Codes are included at the end of each course description for Spring 2025 classes to specify which Archaeology and the Ancient World concentration requirements that course could fulfill. A=Archaeology and the Ancient World (ARAN), C=Classical Archaeology (CLSS), E=Egyptian and Near Eastern Archaeology (EGAS); and numbers correspond to concentration requirements at on our website and in the University Bulletin.

Spring 2025

ARCH 0156  Architecture and Urbanism of Africa (HIAA 0770)
Interested students must register for HIAA 0770.
This course introduces African built environments from the earliest known examples to the contemporary moment. Through recent debates about heritage and preservation, we will interrogate “Africa” as both an imagined construct and a concrete geographic entity characterized by diverse cultures, contexts, and histories. We will also explore competing interpretations of Africa’s architectural and urban history and their contemporary relevance. Instructor: Itohan Osayimwese. MWF 10-10:50am. A/E/C 5; A6

ARCH 0309  Human Evolution​ (ANTH 0310)
Interested students must register for ANTH 0310.
Examination of theory and evidence on human evolution in the past, present and future. Topics include evolution and adaptation, biocultural adaptation, fossil evidence, behavioral evolution in primates, human genetic variation and contemporary human biological variation. Instructor: Andrew Scherer. TTh 9-10:20am. A/E/C 5; A6

ARCH 0314  Medieval Bodies: Medieval Perspectives (MDVL 0360)
Interested students must register for MDVL 0360.
In this course, we will explore bodies from a wide range of disciplines in medieval studies. The body has been always an object of imagination, literature, science, philosophy, and religion, it is the vehicle of both the divine and the profane, and it is at the center of debates on sexuality, gender identities, race, and politics. In this course, we look at how different views on the body and on sexuality developed and changed throughout the medieval period and how they influenced and were influenced by the religious doctrines, medical theories, and the intellectual environment of different groups of people. Finally, we will explore bodies both physical and metaphorical. Instructor: Jonathan Conant. M 3-5:30pm.  A/E/C 4; A6

ARCH 0323  Somewhere Back in Time: Archaeology, the Ancient World, and Heavy Metal Music (CLAS 0322)
Interested students must register for CLAS 0322.
Iron Maiden’s “Alexander the Great”, Ex Deo’s “The Rise of Hannibal”, Septic Flesh’s “Prometheus” – few musical genres are as interested in history as heavy metal. The sounds, lyrics, images, films, and live performances of many bands from around the world center on stories and mythologies from past cultures. This class examines these phenomena from an archaeological and historical point of view, centering discussion on the music and its stories while contextualizing these modern elements within an archaeologically and historically accurate past. Instructor: Tyler Franconi. MWF 12-12:50pm. A/E/C 4,5; A6

ARCH 0644  Art and Architecture of the Islamic World (HIAA 0044)
Interested students must register for HIAA 0044.
This course is an introduction to the spectacular art, architecture and visual culture of the Islamic world, starting from the late seventh century C.E. until the present day. Students are introduced to the visual aspects of religious and secular life in the Islamic world through a spectrum of artworks, architecture, manuscripts, textiles, plastic arts, painting, and popular art, all examined in historical context. It covers the foundational premises of Islamic art and architecture in the early Islamic period, the artistic identities of the medieval era, the empires of the Early Modern world, and the colonial and postcolonial period from c. 1800 to the present. It is structured through thematic issues including, but not limited to: textuality, geometry and ornament, optics and perception, sacred and royal space, image production and aniconism, modernity and tradition, and artistic exchange with Europe, and China. Instructor: Margaret Graves. TTh 9-10:20am.  A/E/C 2,3; A6

ARCH 0767  Aromas of Antiquity: The Fragrant World of the Ancient Mediterranean
Have you ever wondered how something as unassuming as smell can shape entire civilizations? Through scent walks, hands-on experiences, and chemical experiments, students in this course will discover how fragrance shapes our daily lives and contemporary ideas about medicine, relationships, and wealth. We’ll then shift to the ancient Mediterranean, exploring how the ancient Egyptians, Mesopotamians, Early Christians, Greeks, and Romans perceived scent and examining its entanglement with their belief systems, social lives, and power dynamics. Instructor: Robyn Price. MWF 1-1:50pm. A/E/C 3,4; A6

