Courses

These courses are subject to change. The information on MyStudent is the most up to date information.

Link to the Summer Term Website.

CAS AR100 Great Discoveries in Archaeology

Introduction to how archaeologists use material culture to study inequality, diet, gender, religion, identity, and sustainability in global case studies from the origins of humans to the present. Looting, heritage, and repatriation are addressed with the perspectives of descendant communities. Effective Fall 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Digital/Multimedia Expression. 4 cr. Tuition: $3180

CAS AR230 Introduction to Greek and Roman Archaeology

Prereq: First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., CAS WR 100 or CAS WR 120) or consent of instructor. An archaeological journey from Bronze Age Greece to democratic Athens to Imperial Rome, tracking social upheaval and cohesion through religious, civic, and domestic spheres. Students learn to read material remains to understand life in a complex past, a past that illuminates our own world today. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Writing-Intensive Course, Historical Consciousness, Critical Thinking. 4 cr. Tuition: $3180

CAS AR 280 Eating and Drinking in the Ancient World

Prereq: First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., CAS WR 100 or CAS WR 120) or consent of instructor. Survey of the archaeological evidence of the diets of human societies, from earliest humans to the present. Emphasis on the remains of plants, animals, and humans and what they tell us about ancient food and drink within their social contexts. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Writing-Intensive Course. 4 cr. Tuition: $3180

These courses are subject to change. The information on the Student Link is the most update information. Any questions regarding the courses please contact us.

CAS AR 100 Great Discoveries in Archaeology
TR 2:00pm – 3:15pm
Professor Joshua Robinson
Illustrated lectures focus on the important discoveries of the discipline of archaeology. Course covers the whole of human prehistory around the world. Archaeological methods are described, along with the great ancient sites: Olduvai, Lascaux, Stonehenge, Egyptian Pyramids, Machu Picchu. Lecture and Discussion.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Digital/Multimedia Expression
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR190 Introduction to Archaeology
TR 9:30 am – 10:45 am
Professor
Foundational training in how archaeologists study past peoples and cultures via field, museum, and laboratory methods. Apply theoretical frameworks to archaeological themes and datasets. Relate archaeological outcomes to the present day through real-world examples from around the globe.

* You must also register for a discussion section. Times and days are found on the Student Link.
Course provides Hub units in: Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Research and Information Literacy
Course required for major and minor in Archaeology

CAS AR200 Heritage Matters: Introduction to Heritage Management    CANCELLED
MWF 2:30PM – 3:20PM
Professor
Protection and management of archaeological heritage, including sites, artifacts, and monuments. Survey of heritage values and stakeholders. Issues covered include policy and legislation, U.S. preservation system, international efforts, indigenous perspectives, looting, repatriation, underwater heritage, and heritage at war.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement

CAS AR201 Indigenous Peoples of the Americas
MWF 11:15 am – 12:05 pm
Professor
An introduction to the archaeology and indigenous peoples of Americas with a focus on precolonial era. Topics progress chronologically as well as comparatively, with cases drawn from Native American cultures of the North America, Mesoamerica, and South America.Cross listed with AN201.

Course provides HUB Social Inquiry I , Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR202 Archaeological Mysteries: Pseudoscience and Fallacy in the Human Past
TR 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm
Professor Curtis Runnels
Investigation through case studies of pseudoscientific claims about the past. Purported solutions to archaeological mysteries are subjected to the test of evidence using the scientific method. Topics include Atlantis, ancient extraterrestrials, Pyramids, Stonehenge, crop marks, and Noah’s Ark.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Critical Thinking
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement

CAS AR230 Introduction to Greek and Roman Archaeology
TR 2:00 PM – 3:15 PM
Bailey Benson
An archaeological journey from Bronze Age Greece to democratic Athens to Imperial Rome, tracking social upheaval and cohesion through religious, civic, and domestic spheres. Learn to read material remains to understand life in a complex past, a past that illuminates our own world today.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Critical Thinking, Writing-Intensive Course
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR240 The Archaeology of Ancient China
MWF 11:15am – 12:05 pm
Professor Robert Murrowchick
Examines the archaeology of ancient China from the Neolithic through early imperial periods (7000 BCE to 3rd C. CE); the interaction of technology, art, and literature with ancient political, religious, and social power; and cultural heritage issues in facing modern China.

Course provides Hub Aesthetic Exploration, Social Inquiry I
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR250 The Aztecs, Maya, and Their Predecessors: Archaeology of Mesoamerica
MWF 9:05 am – 9:55 am
Professor
Overview of the Aztecs, Mayas, and other native peoples of Mexico and Central America, including the chronological development of cultures and key topics. Focus on variability in individuals and groups by age, gender, ethnicity, class, and polities pre- and post-conquest.

