Spring 2008
Instructor
Kelly J. Dixon
Office: Social Sciences Building, Room 235
Telephone: 406.243.2450
Email: kelly.dixon@mso.umt.edu
Office hours: On leave Spring 2008
Guest Instructor (Spring 2008)
Mark Wm. Timmons
Office: Social Sciences Building, Room 235
Telephone: 406.243.2450
Email: mark.timmons@umontana.edu
Office hours: MWF 1200-1300
Teaching Assistant (Spring 2008)
Eric Carlson Office:
Social Sciences Building Room 254A
Telephone: 970.596.6550
Email: escarlson@yahoo.com
Office hours:
M 1000-1200, 1300-1400
T 1400-1500, 2100-2200
W 1000-1200
F 100-1200
Course Description
Archaeology covers more than four million years to study past human cultures through ruins and other physical remains. This course highlights major archaeological discoveries on a on a worldwide, environmental, political, and economic scale and will examine how archaeology evolved from a curiosity, into a pursuit of high adventure, and finally, to a science. Students will reflect upon how such findings shed light on the dynamic timeline of human existence and will learn how to think critically about recent archaeological and historical findings presented in professional journals and in mainstream media.
Required Textbook
Images of the Past (2004, 5th Edition) by T. Douglas Price and Gary M. Feinman. Mayfield-McGraw-Hill Publishing Co.
Optional Textbook
Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries: Science and Pseudoscience in Archaeology (2006, 6th edition) by Kenneth L. Feder. Mayfield-McGraw-Hill Publishing Company.
Additional required readings for this course include a few selections from the book, Stones, Bones, and Ancient Cities by Lawrence H. Robbins. The assigned selections from this book are posted on this website. We will also examine new discoveries presented in professional journals as appropriate and as they are made available.
Course Structure
This course meets for 50 minutes, three days a week, throughout the semester. Class meetings will include lectures, films, in-class activities/discussions, and weekly quizzes. Students may be required to participate in class by sharing their ideas with the rest of the class in informal discussions. Also, students can gain participation points when they are periodically asked to answer a certain question or when they are asked to outline what they learned in class that day by jotting down a few notes and turning them in to the instructor.
Attendance
Attendance will be taken during each class and will help make decisions about a student’s final grade in borderline cases. Also, there will be some in-class projects and participation exercises that require attendance to get full points.
Grades
| Quizzes * | (12 quizzes; students can drop 2) | 100 points |
| Final Exam ** | 100 points | |
| Participation | (includes in-class exercises) | 100 points |
| TOTAL | 300 points |
The plus/minus system will be used and will be based upon the following average scores: A (100-95%), A- (94-90%), B+ (89-88%), B (87-83%), B- (82-80%), C+ (79-78%), C (77-73%), C- (72-70%), D+ (69-68%), D (67-63%), D- (62-60%), F (59% or less).
* There will be no make-up quizzes; students are allowed to drop their two lowest-scoring quizzes.
**Make-up exams will be given ONLY in cases of verified and unavoidable emergencies. You must notify me IN ADVANCE if you are unable to take the regularly scheduled exam.
Students with Disabilities
The Department of Anthropology is committed to equal opportunity in education for all students, including those with documented physical disabilities or documented learning disabilities. University policy states that it is the responsibility of students with documented disabilities to contact instructors DURING THE FIRST WEEK OF THE SEMESTER to discuss appropriate accommodations to ensure equity in grading, classroom experiences, and outside assignments. The instructor will meet with the student and the staff of the Disability Services for Students (DSS) to make accommodations. Please contact Jim Marks in DSS (243.2373, Lommasson Center 154) for more information.
