ANME 384 - Empires of the Nile: The Archaeology of Egypt and Nubia

This course examines the art and archaeology of ancient Egypt and Nubia from late prehistory (ca. 3000 BCE) through the Nubian Meroitic period (ends ca. 400 CE). These two regions of northeast Africa were economically, culturally, and politically intertwined throughout their history, and offer an exceptional case study for the examination of the material effects of imperialism and cross-cultural interaction over the long term. This course will survey major aspects of Egyptian and Nubian archaeology, including death, burial, and mummification; tombs and their development; ideologies and iconographies of kingship; material culture and religion; temples and other religious architecture; the emergence of the state; archaeologies of imperialism; and archaeologies of daily life. Specific attention will be paid to Nubian material culture, the reciprocal political and cultural interactions between Egypt and Nubia, and the unique material culture that resulted from these interactions, though the course is overall centered on Egyptian archaeology due to the quantity and quality of data. Emphasis will be placed on engaging with and critically analyzing archaeological and visual data, as well as some primary textual sources. We will also consider the modern reception and study of ancient Egypt in relation to Nubia and the broader archaeology of Africa.

Unit(s): 1
Group Distribution Requirement(s): Distribution Group II
Instructional Method: Lecture-conference
Grading Mode: Letter grading (A-F)
Group Distribution Learning Outcome(s):

Evaluate data and/or sources.
Analyze institutions, formations, languages, structures, or processes, whether social, political, religious, economic, cultural, intellectual or other.
Think in sophisticated ways about causation, social and/or historical change, human cognition, or the relationship between individuals and society, or engage with social, political, religious or economic theory in other areas.