2019-2020

This course is an exploration of the continuities of Egyptian culture from the Ptolemaic period down to modern times, a span of over 2000 years. The emphasis will be on the archaeology of Coptic and Islamic Egypt. The focus will be on the role of medieval archaeology in amplifying the history of economic and social systems. It is this connective quality of archaeology which contributes to an understanding of Pharaonic culture and fills the gap between ancient and modern Egypt

This course surveys (1) the wide range of methods used by archaeologists to recover and analyze evidence concerning the human past; and (2) the various theoretical paradigms archaeologists have employed to interpret their finds and reconstruct ancient societies and cultures.

The Uruk period (4th millennium BC) saw the emergence of the earliest known state societies, urbanism, kingship, writing, and colonial network extending from Mesopotamia across the Jazira and into neighboring resource zones in the Taurus and Zagros mountains. This seminar examines Uruk Mesopotamia and neighboring regions from several perspectives â€" an examination of key sites in Mesopotamia and contemporaneous local late chalcolithic polities in Syria, southeast Anatolia and Iran. The seminar also considers the main theoretical issues involved in understanding inter-regional interaction in the social, economic, and political organization of this period.

This course takes place outside of Chicago and can only be taken by arrangement with the instructor well in advance of the quarter in which it is offered.

This course is an in-depth survey of the various ceramic traditions that have characterized Anatolia from the invention of pottery in the Neolithic period to the Islamic period (time permitting). We will use collections in the Oriental Institute Museum to gain hands-on familiarity with these corpora, although the ceramic repertoire of Anatolia is so vast and diverse that the class will also involve lectures and student presentations on ceramics only available in scholarly literature. This class is structured less as a teacher-directed instructional, and more as a collaborative project in which we become masters of the Anatolian ceramic repertoire together.

This course develops advanced language skills through the study of narratives, prose, and poetry from various periods in the development of Modern Hebrew. Students will present readings in their own field of study.

Continue acquisition of basic Classical Hebrew, emphasis on syntax; increase familiarity with Biblical Hebrew poetry, emphasis on prophets; continue acquisition of basic historical morphology; introduction to reading ancient manuscripts.

Continue acquisition of basic Classical Hebrew; continue acquisition of basic notions of historical grammar; acquire the rudiments of analysis of Biblical Hebrew poetry.

Review basic Classical Hebrew grammar, emphasis on morphology and basic syntax; review/acquire historical morphology; acquire facility in reading Biblical Hebrew prose

Introduction to reading and analysis of Punic inscriptions