Course Schedule
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | January 23 | (W) Course Introduction |
Optional: Images of the Past Chapter 1 |
| January 25 | (F) Hoaxes & the Search for Human Origins |
Optional: Frauds, Myths Chapter 4 |
|
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 2 | January 28 | (M) 30 Years of Leakey Persistence at Olduvai |
Images of the Past pp. 56-62 in Chapter 2 |
| January 30 | (W) Discovery of Lucy |
Images of the Past pp. 44-47 in Chapter 2; Optional: Images of the Past pp. 48-49 in Chapt. 2 |
|
| February 1 | (F) Out of Africa |
Images of the Past pp. 90-94, in Chapter 3 |
|
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 3 | February 4 | (M) Who were the Neanderthals? |
Images of the Past pp. 105-116 in Chapter 3 |
| February 6 | (W) Neanderthals, continued | Images of the Past pp. 117-122 in Chapter 3 | |
| February 8 | (F) Neanderthals on Trial | ||
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 4 | February 11 | (M) Hobbits in Indonesia – REALLY? |
To be Announced |
| February 13 | (W) Culture and the Upper Paleolithic |
E-RES: Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities Chapter 2 |
|
| February 15 | (F) Upper Paleolithic Art: Europe and Africa |
Images of the Past pp. 123-140 in Chapter 4 | |
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 5 | February 18 | (M) No Class – Washington- Lincoln Day, HOLIDAY | Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski, Ski |
| February 20 | (W) Upper Paleolithic Art & Discovery of "Cro-Magnon"
|
Optional: Images of the Past pp.143-144 | |
| February 22 | (F) End of the Ice Age/Ice Age Crossings |
Images of the Past pp. 95-97, 145-152; Optional: Frauds, Myths Chapter 5 |
|
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 6 | February 25 | (M) Kennewick Man/ Peopling of the Americas |
Images of the Past pp. 153-155 in Chapter 4 |
| February 27 | (W) Transition to the Neolithic: Documentary shown; class survey results |
Images of the Past pp. 156-162 in Chapters 4 & 5 | |
| February 29 | (F) Discoveries at Jericho and Çatalhöyük |
Images of the Past pp. 217-219, 223-227 in Ch. 6 | |
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 7 | March 3 | (M) Origins of Agriculture and Domestication |
Images of the Past pp. 195-209 in Chapter 6 |
| March 5 | (W) The Lure of Lost Cities |
To be announced |
|
| March 7 | (F) Lost Cities in the Ancient Near East I Refer to lecture #12 posted above |
Images of the Past pp. 425-441 in Chapter 10 | |
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 8 | March 10 | (M) Lost Cities in the Ancient Near East II |
To be announced |
| March 12 | (W) The Origins of Writing |
E- RES : Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities pp. 194-196 |
|
| March 14 | (F) The Ancient Harappan Civilization |
Images of the Past pp. 442-449 in Chapter 10 | |
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 9 | March 17 | (M) Ancient Egypt : Lost Empires, Pyramids | Images of the Past pp. 450-461 in Chapter 10 |
| March 19 | (W) Hieroglyphs & the Rosetta Stone |
E- RES : Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities pp. 197-200 |
|
| March 21 | (F) Discovery of Tutankhamen’s Tomb |
E- RES : Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities pp. 88-97 |
|
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 10 | March 24 | ||
| March 26 | No Classes – Spring Break | ||
| March 28 | |||
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 11 | March 31 | (M) Mysteries of Egypt ; Myths, Adventurers, Plunderers |
Optional: Frauds, Myths pp. 216-226 |
| April 2 | (W) Topic to be announced | ||
| April 4 | (F) Transition to European Discoveries: The Iceman |
Images of the Past pp. 497-508 in Chapter 11 | |
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 12 | April 7 | (M) Bronze Age, Troy Troy : Beyond the Movie 19 Archaeology & Greek Mythology: Examples from Troy & Mycenae |
