Archaeology Minor
Minor Description
The Minor in Archaeology trains students to analyze and reconstruct past societies and their environments through material remains. Students engage the past in ways that can address modern questions, such as what drives culture change, what creates resilient societies, the role of archaeology in construction of identity, and how we can rediscover sustainable technologies to meet climate challenges. Archaeology is fundamentally interdisciplinary and hands-on. Students apply analytical and interpretive frameworks from the humanities, sciences, and social sciences, with many courses involving lab or experimental components and the opportunity to engage directly with artifacts.
There are three tracks possible in the Minor: the Interdisciplinary Minor, with a regional focus; the Archaeological Science minor, with a focus on specific scientific methods of analysis; and the Experimental Archaeology linked minor with the College of Design and Engineering (CoDES), which focuses on reverse-engineering ancient technologies. The Interdisciplinary and Arch Sci Minors require six credits, including a gateway course, and classes in Theory, Anthropology, Classical Civilization, Art History, and Analytical Methods. The Experimental Archaeology/CoDES linked minor requires 7 credits, including the Archaeology gateway, 3 CoDES core courses for design/engineering fundamentals, and 3 experimental and project-based seminars in Archaeology.
Admission to the Minor
To declare the Minor, a student must achieve a grade of B or above in a designated Gateway course.
Gateway courses
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARCP201 | Art and Archaeology of the Bronze Age Mediterranean | 1 |
| ARCP203 | The Secrets of Ancient Bones: Discovering Ancient DNA and Archaeology | 1 |
| ARCP204 | Introduction to Archaeology | 1 |
| ARCP214 | Survey of Greek Archaeology and Art | 1 |
| ARCP223 | Survey of Roman Archaeology and Art | 1 |
| ARCP260 | Art and Archaeology of Ancient India | 1 |
Minor Requirements
The Minor in Archaeology requires a minimum of six credits in archaeology.
- 1 Gateway course
- 1 Elective course:
The Elective requirement can also be met with two 0.5 credits of the Thinking Through Archaeology Symposium, offered each fall semester (beginning Fall '22) - 1 course in each of four areas (Anthropology, Classical Civilization, Art History, Methods). For a listing of the different courses in each of these categories, please see Major Requirements.
The Minor in Archaeological Science requires a minimum of six credits in archaeology:
- 1 Gateway course
- 1 Elective course:
The Elective requirement can be met by two 0.5 credits of the Thinking Through Archaeology Symposium Course. With the approval of the Chair, students in the ArchSci Minor can also apply one extra-departmental course in the sciences to their ARCP Minor. - 1 course in each of three areas (Anthropology, Classical Civilization, Art History)
- 1 300-level lab-based ARCP course (this meets the Method requirement)
Archaeological and Design Approaches to Ancient Objects and Ancient Technologies
The new Linked IDEAS/ARCP Minor is a project-based curricular pathway that blends training in the fundamentals of Design and Engineering with robust study of archaeological methods and materials for the analysis of ancient artifacts and technologies. Through introductory and experimental courses, the Minor introduces students to the practices of experimental archaeology and materials analysis as methods embedded within anthropological and historical frameworks.
It requires 3 IDEAS courses and 4 ARCP courses:
- 1 Gateway: ARCP 204 Introduction to Archaeology
- 3 IDEAS Core requirements
- IDEAS 170
- IDEAS 180
- IDEAS 220
- 1 ARCP course introducing experimental approaches (see list below)
- 2 ARCP project- based courses (see list below)
IDEAS Core Courses (All 3 required)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| IDEA170 | Introduction to Mechanical Design and Engineering | 1 |
| IDEA180 | Design Studies | 1 |
| ARST220 | Ecological Design I: Being at Home in the World | 1 |
Archaeology Required Course
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARCP204 | Introduction to Archaeology | 1 |
Archaeology Courses Introducing Experimental Approaches (1 required)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARCP201 | Art and Archaeology of the Bronze Age Mediterranean | 1 |
| ARCP214 | Survey of Greek Archaeology and Art | 1 |
| ARCP203 | The Secrets of Ancient Bones: Discovering Ancient DNA and Archaeology | 1 |
| ARCP257 | Environmental Archaeology | 1 |
| ARCP350 | Animals in Archaeology | 1 |
Archaeology Project-Based Courses (2 required)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| ARCP234 | Art and Society in Ancient Pompeii | 1 |
| ARCP257 | Environmental Archaeology | 1 |
| ARCP285 | Off with its Pedestal! The Greek Vase as Art and Artifact | 1 |
| ARCP291 | East Asian Archaeology | 1 |
| ARCP293 | Numismatics and the Archaeology of Money | 1 |
| ARCP352 | Ancient Medicine: Potions, Poisons, and Phytochemistry in the Ancient Mediterranean | 1 |
To apply for the minor, please submit a declaration to add the minor through the Major/Minor/Cert Declaration application in your student portfolio. Students seeking to apply a science courses to meet their Elective requirement must explain the course they intend to apply and its application to archaeological research.