Academic year: 2022-23
Course: Greek and Roman Archaeology, Foundation Course Humanities
Credits: 6
Period: Second semester
Number of hours: 48
Teacher(s): Nicola Giaccone ( nicola.giaccone@gmail.com)
Language of instruction: English
Learning outcomes
Knowledge
The goal of this class is to provide students with a basic comprehension of the most significant historical developments and material cultural elements of Ancient Greece and Rome from the Aegean Bronze Age (3rd Millennium B.C.E.) to the beginning of Late Antiquity (4th century C.E.). Critical thinking and elaboration of the notions discussed in class are highly encouraged and promoted.
Assessment criteria of knowledge
Competency in the subject matter addressed in the course is tested through oral discussions during classes and a final written exam (see below, Assessment methods).
Skills
By the end of this class, students will have gained familiarity with the main historical and socio-political trajectories characterizing Ancient Greek and Roman civilizations. They will also be able to frame these trajectories in the context of the complex dynamics of cultural interaction that typify Mediterranean civilizations between the 3rd Millennium B.C.E. and the 4th century C.E.
Assessment criteria of skills
The skills gained during this class are verified through critical open discussions held during classes, an oral discussion at the end of the course, and a final written exam (see below, Assessment methods).
Behaviors
During this class students will develop the ability to critically discuss the material culture of Ancient Greece and Rome and the complex relationships between Ancient Greece and Rome and other Mediterranean civilizations from the 3rd Millennium B.C.E. to the 4th century C.E.
Prerequisites
This is a survey course. No specific prerequisite is required.
Syllabus
This class is a survey course of the archaeology, art history, and material culture of the Greek and Roman worlds from the Aegean Bronze Age to Constantine and the beginning of Late Antiquity. Particular attention is placed on three subjects. The first one is the diachronic development of Greek and Roman civilizations and arts within their specific socio-cultural and political settings. The second is the dynamic legacy of Classical antiquity in the contemporary world. The third is the study of identity formations and cultural entanglements in the ancient Mediterranean from prehistory to the late Roman period. This third subject emphasizes the crucial contribution of diversity and interaction for the development of human cultures and societies.
These topics are presented and critically discussed through the following 24 individual subjects (for the abbreviations, see the bibliography provided below).
Subject 1: Introduction to Greek and Roman Archaeology
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 1–18; (and) Renfrew and Bahn 2014
Subject 2. Greek Prehistory Part 1: Minoan Civilization
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 19–24, 32–43, 48–52; (and) Rutter, http://www.dartmouth.edu/~prehistory/aegean/?page_id=67
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~prehistory/aegean/?page_id=702
Subject 3. Greek Prehistory Part 2: Mycenaean Civilization
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 43–47, 52–67; (and) Rutter, http://www.dartmouth.edu/~prehistory/aegean/?page_id=754
Subject 4. Cultural Narratives: Entangled Things in the Prehistoric Aegean
Readings: J.B. Rutter, http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7Eprehistory/aegean/?page_id=769; (and) Vitale 2016
Subject 5. Greece from the 12th to the 8th Century B.C.E.: From the End of the Mycenaean Palaces to the Rise of the Polis
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 68–96; (and) Rutter, http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7Eprehistory/aegean/?page_id=615
Subject 6. The 7th Century B.C.E. and Greek Religious Architecture
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 130–178; (and) Antonaccio 1994
Subject 7. Archaic Greece: Sculpture, Architecture, and Vase Painting
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 179–208
Subject 8. Classical Greece Part 1: Olympia and Aegina
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 235–246
Subject 9. Classical Greece Part 2: Athenian Public Space and Architecture during the 5th Century B.C.E.
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 97–110
Subject 10. Classical Greece Part 3: The Acropolis of Athens in Its Socio-Political Context
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 246–253
Subject 11. The Fourth Century in Greece: Archaeology and Identity
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 286–340
Subject 12. Alexander the Great and the Hellenistic Period
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 343–379
Subject 13. Cultural Narratives: Greek Culture and the Mediterranean Worlds, 3rd to 2nd Centuries B.C.E.
