Week 1  (January 8-12): Introduction

What is medieval archaeology? History and Archaeology

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 13-28
• See the cover of the journal Archaeologia historica (published in Prague)
• See a plan and an image of Vladimir Nekuda’s excavations in Pfaffenschlag (with a reconstruction of the village) and images of the excavation site in Mstěnice (Czech Republic)
• See also the remains of a soldier fallen in the battle of Visby (1361), and the cover of Bengt Thordeman’s book; see also pictures of Paul Grimm, Richard Pittioni, and Michel de Boüard
• Visit the website of the Society for Medieval Archaeology

History of archaeology.The Three-Age system, stratigraphy, and typology

• Greene and Moore 1-50
• See a brief presentation of Cyriacus of Ancona and the beginnings of antiquarianism
• See the portraits of  Olof Rudbeck, William Stukeley, General Augustus Lane-Fox Pitt-Rivers, and Oskar Montelius
• See a brief presentation of Thomsen’s Three-Age system
• See also pictures of the Museum of Natural History in Oxford (facade; interior with Victorian, neo-Gothic architecture, the evolutionary displays for fish and elephants, and the commemorative plaque of the historical Huxley-Willberforce debate on evolutionism; see also General Pitt Rivers’s collection of rifles, as well as the display showing the evolution of bull-roarers and human head-trophies

Week 2 (January 15-19): History of Archaeology

From culture history to the New Archaeology

• Greene and Moore 256-272
• see the portraits of  Friedrich Ratzel, Edward B. Tylor, Gustaf Kossinna, Julian Steward and Lewis Binford
  

Post-processualist approaches. New techniques: aerial photography and Geographic Information Systems

• (*, due on Wednesday, January 17, in the evening) Greene and Moore 51-88 and 273-285; Carver and Klápstě 25-34
• see the portraits of Ian Hodder, Helge Ingstad and Mortimer Wheeler
• visit the Viking-age site in L’Anse aux Meadows
• see examples of a systematic survey with transects for each person to walk and scan and of resistivity surveying
• see an example of crop marks (with an explanation of their usefulness) and a few applications of aerial archaeology

Week 3 (January 22-26): Theory and Practice of Archaeology

Excavation and interpretation

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 29-42; Carver and Klápstě 34-47
• Greene and Moore 89-147
• visit the site of the Harris Matrix and watch a short film explaining its basic principles

Dating the past: methods of dating

• (*, due on Wednesday, January 24, in the evening) Green and Moore 148-189; Graham-Campbell and Valor 42-43
• see a presentation of the principles of radiocarbon dating (with a description of its application in age calculations), and pictures of Willard Libby, Andrew Elicott Douglass, and of an accelarator mass spectrometry lab
• watch an introduction to the use of dendrochronology for archaeology and visit the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research at the University of Arizona

Week 4 (January 29-February 2): Urban Archaeology

From Roman to medieval cities: decline or transformation? Quiz 1

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 111-121
• see a map of Roman and  medieval London; visit the Mithraeum in London, the Westminster Abbey, the Church of St. Alban, the White Tower, and the Tower Bridge; see a gold coin and a sceatta issued in early medieval London
• see a map of the fort of Caesarodunum and a view of Tours; see examples of North African lamps and a view of the cathedral of Tours
• see a general plan and general views of the Roman city of Gerasa (Jerash)
• see a general plan of Justiniana Prima (Caricin Grad), a view of the current excavations, and the reconstruction of the city

Medieval cities. Urban growth and life

• (*, due on Wednesday, January 31, in the evening) Graham-Campbell and Valor 121-153 and 166-169; Carver and Klápstě 167-170, 370-407
• see a picture of Richard Hodges (at the time of his Dark Age Economics)
• see a general plan of  Dorestad and of the layout of the buildings, as well as a Carolingian denier (penny), such as found in a hoard on the site
• see a brief presentation of Birka (Sweden) and an aerial view of Haithabu
• see reconstructions of a freighter from the harbor, a Viking-age manual mill with quern stones, and of the female dress of the ninth- and tenth-century Haithabu
• see a map of Venice, and visit the Basilica of  San Marco, as well as the islands of San Francesco del Deserto, Torcello, and Rialto
• visit the amphitheatre in Old Buda and the Buda Castle
• visit the Chester Castle and one of the city’s many medieval townhouses
• see a medieval street in Lund and a medieval house in Lilla Torg, Malmö

