Introduction to Archaeology: Class 1

ã Copyright Bruce Owen 2002

• Anthropology 324: Introduction to Archaeology
• I'm Bruce Owen
• I am an archaeologist who works in Peru; I've spent over 5 years there since 1983
• I work on the far south coastal region of Peru, from the seashore up to very high elevations
• Desert, mountains, deep valleys, of which you will see pictures at various times during the course
• My main interests are in more complex societies, from early farmers through expansive empires
• The Inka empire, still growing when the Spanish arrived in 1532
• The Tiwanaku and Wari states, around AD 500 to 1000
• Local chiefdoms that built huge irrigation systems and hilltop fortresses
• Early farmers who first cultivated the coastal desert and buried their dead under specially built mounds
• I do survey, excavation, lab analyses of various kinds
• I get to find sites that no archaeologist has ever visited
• Dig up stuff that no one has seen since it was buried 500, 1000, even 3500 years ago
• Pore over artifacts in the lab and sift through computerized data looking for patterns
• Propose my own stories about what people were doing, what events occurred, how society was organized, how it changed over time, and even why
• Try to test, refine, and defend my stories using data I have personally gathered
• As an archaeologist, I get to write my own version of a part of the past
• An archaeologist gets to add his or her grain of sand to the mountain of knowledge of human societies
• It beats retail!
• Archaeology is particularly fun because it involves so many different areas and skills
• historians, linguists, ethnographers
• chemists, physicists, geologists, DNA experts
• botanists, zoologists, anatomists, demographers, pathologists
• statisticians, database experts, GIS (geographic information systems) experts
• photographers, illustrators, artists
• hikers, photographers, mechanics, skilled diggers
• usually a project has some of these specialists, but archaeologists get to dabble in all of those areas and more
• I personally find archaeology fascinating, challenging, and fun
• I hope to convey some of that in this course
• What the course covers
• goals, methods, theories, and practice of archaeology
• that is, the focus is on the field of archaeology, rather than the results of archaeological research
• we will see a lot of examples of archaeology, but we will not cover prehistory in any systematic way
• for that, consider World Prehistory or Emergence of Civilizations
• by the way, archaeologists study the remains of human activities, not physical evolution per se
• for that, consider Intro to Biological Anthro
• nor do we study dinosaurs
• dinosaurs were long gone by the time anything human-like appeared
• for dinosaurs and fossil evidence of other animals, take Paleontology
• During the semester, we will
• Start with a quick look at what archaeology is, and how it got that way
• that is, the history of the field
• Next we will look at the most concrete aspects of archaeology - dating, building chronologies, finding sites, and digging them
• lots of problem-solving and clever thinking
• We will move on to methods of getting more information out of the data: by ethnographic analogy, experimental archaeology, and the study of materials like plant remains, animal bone, and human remains
• Then we will look at how archaeologists approach the big questions like the origins and development of social inequality, gender roles, and even human consciousness
• Finally, we will amplify a theme that will have been cropping up all along: how archaeology fits into the real world of the public, museums, politics, and ethics.
• some of this gets mighty contentious
• By the end of the course, you should
• Understand the intellectual and practical approaches of archaeology
• Be able to intelligently evaluate archaeology (and pseudo-archaeology) when you see it in the news, documentaries, movies, and elsewhere
• Have a clearer idea of
• what kinds of things we do and do not know about the past
• the issues surrounding divergent views of the "truth" about the past (who writes the past, and why?)
• the importance and uses of the past in the present
• The not-very-hidden agenda: This should be a good exercise in logical, critical thinking, using complex and incomplete evidence, and explaining yourself in writing, that should sharpen skills that you will use not only in other social sciences, but also in real life
• Format of the course
• A combination of me presenting and us discussing
• Fairly brief and pleasant reading assignments - the idea is that you will actually do the readings before class, so we can discuss them
• I will often not recap the readings; I will assume that you have done them
• Instead, I will try to explain the trickier bits and will bring in new information or different examples
• I want to use part of most class sessions to discuss the readings, to exercise the ideas in them
• The notes that I use will be available to you
• These are the notes I talk from; they may or may not be complete or intelligible!
