This class offers a fascinating journey in the prehistory of the Eastern Mediterranean. We consider also the Near East (Mesopotamian) and Continental Europe when a general approach is needed.
Participants are not supposed to possess over prior knowledge in archaeology. The immense amount of archaeological data is synthesized by the instructor in a way that in every session we will have time for discussions of topics which are crucial not only for prehistoric archaeology, but also for present day life such as:
– Migration (Advent of earliest Homo in Europe, the first agriculturalists in the 7th mill BC, the so called “Sea Peoples” at the end of the Bronze Age);
– Technological innovation (Spread of agriculture in Europe, appearance of copper metallurgy and the social and economic consequences as seen in the Copper Age necropolis in Varna, the spread of the bronze alloy etc.);
– Socio-political innovation (Appearance and collapse of Minoan and Mycenaean palaces, state formation and crisis);
– Knowledge transfer, appropriation and rejection (Early trade in the Aegean, appearance and importance of sailing boats, importance and structure of trading networks);
– Local and overregional identities (Cult, figurines, body cultures, food);
– Environmental changes (Sea level, climate, deforestation, soil erosion and settlement patterns etc.).