Week 5 (February 5-9): Rural archaeology

Medieval Villages

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 76-89 and 101-105; Carver and Klápstě 97-125, 163-167
• visit the sites of  Vorbasse, Březno, Pfaffenschlag (with a reconstruction), and Okehampton Park
• see the Hekla volcano in Iceland
• visit the medieval village of Wharram Percy

Farm houses and farming, Paleoethnobotany and zooarchaeology

• (*, due on Wednesday, February 7, in the evening) Greene and Moore 198-214; Graham-Campbell and Valor 89-102, 154-164, and 181-203; Carver and Klápstě 126-146
• see the medieval village in West Stow and an example of clay oven
• for an early rural site outside the frontiers of the Roman Empire, see the plan and the excavated long-houses (with reconstruction) and manor from Feddersen Wierde
• see a brief survey of early medieval houses and building techniques  in England and see pennies of Edward I
• see a survey of timber-framed architecture
• see brief introductions to paleo(ethno)botany and zooarchaeology
• see an explanation of coppicing and pollarding, and visit the Staverton Park in Suffolk, with some of the oldest trees in England

Week 6 (February 12-16): Medieval palaces, castles, and forts

High status sites and palaces

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 334-339 and 342-362; Carver and Klápstě 147-158
• see a brief presentation of crannogs (and a reconstruction of a crannog in Scotland) and visit a reconstructed crannog in County Clare, Ireland
• see a selection of wheel-made jars and bowls from Lagore, Ireland (“E-ware“)
• see a reconstruction of Yeavering, a seventh-century palatial complex in Northumbria
• see an aerial view of Ostrów Lednicki
• visit the ruins of the Clarendon Palace, the Echiquier in Caen, Eltham Palace, Westminster Palace (facade, plan, and interior vaults) and Nonsuch Palace

Donjons, mottes, keeps, castles , forts, and earthen ramparts. Quiz 2

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 323-334 and 339; Carver and Klápstě 230-271
• see the image of an eleventh-century motte in the Bayeux Tapestry and a reconstruction of a medieval motte-and-bailey fortification
• see an image of the earliest castle, the keep of Doué-la-Fontaine
• see an example of tower house from Ireland
• see examples of portcullis (Edinburgh Castle), bailey, and barbican (Trim Castle, Ireland)
• for an example of kitchen range, see the plan of Skenfrith Castle
• visit three castles in Wales: Dolforwyn, Dryslwyn, and Montgomery
• see the the Edlingham Castle in Northumberland, Hadleigh Castle in Essex (England), and Château Gaillard in Eure (France, with plan)
• see also the Crusader castle of Krak des Chevaliers (Homs, Syria)
• see an aerial view of the Tower of London
• visit also the Moravian hillfort at Břeclav-Pohansko, the Viking stronghold at Trelleborg, and the Polish hillfort at Grzybowo
• see reconstructions of the mottes at Husterknupp and Elmendorf

• see a map and a picture of Offa’s Dike, the inscription on the Pillar of Eliseg, an aerial view of Danevirke, a map and a field view of the Long Dike in Dobrudja

Week 7 (February 19-23): Cathedral and parish churches

Rural/parish churches

• (*, due on Wednesday, February 21, in the evening) Graham-Campbell and Valor 398-408 and 412-417; Carver and Klápstě 468-478
• for an example of parish church, see the church excavated in the medieval deserted village of Vohingen (Germany)
• see the Church of the Madeleine in Geneva, the church in Brenz, and the Cathedral in Speyer (with the crypt with royal tombs)
• for an example of burials within the church, see the fifth-century graves underneath the main nave of the Saint Germain Church in Auxerre

Cathedrals and “colonial” churches . Architecture and art history.

