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PhD courses

Archaeology and the third dimension: Visualizing, analyzing, modelling

Description:

3D methods are becoming increasingly common in the digital archaeological toolbox. They have found a broad range of applications in the field, in post-ex documentation and in research and operate on multiple scale, from intricate small find studies to landscape reconstruction.
In this PhD course, we will explore selected 3D methods concerning field documentation, research on complex urban stratigraphy, archaeological artefacts and predictive modelling of urban deposits. We will focus on concrete experiences, highlighting the contribution of certain tools and case-studies to our knowledge about the past. The course also aims at discussing the potential and pitfalls of using 3D methods. Are they used as a hammer to hit all nails, or do they truly make a difference?

The course will consist of lectures, presentations of current research taking place at AU/Campus Moesgaard student presentations, and round-table discussions.

Key questions may include (but are not limited to):
• What difference does the 3rd dimension make?
• How can we shed new light on data and artefacts in the archives through 3D techniques?
• How and when are 3D methods really cost-effective?
• How is the data produced sustainably as it is contingent on rapid technological developments and issues of storage?

The course will be a one-day course hosted at the Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet), Aarhus University.

Students are expected to provide a case study that they will present at the course. The exact format of this will be adjusted according to the number of participants. The PhD students will thus actively contribute to the course by presenting their own research and will be asked to reflect upon the course’s outcomes and consequences on their PhD project during a round-table discussion at the end of the day. In so doing, the course aims to provide the participants with a forum to discuss their work with peers and specialists and to receive feedback.

Aim:

The aim is to encourage students from all fields of archaeology to consider, discuss and reflect upon the potential and pitfalls of applying 3D techniques in their own research.
The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies, methods and techniques using 3D approaches.
It will focus on two main objectives:
• Become familiar with 3D methods and approaches, with their potential and limitations
• Reflect upon the growing integration of digital methods in archaeological practice and research

Literature:

No literature required.

Target group:

Early and late stage PhD.

Form:

Preliminary programme
09.00 Welcome and introduction
09.10 Guest lecture 1
09.50 Student presentation 1-4
10.35 Break
10.50 Guest lecture 2
11.30 Student pres 4-8
12.15 Lunch
13.15 Presentation of cases 1-3
14.30 Break
14.50 Student reflection and discussion (individual / in group)
15.30 Round table discussion: reflection on methods in connection with the Phd projects
16.30 Thank you & Evaluation

There will be a social event after the course.
18.00 Dinner

ECTS:

1 ECTS

Language:

English

Lecturers:

Giacomo Landeschi, PhD
Associate Professor (docent)
Researcher, Department of Archaeology and Ancient History
Research Engineer, Humanities Lab
Lund University
email: giacomo.landeschi@ark.lu.se
https://www.darklab.lu.se/


Dr. phil Knut Paasche
Forsker/avdelingsleder
NIKU Norsk institutt for kulturminneforskning
Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research
Knut.paasche@niku.no
https://www.niku.no/en/forskningsprosjekt/viking-nativity-gjellestad-acrossborders/

Organisers:

Kirstine Haase, Museum Odense/UrbNet.
kirha@cas.au.dk

Sarah Croix, AU/UrbNet
marksc@cas.au.dk

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University (Campus Moesgaard), building 4230.

Course dates:

28 November 2023 09:00 - 16:30

Application deadline:

Please sign in via the link no later than 15 October 2023.

 

 

Previous PhD courses

 

The Aftermath of Urban Crises

Description:

Urban development and urbanisation are not necessarily linear processes. On the contrary, periods of decline often stand out in the archaeological record. What most long-lived urban centres throughout history have in common is that they have repeatedly had to overcome major crises with far-reaching economic, cultural, and social consequences, whether the crises being natural disasters (climate change, epidemics), man-made catastrophes (war, conquest, social and civil unrest) or a combination of both (famine). The ways of overcoming these crises, however, are varied and they depend on numerous factors, such as the extent of destruction, the existence or not of a strong, central government, and so on. In fact, such factors can lead to very different outcomes following the same catastrophic event. For example, the same earthquake can prompt the respond to rebuild a city, or to abandon it, depending on factors such as the importance of the city in a local and international network, the ready existence of resources, or even ideas and beliefs about the causes of the destruction.