Course provides Hub The Individual In Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR280 Eating and Drinking in the Ancient World
MWF 1:25PM – 2:15PM
Professor
Survey of the archaeological evidence of the diets of human societies, from earliest humans to the present. Emphasis on the remains of plants, animals, and humans and what they tell us about ancient food and drink within their social contexts.

Course provides Hub Social Inquiry I, Writing-Intensive Course, and Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement
*Prerequisite: WR100 or 120 or equivalent.

CAS AR283 North American Archaeology
MWF 10:10 am – 11:00 am
Professor Wade Campbell
North American prehistory from initial peopling of continent to development of complex societies. Explores human entry into the New World; migration across North America; subsistence changes; human effects on landscape; encounters with Europeans; role of archaeology in contemporary Native cultures.

Course provides Hub Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR305 Paleolithic Archaeology
TR 9:30 am – 10:45 am
Professor Curtis Runnels
Introduction to the emergence of culture and the reconstruction of early lifeways from archaeological evidence. Topics include early humans in Africa, Asia, and Europe; Neanderthals; the first Americans; and the prelude to agriculture.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Scientific Inquiry I, Critical Thinking
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement

CAS AR307 Archaeological Science
TR 11:00 am – 12:15pm
Professor Joshua Robinson
Application of natural sciences, as an integral part of modern archaeology, to issues of dating, reconstructing past environments and diets, and analysis of mineral and biological remains. Laboratories concentrate on biological, geological, physical, and chemical approaches.Lecture and Lab.

* Prerequisite: CAS AR190 (former CAS AR101) or consent of instructor.
** You must also register for a lab section, days and times found on Student Portal.

Course provides Hub Scientific Inquiry II, Quantitative Reasoning I, Research and Information Literacy, Critical Thinking
Course required for major and minor in Archaeology

CAS AR507 Low Impact Field Methods in Archaeology
M 2:30 pm – 5:15pm
Professor Wade Campbell

Hands-on introduction to “low-impact” analytical methodologies employed in archaeology. Integrates field learning with conceptual and case-study readings, classroom instruction, and computer‐based data manipulation and analyses. Introductions to GIS, field survey, UAV-based aerial photogrammetry, aerial imagery, subsurface prospection methods, dendroarchaeological sampling.

Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate technical and topical requirement
Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Teamwork/Collaboration

* Prerequisite: Either [AR 100 or AR 190] and AR 307 *or* consent of the instructor.

CAS AR510 Proposal Writing for Social Science Research
TR 8:00 AM – 9:15AM
Professor Arkin
The purpose of this course is to turn students’ intellectual interests into answerable, field-based research questions. The goal is the production of a project proposal for future research.
* Cross-listed with CAS AN510.
** Undergraduate prerequisite: admission to AR Honors Program or consent of instructor.
*** Graduate prerequisite: graduate student standing in the social sciences or humanities.Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate technical requirement

CAS AR550 Human Osteology
TR 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm
Professor Andreana Cunningham
Function, development, variation, and pathologies of the human musculoskeletal system, emphasizing issues of human evolution. Basic processes of bone biology and how they are affected by use, age, sex, diet, and disease. Meetings are predominantly lab oriented.

Course provides Hub Scientific Inquiry I
*Prerequisite:CAS AN 102 or CAS AN 331; or consent of instructor.
** Meets with AN550

CAS AR565 Memory in 3-D: Memorials, then and now
R 3:30pm – 6:15pm
Professor Andrea Berlin
Memorials and the spaces around them are charged zones, time portals where past and present co-exist.The decision to erect a memorial is a statement on many levels – of cultural stamina, political will, social need, and above all of historical consciousness. In this course we focus on the development of memorial culture in America, along with a comparative examination of the worlds of ancient Greece and Rome. The distance afforded by stepping outside our own time and place provides perspectives on aspects of form and message, as well as on how the meanings of memorial can change.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Digital/Multimedia Expression, Creativity/Innovation
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement
* Meets with CAS AN 565

CAS AR591 Theory in Archaeology
T 12:30 pm – 3:15 pm
Professor Catherine West
Seminar dealing with the intellectual history of the discipline, research methods, concepts, and problems in archaeological theory, and the formulation of research designs.

Course provides Hub Social Inquiry II, Global Citizenship & Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking

*Prerequisites: At least two archaeological studies courses at the 200 level or above, senior status, or consent of instructor.
** Meets with GRS AN791.
***Former GRS AR891

CAS AR592 Archaeological Ethics and Law
W 8:00 am – 10:45 am
Professor Robert Murowchick
In this course students examine archaeology and professional ethics; archaeology as public interest; legal organization of archaeology; international approaches to heritage management; looting, collecting and the antiquities market; maritime law and underwater archaeology; cultural resource management in the United States.

