The Minor in Archaeology and Culture is intentionally interdisciplinary. The minor is structured to complement the Liberal Studies Core at Gannon University. Study abroad is integral to the minor and is structurally ensured, as are exposure to multi-cultural values, a science and technology application and textual analysis.
Completion of 18 credits is required to satisfy the requirements of the Minor. In consultation with the program coordinator, the student will develop a Minor focused either on Track 1 or on Track 2.
Sample Courses
ARCH 201: Archaeology and History of the Ancient Near East
This course will offer a basic survey of the archaeological culture and history of the ancient Near East, including the Biblical Lands of Israel and Transjordan and contemporary societies in neighboring Mesopotamia and Egypt. The purpose of this particular course is specifically to introduce the student to a broad sweep of civilizations, peoples, and ancient lifeways, dating primarily to the Bronze and Iron Ages (4th - 1st millennia BCE roughly).
ARCH 202: Archaeology Methods and Lab
This course will offer a basic introduction to the theoretical and scientific aspects of archaeology. Archaeology relies on a body of theories and methods for reading human prehistory from the incomplete record left by past cultures; likewise in the historical era, this body of theories and methods serves to provide a comprehensive view of ancient lifeways, by including artifact analysis. Topics include techniques of excavation and artifact analysis and classification of materials, e.g., ceramics, objects, lithics, faunal and floral analysis, among others. The course is divided between lecture and laboratory sessions in which students analyze archaeological data.
ARCH 302: Becoming Human-Becoming the World
This course intends to study culture continuity and change by concentrating on the most important turning points and developments in Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas, covering the time span from Human Origins to the edge of the Renaissance. The orientation is global, the themes integrative, the overall goal being to show interconnections in the development
of civilization(s), along with divergence across cultural and societal boundaries. The course stresses the archaeological and textual evidence. Some of the over-arching themes that express both culture and cultural diversity in antiquity include: becoming human, first states, nomadic movements, empires, and universal religions.