Readings: Stansbury-O’Donnell 2015, pp. 380–387
Subject 14. Italy before Rome: Magna Graecia and Etruria
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. xxi–xlviii
Subject 15. Rome from the Foundation to the End of the Republican Period
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 1–60
Subject 16. Augustus and the Early Empire
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 61–102
Subject 17. The Julio-Claudian Dynasty
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 103–120
Subject 18. The Civil War, the Flavian Dynasty, and Nerva
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 121–138
Subject 19. Pompeii and Its Surrounding in the 1st Century C.E.
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 139–152
Subject 20. The High Empire 1: Trajan
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 153–170
Subject 21. The High Empire 2: From Hadrian to Commodus
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 171–230
Subject 22. The Severan Dynasty
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 231–246
Subject 23. From the Crisis of the 3rd Century C.E. to Constantine and Early Christian Art
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 263–306
Subject 24. Part 1: Cultural Narratives: Romanization and the Mediterranean Worlds
Readings: Kleiner 2010, pp. 247–262; (and) Alcock 2001
Subject 24. Part 2: Archaeological Dialogues. Interactive Discussion of Relevant Slides and Subjects Presented throughout the Course.
Bibliography
The bibliography for the course includes two textbooks and a list of additional readings (see above, Syllabus). Textbooks are mandatory and are supplemented by the contents of the lectures (specific subjects and the iconographic repertoire enclosed in the PowerPoint presentations shown during each class). Additional articles are not mandatory, but are suggested for those who wish to know more on some specific subjects treated within the class.
Textbooks:
- Greek Archaeology and Art History:
Stansbury-O’Donnell, M.D., A History of Greek Art. Hoboken: Wiley Blackwell, 2015. [ISBN: ISBN 978-1-4443-5015-9].
- Roman Archaeology and Art History:
Kleiner, F.S., A History of Roman Art. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010.
[ISBN: 978-0-495-90987-3].Additional Readings:
- Alcock 2001
Alcock, S., “Vulgar Romanization and the Dominance of Elites,” in S. Keav and N. Terrenato (eds.), Italy and the West. Comparative Issues in Romanization. Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2001, pp. 226–230. [ISBN 1842170422]
- Antonaccio 1994
Antonaccio, C.M., “Contesting the Past: Tomb Cult, Hero Cult, and Epic in Early Greece,” American Journal of Archaeology 98, pp. 389–410.
- Renfrew and Bahn 2014
Renfrew, C. and Bahn P., Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice (Sixth ed.).London: Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2014, pp. 12–19. [ISBN 978-0-500-29021-7].
- Rutter
Aegean Prehistoric On-Line Lessons:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~prehistory/aegean/?page_id=67
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~prehistory/aegean/?page_id=702
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~prehistory/aegean/?page_id=754
http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7Eprehistory/aegean/?page_id=769
http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7Eprehistory/aegean/?page_id=615
- Vitale 2016
Vitale, S. “Cultural Entanglements on Kos during the Late Bronze Age: A Comparative Analysis of Minoanisation and Mycenaeanisation at the ‘Serraglio’, Eleona, and Langada,” in E. Gorogianni, P. Pavúk, L. Girella (eds.), Beyond Thalassocracies. Understanding Processes of Minoanisation and Mycenaeanisation in the Aegean. Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2016, pp. 75-93. [ISBN 978-1-78570-203-7].
Further materials may be provided during the lectures.
Assessment methods
Grades are based on the combination of three factors, which include attendance and active participation in class, ability to discuss relevant slides and topics presented during the course (see above, Syllabus, Subject 24, Part 2), and a final written exam. Specifically, grades are determined as follows:
Attendance and Active Participation in Class | 20% |
Archaeological Dialogues (Oral Discussion during Subject 24, Part 2) | 30% |
Final Written Exam | 50% |
In the evaluation process, students’ skills are verified through questions concerning the contents of the mandatory textbooks and the lectures, including specific subjects and the iconographic repertoire enclosed in the PowerPoint presentations shown during each class.