HNAK0001FU NÆR, Themes and Topics in Near Eastern Archaeology 2: Material Studies in Archaeology

This course addresses the impact of climate and differing environmental settings on human habitation in southwest Asia through time. It also examines how humans manipulated the environment through the employment of new technologies. Rather than attempting to deal with the entire history of human innovations, technologies that transform geological materials (clay, ore, etc) are not dealt but human manipulation of plants, animals and environments are discussed. The course introduces students to methods of reconstructing past environments and the challenges therein. Examines how resources were obtained and manipulated into food and raw materials.

Students will gain an appreciation of how important the environment and the resources obtained from the landscape were to past human groups, learn about methods to reconstruct the past environmental conditions and be able to critically evaluate interpretations, develop knowledge of how humans could accumulate and manipulate materials to produce food, building materials and other items of everyday use and should be able to contribute to discussions of past human resource use and major transitions in subsistence practices