Course provides Hub Ethical Reasoning.

*Prerequisites: Junior standing or consent of instructor
**Former CAS AR480 & GRS AR892 (Last offered Fall 2022)

GRS AR703 Materials in Ancient Society
Seminar. Topic to be announced. Offered through the Center for Materials Research in Archaeology and Ethnology.
* MIT Materials in Ancient Societies: course #3.984.

These courses are subject to change. The information on the Student Link is the most update information. Any questions regarding the courses please contact us.

CAS AR 100 Great Discoveries in Archaeology
TR 2:00PM – 3:15PM
Professor Joshua Robinson

Illustrated lectures focus on the important discoveries of the discipline of archaeology. Course covers the whole of human prehistory around the world. Archaeological methods are described, along with the great ancient sites: Olduvai, Lascaux, Stonehenge, Egyptian Pyramids, Machu Picchu. Lecture and Discussion.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Digital/Multimedia Expression
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR190 Introduction to Archaeology
TR 9:30 am – 10:45 am
Professor

Foundational training in how archaeologists study past peoples and cultures via field, museum, and laboratory methods. Apply theoretical frameworks to archaeological themes and datasets. Relate archaeological outcomes to the present day through real-world examples from around the globe.

* You must also register for a discussion section. Times and days are found on the Student Portal.
Course provides Hub units in: Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Research and Information Literacy
Course required for major and minor in Archaeology

CAS AR206 Ancient Technology
Professor Curtis Runnels
TR 9:30-10:45
Traces the related evolution of technology and culture over the first million years of human existence. Case studies focus on the interaction between early technology and social structure, values, and institutions. Lectures and hands-on experience with ceramics, stone, and metallurgy.

Course provides Hub Historical Consciousness, Teamwork/Collaboration
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement

CAS AR 210 Minoan and Mycenaean Civilizations
TR 12:30-1:45
Professor Curtis Runnels

Traces the rise and fall of the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations from their Stone Age roots to the end of the Bronze Age. Subjects include art, architecture, economic, social, political, and religious characteristics, and theoretical explanations of cultural change.

Course provides HUB Historical Consciousness, Critical Thinking
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR280 Eating and Drinking in the Ancient World
TR 3:30pm – 4:45 pm
Professor
Survey of the archaeological evidence of the diets of human societies, from earliest humans to the present. Emphasis on the remains of plants, animals, and humans and what they tell us about ancient food and drink within their social contexts.

Course provides HUB Social Inquiry I, Writing-Intensive Course, and Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement
*Prerequisite: WR100 or 120 or equivalent.

CAS AR290 Archaeology of Environmental Change
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Catherine West

Examination of human impacts on the global landscape over the past 10,000 years through migration, hunting, disease, agriculture, and other cultural activities; implications for contemporary and future resources management and environmental policy.

Course provides Hub Social Inquiry I, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement

CAS AR301 African Diaspora OF Archaeology
MWF 11:15-12:05
Professor Andreana Cunningham</strong

Introduction to the archaeology of the African diaspora, the global displacement of African people and their descendants. Reviews findings, methodology, and theory around key burial contexts. Emphasis on shifting dialogues, such as human remains stewardship, community engagement, and reburial.

Course provides Hub Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, Critical Thinking
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR333 Arts of Classical Greece
Professor Becky Martin
MWF 9:05-9:55
Examines architecture, sculpture, painting, and other arts of the fifth and fourth centuries B.C. Topics include: the concept of classicism, how art was made, the “Greek revolution” and consequences of naturalism, the artist as individual.

Course provides Hub Aesthetic Exploration, Historical Consciousness.
*Meets with CAS AH333

CAS AR357 BIOARCHAEOLOGY
MWF 9:05-9:55
ProfessorAndreana Cunningham

Introduction to the study of human remains in bioarchaeological contexts. Course reviews key theoretical frameworks and methodologies in interpreting valuable information about demography, gender differences, social identities and the daily lives of past peoples, as well as ongoing ethical concerns in bioarchaeological practice.

Course provides Hub Social Inquiry I, Ethical Reasoning
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement

CAS AR369 Indigenous Archaeology
T 12:30-3:15
Professor Wade Campbell
Introduction to Indigenous archaeology, which seeks to realize a more ethical engagement with Indigenous communities by conducting research “with, for, and by” Indigenous descendant communities. Reviews key theoretical frameworks (e.g., traditional knowledge systems, collaboration, repatriation) and explores the ways this approach is being put into action through case studies.

Course provides Hub units in: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, and Critical Thinking
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement
Cross listed with AN369.

