Course Catalogue

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This course provides students with the opportunity to learn about the craft of archaeology in terms of the concepts and theories through which past societies are understood and the practical and scientific skills, methods and techniques which archaeologists use to recover, analyse and interpret artefacts, sites and landscapes.

Lectures: Wednesday at 12noon over 10 weeks as scheduled on MyCampus; one hour online anytime learning resources on moodle each week; seven two-hour practical classes and one residential weekend fieldtrip. In any one week, a student will typically have one lecture, one hour of online learning, and a two hour practical class.

Grade D3 or above in Archaeology 1B (ARCH1002), or at the discretion of the Head of Subject.

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Worksheet based on the fieldtrip (2000 words) - 30%

Essay (2000 words) - 30%

Practical portfolio consisting of outputs from practical classes (equivalent 2500 words) -40%

This course aims to:

■ Engage with key developments in the history of archaeological thought, practice and technique;

■ Establish a grounding in contemporary theory and interpretation, practice and method in archaeology ;

■ Examine the relationships between archaeological data, methods and interpretations;

■ Gain experience in the practical and scientific methods and techniques of archaeology.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ Outline central themes in the history of archaeology as a discipline

■ Discuss the inter-disciplinary nature of archaeology

■ Evaluate the inter-relationships of theory, method and data in archaeological practice and interpretation

■ Apply key archaeological skills, methods and techniques

■ Critically reflect upon individual and group work undertaken in the context of an archaeological project

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.