MODULE OVERVIEW 

This course is an introduction to the archaeology of the Levant (modern-day Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel/Palestine, northernmost Arabia, the Negev, Sinai & the Hatay-Gaziantep region of southern Turkey). The temporal scope is early prehistory to the end of the Iron Age (333 BC). Topics include initial colonization, Palaeolithic hunter-gatherer societies, human ecology & the emergence of agrarian societies & villages in the aceramic Neolithic; technological change, craft specialization & the emergence of ceramic Neolithic & Chalcolithic cultures; the evolution of complex societies in the fourth & third millennia BCE; (Early Bronze Age); the growth of Canaanite & Amorite civilizations & urban cultures in the early second millennium BCE (Middle Bronze Age); relations of the Late Bronze Age Levant with the empires of New Kingdom Egypt, Mitanni & the Hittites; the Late Bronze Age “collapse;” the emergence of Iron Age city states, kingdoms & tribal polities after 1200 BCE (Philistia, Phoenicia, Israel, Judah, Ammon, Moab, Edom, Arabia, Aram, the Neo-Hittites); & the impact of the Assyrian, Neo-Babylonian & Persian empires. Major themes are social-cultural diversity, long-term cycles of culture change, regional interactions & the impact of ancient history on present-day societies. The approach is multi-disciplinary, drawing on history, anthropology, human ecology, materials science & archaeology.

AIMS 

The aims of this course are:

(1) to teach the present state of knowledge about societies of the Levant from prehistory to the end of the Iron Age; topics include civilizations of the Canaanites, Phoenicia, Philistia, Israel, Judah, Aram, the Neo-Hittites, Ammon, Moab, Edom & Arabia;

(2) to present recent archaeological & historical research on these periods;

(3) to explore the growth & collapse of empires, international exchange & interaction, ethnicity, writing systems, cultures.

OBJECTIVES 

On successful completion of this course a student should: have a command of issues, debates & evidence on the archaeology & history of the Levant; be able to evaluate the validity of theories, methods & quality of evidence; & appreciate the effects of modern social & political frames of reference on interpreting this region.

LEARNING OUTCOMES 

By the end of the course students should be able to demonstrate: an understanding & critical awareness of interpretations, analytical methods & quality of evidence in research on the Levant; written skills in analysis & presentation; & an ability to apply appropriate analytical methods to research for 2 essays

Further information is available here https://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/study/undergraduate/courses/archaeology-levant