Classical and Near Eastern Archaeology

ARCH B252 Pompeii
Introduces students to a nearly intact archaeological site whose destruction by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 C.E. was recorded by contemporaries. The discovery of Pompeii in the mid-1700s had an enormous impact on 18th- and 19th-century views of the Roman past as well as styles and preferences of the modern era. Informs students in classical antiquity, urban life, city structure, residential architecture, home decoration and furnishing, wall painting, minor arts and craft and mercantile activities within a Roman city.

ARCH B258 Magic, Medicine, and Science: Health in the ancient Mediterranean
Modern medicine is built on more than 5,000 years of history-an intricate and entangled story of how humans have tried to understand, heal, and transform the world around them. Along the way, the boundaries between medicine, magic, science, religion, and philosophy have constantly shifted. What does it mean to know something? Where does religion end and science begin?

ARCH B335 Sensory Worlds, Material Lives: Archaeology and the Senses
How did the past feel, smell, sound, taste, and move? This graduate seminar explores the role of the senses in archaeological thought and practice. We examine how sensory experiences shaped ancient lifeways and how archaeologists today reconstruct-or invent-those experiences through theory, method, and imagination. Readings draw from archaeology, anthropology, history, and sensory studies, with special attention to embodiment, perception, colonial legacies, and the politics of interpretation. Students will engage critically with key debates while experimenting with creative, multisensory approaches to primary sources. Weekly reading journals, seminar discussions, and a hands-on midterm project will build toward a final project that explores how the sensory might shift archaeological storytelling, pedagogy, or public engagement. Throughout, we ask: Whose senses are centered? What senses are valued, and why? And what is at stake when trying to sense the past?