This module is not currently running in 2024 to 2025.
The module will begin with the emergence of archaeology by examining early antiquarianism. It will go on to consider how the field developed into a more scholarly pursuit during the late 19th and early 20th centuries by examining key figures and how they developed ideas about interpretations of what they found. Following this, examinations will be made into more recent interpretative methods e.g. culture-historical archaeology, as well as processual and post-processual archaeology. The module will conclude with an examination of other aspects of archaeology, such as heritage management and museums. By approaching the module in this manner it is hoped that the students will not only have gained a grasp of the development of archaeology, but also the ability to apply what they have learned to a broader cultural understanding of past societies.
Total Contact Hours: 20
• Short Writing Assignment (1,500 words) – 15%
• Notebook – 75%
• Final Writing Assignment (1,000 words) – 10%
Indicative list:
Boyd, C. and L. E. Lassiter (2011). Explorations in Cultural Anthropology: A Reader. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press.
Deetz, J. (1996). In Small Things Forgotten. New York: Anchor Press.
Hodder, I. (2012) (ed). Archaeological Theory Today. (2nd Edition). London: Polity.
Hodder, I. and Hutson, I. (2004). Reading the Past: Current Approaches to Interpretation in Archaeology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Johnson, M. (2010). Archaeological Theory: An Introduction. Oxford: Wiley Blackwell.
Kottak, C. P. (2012). Mirror for Humanity: A Concise Introduction to Cultural Anthropology. (8th Edition). New York: McGraw Hill.
Praetzellis, A. (2011). Death by Theory: A Tale of Mystery and Archaeological Theory. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press.
See the library reading list for this module (Canterbury)
On successfully completing the module students will be able to:
8.1 demonstrate familiarity with the history and development of archaeological theory and current theories;
8.2 make critical interpretations of the material remains;
8.3 demonstrate familiarity with different archaeologists and their contribution to the field;
8.4 demonstrate knowledge of how archaeological remains can be interpreted from different theoretical points of view;
8.5 demonstrate an awareness of the relationship between archaeology and politics, heritage and the media.
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