ARCH 0775  Farm to Table: Foodways and Gastro-Politics in the Ancient Near East
This course provides an introduction to the culture, economy, and politics of food in the ancient Near East. We will not only investigate the day-to-day mechanics of food production, cooking, and consumption; we will also develop an appreciation for changing food fashions, for the etiquette of eating and drinking, and for the complex world of gastro-politics. We will even explore the ancient kitchen using our own hands, mouths, and stomachs as a guide. Instructor: Kathleen Forste. MWF 11-11:50am. A/E/C 3; A6

ARCH 1233  Ancient Maya Writing (ANTH 1650)
Interested students must register for ANTH 1650.
Nature and content of Mayan hieroglyphic writing, from 100 to 1600 CE. Methods of decipherment, introduction to textual study, and application to interpretations of Mayan language, imagery, world view, and society. Literacy and Mesoamerican background of script. Instructor: Stephen Houston. MWF 1-1:50pm. A/E/C 5,10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 1234  Lost Languages (ANTH 1820)
Interested students must register for ANTH 1820.
Humans make many marks, but it is writing that records, in tangible form, the sounds and meanings of language. Creating scripts is momentous; writing facilitates complex society and is a crucial means of cultural expression. This course addresses the nature of writing in past times. Topics include: the technology of script; its precursors and parallel notations; its emergence, use, and "death"; its change over time, especially in moments of cultural contact and colonialism; writing as a physical object or thing; code-breaking and decipherment, including scripts not yet deciphered; and the nature of non-writing or pseudo- or crypto-scripts. Instructors: Felipe Rojas and Stephen Houston. MW 3-4:20pm. A/E/C 5,10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 1434  Jerusalem: Jews, Christians, Muslims (UNIV 1003)
Interested students must register for UNIV 1003.
In this course, we will examine how competing heritage narratives of the city of Jerusalem have been shaped by Jewish, Christian, and Muslim histories and beliefs, as well as by Israeli, Palestinian, and international views and interests. We will explore the impact of media portrayal, educational platforms, and archaeological explorations in the contexts of social, religious, and political debates from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. At the focus will be the question of the city’s indivisible heritage and boundaries that divide the city and its communities. Instructor: Katharina Galor. W 3-5:30pm. A6,7,8,9,10; E6,7,10; C10

ARCH 1487  Environmental History of East Asia (HIST 1820B)
Interested students must register for HIST 1820B.
With a fifth of the world’s population on a twentieth of its land, the ecosystems of China, Japan, Korea and Vietnam have been thoroughly transformed by human activity. This course will explore the human impact on the environment from the first farmers to the industrial present, exploring how wildlife was eliminated by the spread of agriculture, how states colonized the subcontinent, how people rebuilt water systems, and how modern communism and capitalism have accelerated environmental change. Each week we will examine primary sources like paintings, essays, maps, and poems. The course assumes no background in Asian or environmental history. Instuctor: Brian Lander. TTh 1-2:20pm. A/E/C 5,10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 1501  Islamic Art in the RISD Museum: Thinking With Objects (HIAA 1418)
Interested students must register for HIAA 1418.
In this seminar, students will work with objects from the RISD Museum collection to think through the histories and historiographies of Islamic art. Students will explore aspects of production, circulation, and display history through individual objects and their attendant narratives in scholarship, while also considering the questions of authenticity and provenance that are raised by the material’s passage through the colonial-era antiquities market. Students will work closely with their chosen object to produce a research paper and present their findings in a mini-conference held in the last class meeting. Instructor: Margaret Graves. T 1-3:30pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; E6,7

ARCH 1536  Ethnographies of Heritage: Community and Landscape of the Mediterranean and Beyond​ (ANTH 1126)
Interested students must register for ANTH 1126.
Archaeologists study objects and (socio-cultural) anthropologists investigate culture is how stereotype and conventions have long had it. As material culture studies have increasingly blurred these boundaries, the distinction is entirely meaningless when it comes to archaeological heritage. Taking its cue from material culture studies, this course explores how local communities experience the material remains from the past and (re)incorporate them into their contemporary lives. Instructor: Peter van Dommelen. F 3-5:30pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; C8,9