• A paper copy will be on reserve at the library
• Also posted on the class web page to download
• Notes will usually be posted before the lectures
• usually first on the web
• and later on library reserve
• These notes can be useful for studying and might help with written assignments
• Some students bring them to class and save some writing by just adding their own notes to them
• Readings
• Relatively light reading
• The syllabus shows a suggested reading schedule
• Some of the items are "to be announced"
• We will probably move slower or faster than the syllabus indicates
• So the readings will change a bit over the semester
• I will announce the complete reading assignments in class, and will post the reading assignments on the class web page. Consult it!
• Archaeology: Down to Earth, 2nd Edition, by David Hurst Thomas, at the SSU bookstore, Amazon.com, etc.
• Death by Theory, by Adrian Praetzellis
• A humorous mystery with archaeological theory
• Additional readings on reserve and/or on the web. Details will be posted on the class web site.
• Grading
• Four written assignments
• 10% Behavior observation (2-3 pages). You observe two human behaviors and explain whether and how well they could be reconstructed from the material evidence they leave behind.
• 10% Archaeology website review (3-4 pages). You visit two archaeological websites of your choice and review them, especially determining how reliable they are as sources of information
• 20% Paper review (3-4 pages). You review a published archaeology paper, explaining and evaluating the research questions, methods, arguments, and conclusions.
• 20% Grant proposal. You work with up to two classmates. Archaeology is usually a group undertaking, so this is part of the subject. You pick a publication or web site from a list of sources that make controversial claims, and write a "grant proposal" in which you explain the claims and the controversy, and propose a research project to resolve the question, explaining your hypotheses, proposed methods, how the data would solve the problem, and so on.
• In-class midterm and final exams, 20% each (40% of total grade)
• These tests include essay questions, short answer questions, and "objective" questions in formats such as multiple-choice and matching.
• I will distribute study guides in advance
• I do not take attendance, but
• I cover things in class that are not in the readings
• I occasionally pass out handouts in class
• I return assignments and tests with comments in class
• I show lots of pictures and sometimes bring in objects that make things easier to visualize and remember
• I explain overall patterns, important points, and errors in the readings
• You and your colleagues can ask questions
• You exercise and reinforce the ideas by working with them in discussion
• Sometimes I announce changes to assignments, deadlines, readings, etc. in class
• Students who come to class tend to do better on the assignments and tests.
• But I refuse to patronize you or waste time by taking roll, so I'll leave attendance up to you.
• Deadline policy: I will accept assignments up to a week late with a 15% grading penalty
• That means up to the end of the second class session after the paper was due.
• I will not accept papers after the end of that class period without documentation of severe hardship.
• You may send me drafts for comments and suggestions, or submit assignments by email, but you do so at your own risk.
• It is your responsibility to make sure I get it, so send it in plenty of time to correct any problems that arise
• I will reply by email when I receive your message, which may be many hours after you send it. If you don't hear from me by the next day, I may not have gotten your message.
• I print them out, write comments on them, and return them in class along with the others
• details on sending essays by email are in the syllabus
• Same deadline as hard copies
• Web page:
• Contains the syllabus; current, complete reading assignments; class notes; assignment information; handouts such as study guides; updates on any changes to the syllabus or assignments; links to web sites, etc.
• New items are posted frequently
• The course web page URL is in the syllabus
• Or you can get to it from the SSU web page, by clicking on the "Class Web Pages" item
• The surest way to send me email is to click on my email address at the bottom of the web page -- you can't mistype it.
• Contacting me:
• My office is Stevenson 2070 J, 2^nd floor of this building, accessible from both the School of Social Sciences office and the History office
• Office hours:
• Monday and Wednesday 3:30-5:00 and Tuesday 1:00-2:00
• Come see me; I'll look at drafts of assignments before you hand them in, help with questions for assignments and tests, etc.
• Students who see me for this kind of help generally do better on the assignments and tests
• My email address (Owenbruce@aol.com) is in the syllabus, or you can click on my email at the bottom of the course web page
• My office phone (664-3963) is also on the syllabus, but if you don't catch me during office hours, don't bother leaving a voicemail message. I don't check it often, and the system has been known to lose messages.
• Pictures and stories about people doing archaeology
• A random sample from my files...
• We'll get serious next time.