• Carver and KlápstěUppsala Cathedral
• visit also the Cathedral of Canterbury
• see also images of St. Philibert in Tournus (with plan; Burgundy, France), St. Sernin in Toulouse (with plan; Provence, France), the Cathedral of Speyer (with a view of the nave; Germany), Sant’Ambrogio in Milan (with details; Italy), St. Etienne in Caen (Normandy, France), the Durham Cathedral (England), the Pisa cathedral (Italy), San Miniato al Monte in Florence (Italy), the lintel at St. Genis-des-Fontaines (Pyrénées Orientales, France), the tympana at Moissac, Autun, and Vézelay (France),the Laon cathedral (with plan and a view of the interior; France), Notre Dame of Paris (with rose window, France), the Chartres cathedral (with an example of flying buttress; France), the Bourges cathedral (France), and the Amiens cathedral (France), Sainte Chapelle in Paris (with a view of the interior; France); the statues of Count Ekkehard and Countess Uta of Ballenstedt in the Cathedral of Naumburg (ca. 1245-1260); a buttress design by Villard de Honnecourt (ca. 1220)

Week 8: (February 26-March 1): Monastic archaeology

Monasteries

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 408-411; Carver and Klápstě 457-467
• see a view of the Irish monastery of Clonmacnoise (with a detailed view of the tower)
• see a presentation of the Benedictine abbey at San Vincenzo al Volturno (with plan and reconstructions of the refectory and atrium)
• for examples of Cistercian houses, see a general view of the Vauclair Abbey (Gothic church, drainage system, and fountain) and two views of the Pontigny Abbey (exterior and interior)
• for examples of priories of canon orders, see the ruins of the Augustinian priory of Bolton and the Premonstratensian house at Dryburgh

Convents

• visit the Benedictine convent of Romsey; see a plan of the Templar preceptory at South Witham; visit Whalley Abbey (Lancashire),Kirkstall Abbey (Yorkshire), and Waltham Abbey (Essex)

Week 9 (March 4-8): Aspects of daily life. Midterm.

Midterm

Transportation

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 261-285; Carver and Klápstě 328-339
• see an image of the Pilgrim’s Way across the North Downs (England); for an (authentic) example of medieval road, see the Vohingen Ditch (Germany)
• see examples of early medieval spurs, stirrups, and horseshoes
• see the wagon and the sledge found in the ship burial in Oseberg (Norway)
• note the differences between clinker and carvel methods of shipbuilding; see a diagram of the lapstrake method of shipbuilding
• see the Hedeby 3 and the Oseberg ships, as well as the 1893 replica of the Gokstad ship
• for examples of logboats, see the Nydam dugout boats
• see a short description of the cog
• see reconstructions of the Yassi Ada and Serçe Limani ships
• see an example of lateen sail

Pottery, glassware, dress

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 237-259; Carver and Klápstě 277-315
• see an example of rilling most typical for wheel-made pottery and an example of a tournette, as well as an example of open pottery firing by means of bonfire
• see examples of Pingsdorf ware, stoneware, glazed ware, and stamped ware
• see a Frankish funnel beaker and a Viking-age beaker with reticella decoration, as well as a Hedwig beaker
• see a Romanesque aquamanile and the Mästermyr tool-chest
• see examples of bone styli from Novgorod and the chess set from the island of Lewis
• for an example of polychrome style, see a sixth-century fibula from Spain

Week 10 (March 11-15): Spring Break

Week 11 (March 18-22): Burial sites and mortuary archaeology

Funerals, Quiz 3

• (*, due on Monday, March 18, in the evening) Graham-Campbell and Valor 432-437 and 441-446
• visit the Gamla Uppsala royal cemetery with barrows

Cemeteries and grave analysis

• • Graham-Campbell and Valor 425-432
  • Greene and Moore 214-221
  • see a description of how “horizontal stratigraphy” is used for the study of Anglo-Saxon cemeteries
  • seea brief explanation of how correspondence analysis is used in archaeology

