Archaeology of Syria-Palestine

Description

This course will be a chronological survey of the archaeology of Syria-Palestine in which material culture provides a window on the history of society, economy, and religion from the Neolithic period to the Byzantine Period.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, each student should be able to:

1. Describe the characteristics of each archaeological period;
2. Describe the characteristics of major or significant archaeological sites of Syria-Palestine;
3. Interpret the social, economic, and religious significance of archaeological material from Syria-Palestine;
4. Construct social, economic, and religious interpretations from the archaeological material.

Textbooks

Amihai Mazar. Archaeology of the Land of the Bible, 10,000 - 586 BCE. New York: Doubleday, 1990.

Numerous articles placed online.

The Virtual World Project (directed by Ronald A. Simkins), located online at http://www.virtualworldproject.org.

Requirements

1. Scheduled reading assignments. The reading assignments will be the basis of the daily writing assignments.

2. Brief daily writing assignments (limited to one page). The daily writing assignments will not be accepted if the student is absent from class unless arrangements are made with the professor prior to the class period. The daily writing assignments may be discussed in class.

3. Two exams, each representing 25% of the final course grade, will test the student’s mastery of the course reading and lecture material.

4. Site report on an archaeological site (the student should be prepared to discuss the site during the appropriate class period). The site report will represent 15% of the final course grade.

5. Research paper on a selected problem of the society, economy, or religion of Syria-Palestine. The paper will represent 35% of the final course grade.

Class Cancellation

In the event that the professor is unable to attend a scheduled class meeting, the professor will notify the Theology Department secretary to cancel class.

Academic Honesty

Academic honesty is expected and required from every student. The exams and written assignments must represent the student's own work. Discussion of the written assignments outside of class is encouraged, but each student is responsible for writing her or his own material. Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to, plagiarizing or representing another's ideas as one's own. Academic misconduct will result in failure of the assignment, and may result in failure of the course. This course adheres to the University's policy on academic honest which appears in the Bulletin.