History 376  Introduction          to Archaeology Professor Emerson Baker

Some Interesting Web Addresses Related to this Course
 
 

Jamestown Rediscovery Project
This is one of the finest historical archaeology sites on the web. It includes excavation results,
virtual exhibits, artifact descriptions and downloadable site reports.

Colony of Avalon
A web site for the seventeenth century colony of Avalon in Newfoundland.

Excavations of the wreck of the Elizabeth and Mary
Parks Canada's excavation of the ship holding the Dorchester Militia that was part of
Sir William Phip's invasion of Canada in 1690.

ArchNet - WWW Virtual Library of Archaeology
This site provides links to hundreds of archaeology sites, around the world.

American Historical Association

Historic St. Mary's City
St. Mary's City was the seventeenth-century capital of Maryland. This museum is based largely
on the archaeology of St. Mary's.

National Trust for Historic Preservation
America's largest organization devoted to preserving historic resources.

The Plymouth Colony Archive Project
Work related to the late James Deetz's research on early Plymoth Colony sites

The Society for Historical Archaeology
The national organization of historical archaeologists. 

National Park Service, Links to the Past
A gateway to many historic resources - including archaeology  at NPS.

Introduction

This course serves as a broad overview to the field of archaeology. As an introductory course, we will touch on many diverse aspects of this growing interdisciplinary field. The particular focus is on American archaeology, though we will occasionally discuss some of the important finds of antiquity elsewhere.  Many of the examples in the course will be drawn from the growing field of historical archaeology. 
 
Course Objectives

Content Objectives - After completing this course, you should understand and be able to comment accurately on the following themes:
1.    What is archaeology? A skill, discipline, subdiscipline, or something else?
2.     The various theoretical frameworks used by archaeologists
3.     The basic principles and skills of excavation and laboratory work.
4.    The different types of archaeology: prehistoric, historic, classical, underwater, etc.
5.     The interdisciplinary nature of archaeological work
6.  An understanding of the basic skills needed to be an archaeologist

Skills Objectives - One reason for studying archaeology, or any other course of inquiry, is to develop and improve the skills needed to prosper in modern America. In this course you will have the opportunity to develop the following:
1.     Improve your ability to read and comprehend your reading
2.     Effective written and verbal communication
3.     Critical thinking skills
4.    The chance to begin to think as an archaeologist thinks

Course Grade

Midterm examination        25%
Written Assignments        40%
Final examination        25%
Attendance & Participation    10%



Reading
Required Reading (available at the college bookstore on central campus)
Brian Fagan, Archaeology: A Brief Introduction (8th edition)
David Hurst Thomas, Skull Wars
Ivor Noël Hume, Martin's Hundred

Course Requirements

1. Midterm exam. This exam will cover all lectures and readings from the beginning of the course through March 5. The exam will take place on March 7.

2. Three written assignments, worth a total of 40% of the grade.

Skull Wars Paper (15% of grade) You will write a 4-5 page paper on the issue of Skull Wars, NAGPRA, and Kennewick Man. Details will be forthcoming. Due in class on February 28. 

Book Review - (10% of grade)  You will write a 3-4 page book review of Noël Hume's Martin's Hundred.  See below. Due in class on April 16.

Research Assignment - (15% of grade) A chance for you to employ critical thinking on a real archaeological problem, writing a 4-5  paper based on the data based on real archaeological fieldwork.
Specific details on this assignment will be handed out in the near future. Due in class on May 2.

Instructions for all written assignments: All written work is to be typed (or word processed) and double spaced, with one inch margins. Although this is not an English class, your spelling and grammar do matter a great deal, for the better you communicate your historical thoughts, the better I can evaluate them. Remember, using the quotes or even the ideas of others without proper citation is plagarism. If you have questions about citation style, please ask. Papers not handed in on the due date are considered late, and will be marked down. The later they are, the more they will be marked down.

3. Final Exam. The exam will be cumulative for the semester, though it will be weighted toward materials since the midterm.  It is May 8, from 2:30 to 4:30 pm.

