Art and Archaeology of the Prehistoric Aegean

CLASARCH 130 Subject & Catalog Number

Description

When did Greek-speakers first arrive in the Aegean? Was Minoan Crete ruled by peace-loving, nature-worshipping matriarchs? Did the Trojan War really happen? This course introduces students to the material culture of the Aegean, from the first traces of human habitation to the appearance of the Greek alphabet. We will consider the earliest inter-island networks, the emergence of powerful polities in a hyperconnected and fractious Mediterranean, and the aftermath of their collapse at the end of the Bronze Age. Students will become familiar with a wide variety of methods used to reconstruct political, social, economic, and cultural histories in periods with few or no texts, from art historical approaches to applications of archaeological science, such as survey and remote sensing, paleoclimatology, ancient DNA, isotope analysis, and more. Students will also be introduced to theoretical debates in archaeology which have shaped our interpretations of this data.