Archaeological science is an exciting and rapidly growing area of archaeology, and is revealing new information about the past, as well as informing current heritage practices. In this module we will explore how archaeological science helps us to understand past cultures, drawing on case studies from around the world.
Occurrence | Teaching period |
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A | Semester 2 2023-24 |
This module aims to:
By the end of this module students should be able to:
This module will be taught through lectures by specialists in the relevant fields, with each week focusing on a different archaeological science technique or theme, such as scientific dating, human and animal bones, ancient DNA, isotopes and residue analysis. This module will also assist students in reading, understanding and evaluating archaeological science articles, as well as providing hands-on experience with archaeological materials. Students will undertake a series of seminars surrounding accessing and reading academic scientific articles and will write an essay which explores how different scientific methods can be applied to an archaeological topic. Workshops will give students the opportunity to handle bones and other archaeological samples under the direction of experts in the field.
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Essay/coursework Essay |
N/A | 100 |
None
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Essay/coursework Essay |
N/A | 100 |
Formative: written feedback from module leaders
Summative: written feedback within the University's turnaround policy
Richards, M.P. and Britton, K. eds., 2020. Archaeological Science: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press.
Renfrew, C. & Bahn, Paul G, 2016. Archaeology: theories, methods and practice 7th ed., London: Thames & Hudson.
Gokcumen, O. and Frachetti, M., 2020. The Impact of Ancient Genome Studies in Archaeology. Annual Review of Anthropology, 49.