Archaeology Courses

NOTE: Complete undergraduate and graduate catalogs can be found here.

ARCH 207 (3)
Rise and Fall of Civilizations
This course focuses on the emergence of complex societies in the Old and New Worlds (such as the Mesopotamians, the Egyptians, Harappans, Aztecs, Mayans, and Inkans). Topics include the origins of agriculture and its effect on society, the shift from egalitarian societies to those with social ranking, the rise of cities, and the origins of writing. By highlighting the variability in pre-industrial civilizations, the course examines the role of cultural values in shaping the organization of early societies. IIIO, V

ARCH 223 (3)
Women & Gender in Archaeology
Women's varied roles in past societies have only been seriously studied by archaeologists in the last few decades. How do we recognize and interpret gender in the archaeological record? How do we know what the lives of women, as slaves, household members, and queens, were like? To what extent have our understandings of women in the past been influenced by the roles and perceptions of women in modern society? IIIW, V

ARCH 261 (1)
Directed Study
Selected topics pursued by individual students or small groups of students under supervision of a member of the department.

ARCH 265 (3)
Archaeology of Everyday Life
What was daily life like in the past? What can archaeology tell us about the occupations, influences, and challenges that men, women, and children experienced in past societies such as Babylon, Akhetaten, London, Pompeii, or Virginia plantations? Topics of study include the patterning of household activities (family life, craft production, child rearing, and diet), social interactions (between genders and among elites, peasants, and slaves), and ethnic and religious affiliations. V5

ARCH 310 (3)
Archaeology of Death
Death is a universal human experience, yet mortuary rituals and burials vary cross-culturally. In this class we consider how archaeologists encounter and interpret death in societies worldwide. Topics inlcude tombs, mummies, funerals, cemetery landscapes, gravemarkers, war memorials, and mortuary symbolism. Offered alternate years.

ARCH 317 (3)
Historical Archaeology
This course used archaeology and material culture to go beyond documentary histories. Historical archaeology traditionally examines western colonial and industrial societies, illuminating the lives of "people without history" in those societies, and sometimes questioning the documentary record. This course also extends historical archaeological methods and theories to non-western sites and peoples.

ARCH 361 (1)
Special Study
Selected topics pursued by individual students or small groups of students under supervision of a member of the department.

ARCH 377 (1)
Internship

ARCH 461 (1)
Independent Study
Selected topics pursued by individual students or small groups of students under supervision of a member of the department.