. Thus, the course will also examine the significance of ritual and religion in a variety of social contexts.

This seminar will survey the archaeology of South Asia, beginning with animal and plant domestication in the early Holocene and ending with the late Medieval Period. Given its chronological breadth and spatial scope, the class will interrogate a variety of social and historical contexts that contribute to a broad range of anthropological research concerns¿including the intersections of authority, ritual, alterity and landscape¿and at the same time critically consider the epistemological bases for their analyses through archaeological remains.

The landscape is a result of the action and interaction of human and natural factors. Communities have altered their landscapes for a variety of reasons, including the subsistence practices; as a consequence of economic growth; to express a social ideology, and as a consequence of political and religious drivers. Accordingly, landscapes enable physical and provide psychological sustenance to people, and the human need to relate to our surroundings is part of the way in which identities are created and disputed. Within the humanities, landscape is being conceptualized as a process, a practice and as performance, and monuments within a given landscape have an equally important role, not to mention history. They are often the most durable and well-known evidence of the ancient civilizations, and should be observed jointly with the landscape. How did the landscape predefine the monument and how did the monument complement, emphasize or devalue the landscape? What philosophy channeled the construction of the monuments within the landscapes? Whether ephemeral or permanent, the human agency left traces in the landscape; thus, both monuments and landscapes are the key indicators for understanding the ideology of a particular culture. Archaeology, through its interdisciplinary nature, provides a unique perspective, as well as tools, for examining the formation processes of all man-made elements, within both natural and cultural landscapes. nnThe course will address the multifaceted issues of the ways that people have consciously and unconsciously shaped the land around them through time. It will look into diverse, geographically and periodically influenced concepts of a monument and landscape. The course will be divided into two parts, with the first one covering the theory and methodological approaches and the second part the conceptual characteristics, modifications and changeability in various archaeological and historical periods and cultural frameworks.

(Formerly CLASSART 117.) Enter the mind, the drafting room, and the building site of the Roman architects and engineers whose monumental projects impressed ancient and modern spectators alike. This class explores the interrelated aesthetics and mechanics of construction that led to one of the most extensive building programs undertaken by a pre-modern state. Through case studies ranging from columns, domes and obelisks to road networks, machines and landscape modification, we investigate the materials, methods, and knowledge behind Roman innovation, and the role of designed space in communicating imperial identity.

Practicum applying a variety of survey techniques to discover, map, and record archaeological sites. Basic cartographic skills for archaeologists and an introduction to GIS tools, GPS instruments, and geophysical techniques. Participants should be able to walk 3 - 4 miles over uneven terrain or make special arrangements with the instructor for transportation.

Students will open the "black box" of museums to consider the past and present roles of institutional collections, culminating in a student-curated exhibition. Today, museums assert their relevance as dynamic spaces for debate and learning. Colonialism and restitution, the politics of representation, human/object relationships, and changing frameworks of authority make museum work widely significant and consistently challenging. Through thinking-in-practice, this course reflexively explores "museum cultures": representations of self and other within museums and institutional cultures of the museum world itself.n3 credits (no final project) or 5 credits (final project). May be repeat for credit

This seminar is an exploration of archaeological approaches to the study of economic life in ancient, historical, and recent times. In-depth discussions of ¿economy¿¿and comparison of different approaches to the subject¿will ground examination of economic archaeology¿s unique role, its contributions to the discipline, and its defining characteristics. Selected readings will: (1) train students in essential theoretical and intellectual background, (2) critically explore current research, and (3) furnish a comparative perspective on the role of economy in archaeology.

Heritage has been popularly connected with the romantic nation. And many debates about the use of the past in the present have used this vocabulary of modernist nationalism. Today, however, we live in an age where neoliberalism and transnationalism is challenging well-known modes of national sovereignty and citizenship. This course will investigate the changing nature of statecraft in the globalized 21st century. Spotlighting the state¿s specific application and reinvention of technologies such as cultural policy, heritage management and historiography.

(Formerly CLASSART 145.) Why do we care about shipwrecks? What can sunken sites and abandoned ports tell us about our past? Focusing primarily on the archaeological record of shipwrecks and harbors, along with literary evidence and contemporary theory, this course examines how and why ancient mariners ventured across the "wine-dark seas" of the Mediterranean for travel, warfare, pilgrimage, and especially commerce. We will explore interdisciplinary approaches to the development of maritime contacts and communication from the Bronze Age through the end of Roman era. At the same time, we will engage with practical techniques of maritime archaeology, which allows us to explore the material record first hand.