ARCH 1539  Gastronomic Heritage (ANTH 1920)
Interested students must register for ANTH 1920.
How is gastronomic heritage established and re-established through ties to ancient foodways? Where do archaeology and history contribute to the ossification and legitimation of culinary traditions and practices? There are many stakes tied to such questions—nutritional, religious, ethnic, institutional, governmental, and touristic, among others. In this course, we address relationships between food history and gastronomic heritage, drawing on examples from around the world and across media, including cookbooks, international policy reports, and video game representations. We examine culinary dimensions considered "traditional" by local communities and federal agencies, the archaeological and historical sources of such narratives (if they exist), and impacts of gastronomic heritage on modern practices, identities, and economies. Instructor: Shanti Morell-Hart. TTh 2:30-3:50pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 1602  The Age of Empires: The Ancient Near East in the First Millennium BC (ASYR 1300)
Interested students must register for ASYR 1300.
The first millennium BC saw a series of empires vying for control of the Near East: the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Persians, and the Greeks of Alexander the Great and his successors. The course will explore the political, social and cultural history of Mesopotamia and the Ancient Near East under these empires, using evidence drawn from archaeology and ancient texts (in translation). Instructor: John Steele. TTh 2:30-3:50pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; E6,7

ARCH 1626  Gods, Mummies, and Myths: Exploring Ancient Egyptian Society (EGYT 1050)  
Interested students must register for EGYT 1050.
​This survey course explores the foundational myths, deities, and creation narratives that informed the worldview and shaped the culture and society of ancient Egypt over more than 3,000 years. Through the study of archaeological evidence, historiographic records, and translated texts (including literary and funerary texts), students will examine how these beliefs structured Egyptian society, from kingship to daily life. Key topics include the function and symbolism of pyramids, cosmology (the origins, structure, and order of the universe and the natural world), religious practices, concepts of life and death, personal piety, morality and justice, and the dynamics of tradition and change. No prerequisites. Instructor: Christelle Alvarez. MWF 2-2:50pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; C6,7

ARCH 1630  Fighting Pharaohs: Ancient Egyptian Warfare
When and why did the ancient Egyptians engage in war? Who was fighting? What were their weapons like and what were their military strategies? What were the political situations that caused them to go to war? How did warfare impact Egyptian society? In studying Egyptian history and society through the pervasive motif of war, we will gain an understanding of the forces that shaped Egyptian culture. Instructor: Laurel Bestock. TTh 2:30-3:50pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; C6,7

ARCH 1704  Sacred Waters of the Ancient World (HIAA 1309)
Interested students must register for HIAA 1309.
Bodies of water, such as rivers, lakes, and springs, have for long been considered places where humans can communicate with supernatural forces. In the ancient Mediterranean world, people engaged in rituals that incorporated water: from the deposition of votive offerings in sacred lakes, to the immersion in hot springs as a strategy for healing. This seminar explores the relationship between art and architecture, religion, and water landscapes in the ancient Mediterranean world and in other pre-modern locations. We consider small shrines and large sanctuaries dedicated to the cult of water deities, such as the Celtic goddess Sequana and Roman Nymphs, to investigate the visual and material cultures associated with these sacred spaces. We also investigate how sacred places were transformed by human activity to reflect larger cultural process such as such as warfare, migrations, and acculturation. Instructor: Gretel Rodriguez. F 3-5:30pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; C8,9

ARCH 1768  Death in the West (CLAS 1420)
Interested students must register for CLAS 1420.
This course explores the history of western attitudes toward death from their origins in the ancient Near East and classical antiquity through the medieval and early modern periods to the modern era. The aim is to trace the evolution of western deathways against the backdrop of an anthropologically and sociologically informed understanding of this universal human experience. Among the issues to be considered are the needs of both individuals and society in proper treatment of the dead; in what ways funerary customs reflect broader cultural and historical developments; and what the implications are of recent and contemporary trends in western funerary practices. Instructor: John Bodel. M 3-5:30pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; C6,8,9

