INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY ARCL0020: ARCHAEOLOGY OF ANCIENT EGYPT Module handbook 2019–2020 Year 2 core module, 30 credits, Terms I and II, Thursday 11:00-13:00 Moodle password: ARCL0020 Deadlines for coursework for this module: 04.12.2019, 11.03.2020 Target dates for return of marked coursework to students: 12.12.2019, 26.03.2020 Module co-ordinator: Claudia Näser [email protected] UCL Institute of Archaeology, Room 113 Tel: 020 7679 1533 (from within UCL: 21533) Please see the last page of this handbook for important information about submission and marking procedures, or links to the relevant webpages. 1 OVERVIEW Short description The module offers a theoretically informed overview of key periods and sites of Egyptian history in Term I. Term II is used to explore a range of core themes in Egyptian Archaeology, introducing current research as well as current debates on methodologicval and theoretical issues. Week-by-week summary Term I: Key periods and sites 1 Setting the scene – The Palaeolithic and Mesolithic 03.10.2019 Nazlet Khater, Taramsa, Wadi Kubbanyia, Middle Nile valley 2 The way to food production – The Neolithic 10.10.2019 Eastern Sahara, Fayum, Middle Nile valley 3 Towards social complexity – The Pre- and Early Dynastic 17.10.2019 Hierakonpolis, Abydos 4 Society and monumentality – The Old Kingdom 24.10.2019 Saqqara, Giza, Abu Sir 5 Society and administration – The Middle Kingdom 31.10.2019 Lahun, Nubian fortresses Reading week (no teaching) 6 The global age I – The New Kingdom: Towns and temples 14.11.2019 Thebes, Amarna 7 The global age II – The New Kingdom: Tombs 21.11.2019 Thebes 8 Multiculturality I – The Third Intermediate and Late Periods 28.11.2019 Tanis, Naukratis 9 Multiculturality II – The Ptolemaic and Roman Periods 05.12.2019 Alexandria, Thebes 10 Multiculturality III – Christianity and Islam 12.12.2019 Egyptian Monastic sites, Middle Nile capitals Term II: Themes in Egyptian Archaeology 11 The past, present and future of Egyptian archaeologies 16.01.2020 12 Chronology and kingship 23.01.2020 13 Egyptian landscapes 30.01.2020 14 The archaeology of death and burial 06.02.2020 15 The archaeology of everyday life 13.02.2020 Reading week (no teaching) 16 Religious practices 27.02.2020 17 Identity, diversity, inequality 05.03.2020 18 Material worlds: focus pottery 12.03.2020 1 19 Egypt's southern neighbours 19.03.2020 20 Perspectives on ancient Egypt 26.03.2020 Basic reading General reference works for the module as a whole, with useful bibliographies. Refer to this list for background research for essays. All titles are in the Institute of Archaeology Library. Note also the online resources listed below in chapter 4 of this handbook. Essential reading Bard, K.A. 2015. An Introduction to the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt. 2nd edition. Malden, Mass., Oxford, Carlton: Blackwell. Available online through SFX@UCL. 1st edition (2007) in library EGYPTOLOGY A 5 BAR, IOA ISSUE DESK BAR 29 Kemp, B.J. 2006. Ancient Egypt. Anatomy of a Civilization. 2nd edition. London, New York: Routledge. Available online through SFX@UCL. EGYPTOLOGY B 5 KEM and IOA ISSUE DESK KEM Wendrich, W. (ed.) 2010. Egyptian Archaeology. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. EGYPTOLOGY A 6 WEN, IOA ISSUE DESK and E-BOOK Introductions, overviews and major syntheses Baines, J. 2007. Visual and Written Culture in Ancient Egypt. Oxford: Oxford University Press. EGYPTOLOGY B 20 BAI; ISSUE DESK IOA BAI Baines, J. 2013. High Culture and Experience in Ancient Egypt. Sheffield: Equinox. EGYPTOLOGY B 12 BAI Lloyd, A.B. (ed.) 2010. A Companion to Ancient Egypt. 2 volumes. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. EGYPTOLOGY A 5 LLO and available online through SFX@UCL Lloyd, A.B. 2014. Ancient Egypt: State and Society. Oxford: Oxford University Press. EGYPTOLOGY B 5 LLO Nicholson, P.T. and I. Shaw (eds.) 2000. Ancient Egyptian Materials and Technology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. INST ARCH K QUARTOS NIC, EGYPTOLOGY QUARTOS S 5 NIC, ISSUE DESK Sasson, J.M. et al. (eds.) 2000. Civilizations of the Ancient Near East. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson. INST ARCH DBA 100 SAS Shaw, I. (ed.) 2003. The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. New edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press. EGYPTOLOGY B 5 SHA, ISSUE DESK SHA (2000 edition) and E-Book Trigger, B.G. 1993. Early Civilizations: Ancient Egypt in Context. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press. INST ARCH BC 100 TRI, ISSUE DESK IOA TRI 6 Trigger, B.G., B.J. Kemp, D. O'Connor and A.B. Lloyd 1983. Ancient Egypt. A Social History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. EGYPTOLOGY B 5 TRI and available online through SFX@UCL Wilkinson, T. (ed.) 2007. The Egyptian World. London and New York: Routledge. EGYPTOLOGY A 5 WIL and available online through SFX@UCL Wilkinson, R.H. (ed.) 2008. Egyptology Today. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. EGYPTOLOGY A 9 WIL, ISSUE DESK WIL 16 2 Encyclopedias Bard, K.A. (ed.) 1999. Encyclopedia of the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt. London: Routledge. EGYPTO- LOGY A 2 BAR, ISSUE DESK IOA BAR 17 Helck, W. and E. Otto (eds.) 1975ff. Lexikon der Ägyptologie. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. EGYPTOLOGY A 2 LEX Redford, D.B. (ed.) 2001. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Oxford: Oxford University Press. EGYPTOLOGY A 2 OXF and available online through SFX@UCL Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs, and Paintings. 8 volumes. EGYPTOLOGY A 1 POR and E-BOOK. Originally compiled by R. Porter and R.L.B. Moss, hence nicknamed the "Porter/Moss". UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology: http://escholarship.org/uc/nelc_uee Sources for maps, with useful background and bibliographies Baines, J. and J. Málek 2000. Cultural Atlas of Ancient Egypt. Revised edition. New York: Fact on file. EGYPTOLOGY QUARTOS A 2 BAI, ISSUE DESK IOA BAI 2 Manley, B. 1996. The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Egypt. London et. al.: Penguin. EGYPTOLOGY A 2 MAN Methods of assessment This module is assessed by means of: (a) two pieces of coursework of 2500 words, which each contribute 25% to the final grade for the module; (b) a three-hour written examination in May 2020 (50%); students are expected to answer 3 out of 8 questions. Teaching methods The module is taught through a series of 20 seminars. Workload There will be 40 hours of lectures. Students are expected to undertake around 140 hours of reading for the module, plus 60 hours preparing for and producing the assessed work, and additional 60 hours on revision for the examination. This adds up to a total workload of some 300 hours for the module. Prerequisites There are no prerequisites for this module. 3 2 AIMS, OBJECTIVES AND ASSESSMENT Aims The aim of the module is to provide a problem-driven historical overview and an introduction to major themes currently debated in Egyptian Archaeology. Objectives On successful completion of the module, students will: understand the outlines of Egyptian history from prehistory to the Islamic era be familiar with archaeological key sites in Egypt and the Middle Nile valley and be able to relate them to individual periods of the Egyptian history understand the geographical, historical and social contexts of a range of material and non- material cultural expressions of the Egyptian past understand the disciplinary underpinnings of Egyptian Archaeology be familiar with and able to contribute to current debates in Egyptian Archaeology within the context of World Archaeology Learning Outcomes On successful completion of the module, students should be able to demonstrate: source-critical approaches to Egyptian material culture the ability to assess and integrate different research resources, including research literature, objects, archives and databases independent problem solving based on real data sets. Coursework Please observe the rules set out in this handbook and in the online student handbook for the preparation and submission of coursework. There is suitable reading for all essays in the class reading lists provided – you should also make use of the bibliographies in these books to identify additional relevant readings, and remember to refer to the core reading list. Well-chosen illustrations and maps should be used to illustrate your argument. They are not included in the word count and contribute to the clarity of your paper. They will also contribute to the marks. Mind that irrelevant illustrations are not a substitute for a reasoned argument. Students are not permitted to re-write and re-submit essays in order to try to improve their marks. If students are unclear about the nature of an assignment, they should discuss this with the module co-ordinator. The Module Co-ordinator is willing to discuss an outline of the student's approach to the assignment, provided this is planned suitably in advance of the submission date. PLEASE USE THE EXACT TITLE OF THE ESSAY, NOT AN APPROXIMATION. 4 Essay 1. Between 2,375-2,625 words. The submission deadline is midnight Wednesday 4 December 2019 on Turnitin (hard copy to submission box at reception desk at IoA). The marked essay will be returned to the students by 12 December 2019. Pick ONE of the following titles: 1. Discuss the trajectories archaeologists have suggested for the transition to food production, i.e. the Neolithisation, in the Nile valley. Weigh the evidence using one or two sites as case studies. Which of the scenarios suggested by previous research do you find convincing, and why? 2. On the basis of the archaeological record, what key transformations in Egyptian society can be discerned from the Predynastic through to the Early Dynastic period? Discuss under references to one or two sites which you use as case studies. 3. Is “Age of the pyramids” an appropriate term to summarise the period spanning the Old and Middle Kingdoms? Discuss under reference to relevant sites.