CAS AR390 The Archaeology of Southeast Asia
TR 2:00-3:15
Professor Robert Murowchick
Examines the evidence for prehistoric and historic cultural sequences across Southeast Asia, presented chronologically and comparatively. Topics include emergent complexity, trade networks, urbanism, metallurgy, public architecture, the rise and fall of early states, the ethics of maritime archaeology and the international antiquities market, and the complex politics of cultural heritage management issues.
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement
Course fulfills Asian Studies requirement
Course fulfills East Asian Studies requirement
Course provides Hub units in: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, and Critical Thinking
* Meets with AR790.

CAS AR395 Politics of the Past: Archaeology, Museums, and Identity
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor

Historical exploration of the interplay among political/nationalistic pressures and the design, implementation, and interpretation of archaeological research and its public presentation through publications, museum exhibitions, and international expositions.

Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate topical requirement
Course provides Hub Digital/Multimedia Expressions, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, and Ethical Reasoning
Cross listed with GRS AR795
Course fulfills Asian Studies requirement

CAS AR518 Zooarchaeology
T 12:30-3:15
Professor Catherine West
Introduction to the study of archaeological animal bones. Provides theoretical background and methodological skills necessary for interpreting past human-animal interactions, subsistence, and paleoecology. Laboratory sections focus on skeletal identification.  Lecture and Lab.
* Prerequisite: CAS AR190 (former CAS AR101) or consent of instructor.

Course provides Hub Social Inquiry II, Quantitative Reasoning I
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate technical requirement

CAS AR520 Theory and Methods in Environmental Archaeology
Professor Joshua Robinson
TR 12:30-1:45

Problem-based course where students apply quantitative methods across archaeological datasets to address complex problems of human-environmental relationships rooted in deep time. Through teamwork-based research projects students develop marketable skills in research design, theory integration, and data analysis and visualization.

* Prerequisite: CAS AR307 or consent of instructor.
** Meets with CAS EE520 and AN519.
Course provides Hub Social Inquiry II, Quantitative Reasoning II, Teamwork/Collaboration.

CAS AR551 Studies in Mesoamerican Archaeology
F 11:15-2:00
Professor
Topics vary. Analysis of major events and processes of the Mesoamerican area. Topics include the arrival of man; development of regional patterns; origin of food production; rise of towns, temples, and urbanism; the origin of state; and the development of empires.
Course provides Hub Social Inquiry II, Writing-Intensive Course
Course fulfills Archaeology Undergraduate area requirement
*Prerequisite: WR100 or 120 or equivalent.

CAS AR594 Scientific Applications in Archaeology
T 3:30 – 6:15
Professor Joshua Robinson
Seminar exploring new ways of addressing archaeological questions through the application of scientific techniques, focusing on cutting-edge methodologies and the most recent literature in the field. Students pursue questions of individual interest through readings, discussions, presentations, and research papers.

Course provides Hub Oral and/or Signed Communication, Writing-Intensive Course, and Social Inquiry II 

*Prerequisites: First-Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120) and AR 307, or graduate standing.
** Meets with GRS AN 794
*****Former GRS AR894 (Last offered Spring 2023)

CAS AR595 Professional Futures in Archaeology
F 2:30-5:15
Professor Andrea Berlin

A degree in archaeology can get you in the door at museums, the National Park Service, US Customs and other federal agencies, research laboratories, international NGO’s, organizations focused on international art law, historical site management, heritage tourism – and more. For such careers, you need skills that allow you to build on your understanding of archaeological remains and techniques, communicate to a wider public, and create pathways that link subjects and remains of the past to interests and needs in the present.

Course provides Hub Ethical Reasoning, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Teamwork/Collaboration

GRS AR704 Materials in Ancient Society
Seminar. Topic to be announced. Offered through the Center for Materials Research in Archaeology and Ethnology.
* MIT Materials in Ancient Societies: course #3.989.

GRS AR790 The Archaeology of Southeast Asia
TR 2:00-3:15
Professor Robert Murowchick
Examines the prehistoric and historic cultures of Southeast Asia, including the first arrival of humans, regional neolithic and Bronze Age communities, early states, maritime trading networks, as well as political motivations in archaeology and the illicit Asian antiquities trade.
Course fulfills Asian Studies Graduate Certificaterequirement
* Meets with CAS AR390.

GRS AR795 Politics, Nationalism, and Archaeology
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor

Explores how archaeology is shaped by and manipulated for political purposes. Case studies from Asia and around the world trace the development of archaeology during colonial empire-building and post-colonial nationalism, and the importance of archaeological heritage in regional politics.
Course fulfills Asian Studies Graduate Certificate
*Meets with CAS AR 395