ARCH 1773  Bioarchaeology and Forensic Anthropology (ANTH 1750)
Interested students must register for ANTH 1750.
Bioarchaeology and forensic anthropology have common methodological roots (human osteology) but are oriented to answer very different questions. Both are grounded in the anthropological sub-disciplines of biological anthropology and archaeology. The focus in bioarchaeology is advancing our understanding of the human experience in the past. Bioarchaeologists study a range of topics including health, violence, migration, and embodiment. Forensic anthropology is a form of applied anthropology that is employed to document and interpret human remains in medico-legal contexts. The course will survey both fields while instructing in the methodologies and approaches of each. The course complements The Human Skeleton (ANTH 1720). Instructor: Jordi Rivera Prince. MW 3-4:20pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 1865  Environmental Amnesia: How to Navigate Losses in Nature by Looking at the Past (ENVS 1879)
Interested students must register for ENVS 1879.
As our environment deteriorates and the biodiversity we coexist with declines, each generation is born and normalized into new sets of ecological conditions. We continue to perceive environmental problems and solutions, and develop new ways and technologies to adapt based on these shifting and degrading baselines. Meanwhile, narratives about past environmental conditions and past interactions between humans and their environments provide channels for us to reimagine parts of nature that have been erased from our collective memory, and the forgotten traditional practices in which we interact with nature. We will interrogate the effects of archaeological and historical narratives, based on scientific research, materiality, oral histories, legends, and art recounting past environments on our collective memory and imagination of nature in the midst of species loss and environmental degradation. WRIT. Instructor: Jada Ko. TTh 6:40-8pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 1892  Non-Destructive Archaeology: Reconstructing the Past from Geophysics to Drones
​Archaeology is not just digging! As archaeologists have become more cautious about excavation, technological developments have transformed our ability to detect the past. We can now analyze entire settlements through the aid of drones, spy satellites, magnetometers, and ground penetrating radar. Yet such technologies come at a social and ethical cost – particularly pertaining to indigenous rights, private property, and mass surveillance. Through hands-on training, lectures, and discussion, this course explores the methods and theory behind archaeological remote sensing and geophysics, and the legal framework and ethical issues around these approaches. Instructor: Zachary Silvia. TTh 1-2:20pm.  A6,7,8; E6,7; C8,9

ARCH 2114  Archaeologies of Text (ASYR 2800)
Interested students must register for ASYR 2800.
An interdisciplinary seminar that examines the interplay between ancient texts and archaeology in the study of the ancient world. The emphasis will be on articulating the research methods and assumptions distilled from case studies set in the ancient Near East, Mediterranean, East Asia, and the Americas. Topics will include: canons of literature as/versus ancient inscriptions; materiality of text; texts on display, in deposits, in archives, in libraries, as refuse; literacy and education; practices of documentation and analysis; writing, language, and 'ethnicity'; historical geography; fakes and forgeries; ancient texts and archaeological ethics. No prerequisites. Intended primarily for graduate students. Instructor: Matthew Rutz. F 3-5:30pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; E6,7

ARCH 2265  Nature and Society in the Ancient World
What is ‘nature’? Is human society separate and distinct from the ‘natural’ world, or a closely-entwined part? Historical investigations often simplify this relationship to one-sided explanations of social or environmental determinism, missing the lived reality of people in their landscapes. This class explores the ecological reality of the ‘natural’ world in Antiquity, using archaeological, historical, and palaeo-environmental data to investigate these questions, focusing especially on the Roman and late-Roman periods. Instructor: Tyler Franconi. W 3-5:30pm. A6,7,8; C8,9

ARCH 2290  Empire: Global Perspectives (HMAN 2402)
Interested students must register for HMAN 2402.
Empires — ancient, early modern, and contemporary — have profoundly shaped the distribution of wealth and power in the modern world. However, imperial formations are strikingly diverse, and many of the entities that scholars now call “empires” were not understood as such during their own times. This collaborative humanities graduate seminar explores that diversity and examines how empires rise, fall, and perdure. While taking a global, comparative perspective, we also attend to local processes, analyzing how landscapes, objects, and people were bound up with imperial trajectories in such contexts as the ancient Mediterranean, Persia, China, the Andes, the Early Modern Atlantic, and the contemporary world. We afford particular attention to local peoples' relationships with empires, environmental history, political economy, historiography, and imperial art and material culture. Instructors: Candace Rice and Parker VanValkenburgh. F 9-11:30am.  A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 2553  Introduction to Public Humanities (PHUM 2010)
Interested students must register for PHUM 2010.
This class, a foundational course for the MA in Public Humanities with preference given to American Studies graduate students, will address the theoretical bases of the public humanities, including topics of history and memory, museums and memorials, the roles of expertise and experience, community cultural development, and material culture. Enrollment limited to 20 graduate students. Instructor: Steven Lubar. T 1:30-3:50pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9

ARCH 2741  Social Life in Ancient Egypt (EGYT 2510)
Interested students must register for EGYT 2510.
This course will draw upon recent discussions in anthropology and sociology that explore issues of identity by examining hierarchies of difference - age, sex, class, ethnicity. We will focus on linking theory with data and discussing modern and ancient categories of identity. Taking the lifecycle as its structure, the course covers conception to burial, drawing on a range of data sources, such as material culture, iconography, textual data and human remains. The very rich material past of of ancient Egypt provides an excellent framework from within which to consider how identity and social distinctions were constituted in the past. Instructor: Laurel Bestock. W 3-5:30pm. A/E/C 10; A6,7,8,9; E6,7