4. Class Participation.  I expect you to be here for class, and to always be ready to speak to the issues of the day.

Please Note: I do not give make up exams. Being able to meet deadlines and deal effectively with pressure situations while still facing the challenges of everyday living is part of what college is all about. If you are genuinely deathly ill, I might make an exception, but you need to contact me as soon as possible!  

Please Also Note:  I do not tolerate late work. It will be severely marked down - the later the more it will be marked down.   

Salem State College is committed to nondiscrimination of Handicapped persons as specified in section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Students who qualify as handicapped persons under the definition of this act should notify the instructor at the beginning of course so that reasonable modifications may be made when necessary.
 

Professor Emerson Baker

Please feel free to contact me anytime

Introduction

This course serves as a broad overview to the field of archaeology. As an introductory course, we will touch on many diverse aspects of this growing interdisciplinary field. The particular focus is on American archaeology, though we will occasionally discuss some of the important finds of antiquity elsewhere. Many of the examples in the course will be drawn from the growing field of historical archaeology.

Course Objectives

Content Objectives - After completing this course, you should understand and be able to comment accurately on the following themes:

1. What is archaeology? A skill, discipline, subdiscipline, or something else?

2. The various theoretical frameworks used by archaeologists

3. The basic principles and skills of excavation and laboratory work.

4. The different types of archaeology: prehistoric, historic, classical, underwater, etc.

5. The interdisciplinary nature of archaeological work

6. An understanding of the basic skills needed to be an archaeologist

Skills Objectives - One reason for studying archaeology, or any other course of inquiry, is to develop and improve the skills needed to prosper in modern America. In this course you will have the opportunity to develop the following:

1. Improve your ability to read and comprehend your reading

2. Effective written and verbal communication

3. Critical thinking skills

4. The chance to begin to think like an archaeologist

Course Grade

Midterm examination 25%

Written Assignments 40%

Final examination 25%

Attendance & Participation 10%

Reading

Required Reading (available at the college bookstore on central campus)

David Hurst Thomas, Archaeology

Ivor Noël Hume, Martin's Hundred

Course Requirements

1. Midterm exam. This exam will cover all lectures and readings from the beginning of the course through October 22. The exam will take place on October 25.

2. Three written assignments, worth a total of 40% of the grade.

Internet Assignment - (5% of grade) Your task is to go on-line on the World Wide Web

and to write a brief critique of two archaeological web sites related to the topics covered in this course. Take sometime to check out a variety of sites, and find two that you like. Then, study them closely, and write a review of each of them (roughly one page 8.5" x 11"format). In your reviews, be sure to give the site name, address, a general description of the content, and your editorial comments (why the site was effective or not, whether the information was accurate, how useful was it to our course, etc). Be sure to be critical in your analysis. There are a lot of great sites on the web, with wonderful information, but there is also a lot of misinformation. When you have completed your assignment, send it to me as e-mail. You can send the review as the main body of the e-mail, or as an attached file. If you attach the file, please be sure it in Microsoft Word format, so I can read it on my computer. The assignment is to be e-mailed to me by midnight, on October 15.

Book Review - (15% of grade) You will write a 4-5 page book review of Noël Hume's Martin's Hundred. See below. Due November 19.

Research Assignment - (20% of grade) A chance for you to employ critical thinking on a real archaeological problem, writing a 6-7 paper based on the data based on real archaeological fieldwork.

Specific details on this assignment will be handed out in the near future. Due December 6.

Instructions for all written assignments: All written work is to be typed (or word processed) and double spaced, with one inch margins. Although this is not an English class, your spelling and grammar do matter a great deal, for the better you communicate your historical thoughts, the better I can evaluate them. Remember, using the quotes or even the ideas of others without proper citation is plagarism. If you have questions about citation style, please ask. Papers not handed in on the due date are considered late, and will be marked down. The later they are, the more they will be marked down.

3. Final Exam. The exam will be cumulative for the semester. It is December 16, at noon.

4. Class Participation. I expect you be be here for class, and to always be ready to speak to the issues of the day.

Please Note: I do not give make up exams. Being able to meet deadlines and deal effectively with pressure situations while still facing the challenges of everyday living is part of what college is all about. If you are genuinely deathly ill, I might make an exception, but you need to contact me as soon as possible!