Images of the Past pp. 521-530 in Chapter 10; E- RES : Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities pp. 98-107 |
| April 9 | (W) Pompeii Beyond the Shadow of Vesuvius Allison S. Pompeii Photos -- Scroll down to bottom. |
E- RES : Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities pp. 108-119 |
|
| April 11 | (F) Mysteries of Stonehenge |
Images of the Past pp. 513-520 in Chapter 11 |
|
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 13 | April 14 | (M) Discoveries of Royal Tombs in China 21 Rise of Complex Societies in China & Shi Huang Ti's Royal Tombs |
Images of the Past pp. 470-475 in Chapter 10 |
| April 16 | (W) Marvels of Ancient Mesoamerica I |
Images of the Past pp. 348, 361-362, 370-379 in Chapt. 8 | |
| April 18 | (F) Marvels of Ancient Mesoamerica II Lost Kingdoms of the Maya |
Images of the Past pp. 470-475 in Chapter 10 | |
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 14 | April 28 | (M) Easter Island |
To be announced |
| April 30 | (W) South American Wonders |
Images of the Past pp. 381-384 in Chapter 9 | |
| May 2 | (F) Machu Picchu and Incan Mummies |
Images of the Past pp. 411-420 in Chapter 9 Optional: Images of the Past pp. 385-410 |
|
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Week 15 | May 5 | (M) The Power of Myth: Atlantis |
Optional: Frauds, Myths Chapter 7 |
| May 7 | (W) Myths, Moundbuilders of North America 25 Moundbuilders of North America
|
Images of the Past pp. 278-283 in Chapter 6 | |
| May 9 | (F) The Lost City of Zimbabwe 26 Zimbabwe & African Burial Ground, in NY
|
E-RES: Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities pp. 120-134 Stones, Bones, Ancient Cities pp. 120-134 |
|
| Date | Course Summary | Assigned Readings | |
| Final | May 8 | (Th) Final Exam Time: 08:10-10:10 |
Course Notes (Powerpoint slides)
01 Intro and 7 Wonders Overview
02 The Search for Origins, Hoaxes, News
03 Decades of Persistence: The Leakeys
04 Discovery of Lucy, Dikika Baby
05 Out of Africa
06 Meet the Neanderthals
07 Homo floresiensis
08 Intro to Upper Paleolithic & Caves .
08a Mobiliary Art & Architecture
09 Ice Age ending, people colonizing
09a Kennewick Man, Spirit Cave Man
No lecture on this (just a fun FYI) Mesolithic-Neolithic/Pleistocene-Holocene transition; megafauna extinctions
10 World at 10 kya & Mesolithic Intro
11 Intro to Neolithic: Jericho, Çatalhöyük
12 Lost but Unforgotten Cities Near East
13 Cuneiform & Ur Cemetery (pulled from Lecture 12 above)
14 Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Babylonian Taverns & Western Saloons: A Timeline for Public Drinking
15 Indus River Civilization
16a Egypt: Land of Wonders, Rosetta Stone, etc.
16b Egypt: Land of Wonders, Tutankhamun
17 Egypt: Gift of the River, Pyramids
Timeline of Egyptian Prehistory/History p. 1
Timeline of Egyptian Prehistory/History p. 2
18 Iceman
DVD -- Iceman: Hunt for a Killer Library Catalog Number 00373
19 Archaeology & Greek Mythology: Examples from Troy & Mycenae
Pompeii -- Video: In the Shadow of Vesuvius Library Catalog Number VT 12604
Samples of Allison S's Pompeii Photos:
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 1
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 2
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 3
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 4
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 5
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 6
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 7
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 8
Allison S. Pompeii Photo 9
20 Stonehenge & Megaliths of Western Europe
21 Rise of Complex Societies in China & Shi Huang Ti's Royal Tombs
22 Marvels of Mesoamerica
22a Cenote Brief
Tosh McKetta Guest Lecture on South America
23 Easter Island Lecture
South America: Case Study
The Myth & Mystery of Atlantis
Great Zimbabwe
Mesoamerican and South America Montage (Matthew Hinzman's photos of Chichen Itza are here)
Myths and Moundbuilders (David Dick's photos of Cahokia are here)
