Class Intro: Archaeology

Numismatics, Epigraphy, and dating methods... Oh my!

In the archaeology class we will be exploring our theme, Colamus Humanitatem, from several angles. The first is the most straightforward: how does the study of cultural, material remains help us understand what it has meant to be human across time and space. To those ends, we will examine the impacts of imperialism both on the colonizer and the colonized by looking at several types of sources about Trajan's Dacian Wars. These include written accounts, archaeological remains from Dacia, and Roman propaganda in coins and monumental structures. We will also be learning how to read coin and inscription abbreviations.

The second layer of the class is to learn how archaeology works and how that process has changed over time. Since archaeology has played an intrinsic role in how we study humanity over the past two centuries, we will interrogate the procedures for limitations and bias. This will ultimately help us better understand how we have constructed and nurtured the narrative of humanity. 

Finally, we will question who has been left out of the narrative entirely and how that impacts us as a discipline and a society. For a preview, check out National Geographic's in-depth analysis of Trajan's Column.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments below.
​-Magistra Wilkins
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