Please Also Note: I do not tolerate late work. It will be severely marked down - the later the more it will be marked down.

Salem State College is committed to nondiscrimination of Handicapped persons as specified in section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Students who qualify as handicapped persons under the definition of this act should notify the instructor at the beginning of course so that reasonable modifications may be made when necessary.

Instructions for Book Review of Martin's Hundred:

Dear Scholar:

Congratulations! You have been selected to review Ivor Noël Hume, Martin's Hundred for our journal. Be sure that you deal with the following issues in your review:

1. What was done, where, how, and under whose direction? What were the goals of the project?

2. How well does the book integrate the archaeology and history of the site? Explain. What sort of regional, national, or even international context is the book placed in?

3. What would you say are the theoretical views of the author? Is he a cultural materialist? postmodernist? or what? (It may help here to think back to the goals of the project.)

4. Comment on the book's readability. Is it well written? Interesting?

5. Comment on the layout of the report. For example, are illustrations informative and easy to read?

6. What types of sources were used?

7. Based on the book, does the dig seem to have been well planned, and carefully excavated? Would you have excavated the site differently?

8. Do you recommend that other students of hysterical archaeology read the book? Why or why not. What use will it be to them?

9. Remember, this is for a professional audience. If you write "I liked this book because...." you will be laughed out of the profession. Don't just describe the book, give it a critical analysis!

Your report should be typed, and doublespaced. You should make sure it is well written, and does not have typographical errors in it. Remember, the review will be published, and read by other hysterical archaeologists! Our reviews usually contain 800 - 1000 words (four to five typed, double spaced pages).

Finally, remember that all journals have a deadline. Your review must be turned in to me in class on November 19.

Sincerely,

Emerson W. Baker,

Editor-in-Chief

Hysterical Archaeology

 CLASS SCHEDULE FOR HIS 376-01, SPRING 2003 – PLEASE KEEP SCHEDULE CURRENT

Jan. 17    Introduction to the Course
Jan. 22     Who, What and Whys of Archaeology                Read: Chapter 1
Jan. 24    Schliemann, Troy and the History of Archaeology          Read: Chapter 2
Jan. 29    Anthropology, Science & History                 Read: Chapter 3
Jan. 31    No class                         Read: Start Thomas
Feb. 5    Skull Wars: An Introduction                    Read: Thomas
Feb. 7     Stratigraphy and Serriation                    Read: Chapter 4
Feb. 12    Chronology and Dating Techniques                  Read: Thomas
Feb. 14    Finding Archaeology Sites                     Read: Chapter 5
Feb. 19    Remote Sensing                         Read: Thomas
Feb. 21    Archaeological Fieldwork                    Read: Chapter 6
Feb. 26    How to Dig                        Read: Thomas
Feb. 28    Class Discussion of Skull Wars – Skull Wars papers due in class!
Mar. 5    Archaeological Labwork                    Read: Chapter 7        
Mar. 7    MIDTERM EXAMINATION                       
Mar. 12 & 14     No Class – Spring Vacation
Mar. 19    Historical Archaeology: Jamestown, and Martin’s Hundred    Read: Start Noël Hume   
Mar. 21    Artifacts, Classification, and Taxonomy            Read: Noël Hume
Mar. 26    Middle Range Theory & Le Project du Garbage        Read: Chapter 8
Mar. 28    Experimental Archaeology                    Read: Noël Hume
Apr. 2    Climate and Environment in Archaeology            Read: Chapter 9
Apr. 4    Zooarchaeology                        Read: Chapter 10
Apr. 9    Settlement and Trade Patterns                    Read: Chapter 11   
Apr. 11    Archaeology, People and Gender                Read: Chapter 12
Apr. 16    Martin’s Hundred    Reviews of Martin’s Hundred due in class!           
Apr. 18    Bioarchaeology and DNA                   
Apr. 23     Explaining the Past: Archaeological Theory            Read Chapter 13
Apr. 25    Archaeological Theory Continued                Read: Chapter 14
Apr. 30    TBA (Snow Make Up Day??)                       
May 2     Last Day of Class    Documentary Assignment Due in class!

May 8    Final Exam in SB 109A, 2:30-4:30  PM - PLEASE NOTE TIME!