Landscape archaeology
LANDSCAPE ARCHAEOLOGY
PROGRAMME OF STUDIES
The concept of landscape has been defined differently by anthropologists, ar-chaeologists, philosophers, geographers, historians and sociologists. Most definitions are limited to its role as a material 'manifestation' of relations between man and the environment, after Carl Sauer (1925), sometimes placing the 'cultural' landscape in opposition to to the 'natural' one. Despite many differences, the common element of all these definitions is the recognition of the importance of the human (social) cha-racter of landscape. The national act on cultural heritage protection and conservation defines the cultural landscape as a 'space historically shaped by human activity, con-taining products of civilization and natural elements.'
The purpose of landscape archaeology is the identification and interpretation of context, morphology, and material remains in order to explain human behaviour and cultural processes. Its important feature is a complementary research approach, encompassing archaeological and environmental factors. This approach creates an opportunity for the integration of different research areas studying the 'man - envir-onment' interaction. This relationship had many different shades and motivations, not only an economic one, constituting the most common reference point of generaliza-tions created by archaeologists.
The inspiration to create this course are the new opportunities for research on the relationship between man and environment, currently incomparably greater than it was a dozen or even a few years ago. The development of contemporary humani-ties has contributed to this, which has provided us with new theoretical perspectives as well as technological progress, providing us with more and more tools to investi-gate and reconstruct the cultural and natural landscapes of the past.
The aim of the study is to provide participants with the knowledge base and skills in the field of the protection of cultural heritage, from the latest methods and techniques for studying this heritage within natural landscapes, settlement and sym-bolic, to methods of interpreting the results and creating general models for under-standing the cultural processes.
Lecturers, representing a wide range of sciences co-operating with archae-ology, will provide students with knowledge on recent research techniques used in their fields: geology, geomorphology, anthropogeography, anthropology, paleobota-ny, palynology, archaeozoology, dendrochronology, dendrology, geophysics, physi-cs, chemistry, molecular biology and computer science. Archaeologists in co-operation with private companies will present examples of the applications of the la-test survey and excavation techniques.
This course is addressed to anyone interested in improving their qualifications in the field of archaeology and more broadly in the historical sciences as well as sciences co-operating in the field of knowledge of cultural processes, i.e. archaeolo-gists conducting excavations but also students involved in the protection of cultural heritage and spatial planning, including local government officers of communes and districts, civil servants, museum staff, history teachers, culture officers, members of cultural associations, owners and managers of historical buildings and landscape ar-chitects.
The programme of the studies includes the following topics:
- theory of landscape archaeology
- themes on geology, geomorphology and hydrography
- palynology, palaeobotany and dendrology
- palaeozoology and archaeozoology
- topography, photogrammetry and field survey (aerial photography, geophy-sics - electrical resistivity, electromagnetic, GPR, seismic and thermographic met-hods)
- methods for the spatial analysis of settlement
- use of information technology in settlement research
- spatial forms of settlement
- methods of dating (dendrochronology, radiocarbon dating etc.)
- methods for the analysis of monuments and artefacts (petrography, physico-chemical and isotopic examination)
- sacred space
- space of power
- funeral space
- physical anthropology
- molecular archaeology
Description of qualifications obtained after graduation:
Participants will acquire knowledge and skills in the fields:
- landscape archaeology, i.e. identification and interpretation of context, mor-phology and arrangement of material remains in order to explain human behaviour and cultural processes
- methodology of excavations
- methodology of sciences co-operating with archaeology in the research of cultural heritage
Conditions of graduation:
Confirmation of gaining knowledge and skills on subjects taught during the studies (credit or mark). Preparation of an essay on a selected subject of landscape archaeology.
Dates of commencement and completion of studies:
March 2013 - June 2014
Classes will be held over three semesters
every 1st and 3rd weekend of the month (Saturday and Sunday)
in the morning and afternoon at the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Wrocław Section, ul. Więzienna 6 (5 minutes walk from the Market Square).
Total number of teaching hours for one participant - 388 (45 minutes each)
including:
number of hours of theoretical classes (lectures) - 298
number of hours of practical classes (tutorials) - 80
Diploma seminar - 10
Lecturers: Jacek Banaszkiewicz, Andrzej Buko, Piotr Gunia, Marek Krąpiec, Mirosław Makohonienko, Daniel Makowiecki, Sławomir Moździoch, Łukasz Porzu-czek, Leszek Słupecki, Blażej Stanisławski, Tomasz Stępnik, Adam Szynkiewicz, Maciej Trzcinski, Przemysław Urbańczyk, Adam Walanus, Jacek Wrzesiński and others, according to attendance.
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