Week 12 (March 25-29): Social structure and archaeology

Age groups

• (*, due on Monday, March 25, in the evening) Carver and Klápstě 516-527
• see an example of an Anglo-Saxon square-headed brooch
• see the two drinking horns from Taplow
• see a brief bio of Barbara Hanawalt
• see the toy swords and spear found in Staraia Ladoga

Descent groups, status and identity

• see the sarcophagus of the female burial at St. Denis (believed to be of Queen Ardegunde) and some of the associated artifacts; see also the burial mounds and ship burial at Sutton Hoo with associated artifacts (helmet, belt buckle, shoulder clasps, scepter, spoons, and coins)

Week 13 (April 1-5): The archaeology of power

Centers of power, rise of medieval states

• see portraits of Marshall Sahlins and Maurice Godelier
• see a map of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms during Bede’s lifetime
• see  a brief presentation of gift-giving in potlatch ceremonies on the northwestern coast of America

Kingdoms

• see the Viking-Age trade center of Tjølling-kaupang in Norway, an aerial view of Ribe, and the royal cemetery at Jelling in Denmark
• see examples of bracteates from Denmark and sceattas from England
• see the runic inscription on one face of the stone in Jelling

Week 14 (April 8-13): Demography and migration

Demography, DNA Analysis, and experimental archaeology

• (*, due on Wednesday, April 10, in the evening) Greene and Moore 221-227; Graham-Campbell and Valor 420-425; Carver and Klápstě 512-513
• Greene and Moore 221-227
• see a map of Viking-Age Iceland showing the earliest attested settlements

Archaeology of migration, ethnicity and cultural change

• see a brief presentation of  the Lankhills cemetery near Winchester with an example of crossbow brooch; see examples of cruciform and saucer brooches
• see an example of Animal Style I decoration on the sword hilt from a warrior grave in Snartemo (Norway)
• see the portraits of Fredrik Barth, Ian Hodder, James Sackett, and Polly Wiessner

Week 15 (April 15-20): Crafts and trade

Crafts

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 208-234; Carver and Klápstě 315-327
• see an example of bog iron, a picture of a compact bloom, and read a brief introduction to Viking-age iron-working (with a reconstruction of a smelting furnace)
  
• see an example of a blade made of Damascus (Wootz) steel (“Charlemagne’s Saber” in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna)

Trade

• (*, due on Wednesday, April 17, in the evening) Graham-Campbell and Valor 289-312; Carver and Klápstě 340-369
• see portraits of Henri Pirenne and Sture Bolin
• visit the ruins of Schola Praeconum in Rome, of Carthage, and of Luni
• see different types of Late Roman amphorae and the Kashmiri statue of Buddha from Helgö

Week 16 (April 22-24): Gender and religious identity

Gender, Quiz 4

• Greene and Moore 288-290
• see a brief introduction to the archaeology of gender and a paper on the relation between gender and feminist archaeology

Religious identity

• (*, due on Wednesday, April 24, in the evening) Carver and Klápstě 479-493
• see the mihrab of the Ulu Camii (Bursa, Turkey)
• see the minbar of the Sultan Hassan mosque in Cairo (Egypt)
• see the spiral minaret in Samarra near Baghdad (Iraq)
• see the sahn (inner courtyard) of the al-Hakim mosque in Cairo (Egypt)
• visit the Cathedral (formerly Great Mosque) of Almería (Spain), the mosque of Shah Hamadan in Kashmir (India), the ribat in Tunisia, and the Alcázar in Seville
• see a detail of the sahn at the Quw wut ul-Islam mosque in Delhi (India)
• see a view of the ruins of Pella (Jordan)

Week 17: Archaeology for whom?

Why do we need medieval archaeology?

• Graham-Campbell and Valor 46-74

Archaeology and the public

• Green and Moore 294-312

Friday, May 3, 12:30-2:30: Final exam