The PhD course will focus on the responses to urban crises, with an emphasis on the resilience, adaptability, and transformation of cities, but also the prominence that the study of urban crises has acquired in the public sphere in recent years. Research centres like the Centre for Ancient Environmental Studies (St Andrews University), the Laboratory for Past Disaster Science (Aarhus University), or the Centre for Urban Network Evolutions have been behind book series such as Catastrophes in Context (https://www.berghahnbooks.com/series/catastrophes-in-context), conferences such as New Approaches to the History of Plague in Late Antiquity (https://events.st-andrews.ac.uk/events/new-approaches-to-the-history-of-plague-in-late-antiquity/),Catastrophes in Context - Archaeological Perspectives
(https://www.academia.edu/37523774/Catastrophes_in
_Context_Archaeological_Perspectives_Aarhus_Oct
_10_12_2018
) The current exhibition at Moesgaard Museum ‘Out of Chaos’ also addresses issues of urban resilience and transformation, while thrusting forward in the public eye the questions of crisis preparedness and response necessary for the survival (or not) of an urban settlement.

Key questions include (but are not limited to):
- Which strategies were implemented by urban communities to respond to crises of different nature? How effective were they?
- What was the role played by central governments and/or local authorities in crises response?
- How did breakdowns shape the next development of urban sites?
- How did natural factors trigger urban cultural processes?
The course (1 day) will consist of lectures, student presentations, and Q&A sessions.

Aim:

The aim is to encourage students from archaeology, history, and related disciplines from the humanities to consider and discuss the role of crises and post-crises periods in shaping the development of urban settlements.
The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies, methods, and techniques for the study of the aftermath of urban breakdowns. It will also tackle the issue of presenting to the public the results of research targeting periods of crisis.

Target group:

Early and late-stage PhD students.

Form:

Lectures and presentations.

ECTS:

1 ECTS

Language:

English

Teachers:

Lecture Helene Dessales, helene.dessales@ens.psl.eu
Prof John Robb, jer39@cam.ac.uk
Postdoc Kirstine Haase, kirha@cas.au.dk
Prof Søren Sindbæk, farksms@cas.au.dk
Museum Curator Camilla Bjarnø, cb@moesgaardmuseum.dk

Date and time:

12 June 2023.

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University (Campus Moesgaard), building 4230.

Application deadline:

Please sign in via this link https://au.phd-courses.dk/CourseCatalog/ShowCourse/1188?returnUrl=%2F  no later than 12 May 2023.

Exploring Reuse Practices in Premodern Economies

Description:

Economic circularity is the ability of a society to reduce waste by recycling, reusing, and repairing raw material and finished products. The concept has received momentum in academia due to contemporary environmental concerns. Despite the recent surge of interest, economic circularity has not been fully addressed as a macrophenomenon by historical and archaeological studies, even though it appears on all levels of the economy. Buildings were renovated or used as quarries for new constructions, and artifacts of all kinds of materials were repaired and recycled on a regular basis. 
In this course we will explore different approaches and methodologies to study reuse practices and learn more about the implementation of circularity processes into the model of ancient economies. Key questions may include (but are not limited to):

1) What are these reuse processes and how do we define them?
2) How can reuse processes in an economic system be studied in more detail and more comprehensively?
3) What data and what approaches are needed to study circularity more comprehensively?
4) How can archaeoscience and other methodologies contribute to our understanding of reuse practices in the past?

The course will be hosted at the Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet). Research at UrbNet and within the Circular Economy and Urban Sustainability in Antiquity Project (Aarhus University) is addressing these topics, trying to build a more complex understanding of ancient circularity as a driving force for the development of urban centres and networks.
Together with the guest lecturers and PhD students we will thus investigate the aspects of reuse and circularity in the archaeological record and in textual sources, to contribute to a more holistic picture of ancient economies. Although circularity is a global phenomenon, the main focus of this event will fall on urban societies from the Roman period to the Middle Ages in Europe.
Students are expected to provide a case study that they will present at the course. The exact format of this will be adjusted according to the number of participants. The PhD students will thus actively contribute to the course by presenting their own research. In so doing, the course aims to provide the participants with a forum to discuss their work with peers and specialists and to receive feedback. 

Aim:

The aim is to encourage students from classical and medieval archaeology and history to consider and discuss the potential of applying a wide range of approaches to their own research.
The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies, methods and techniques for the study of reuse practices in premodern economies.

It will focus on two main objectives: 
• Understand and define circular proccesses and implement them in the economic models of past societies.
• Learn about methods and approaches that help our understanding of circular processes.

Target group:

Early and late stage PhD.

Form:

Lectures and presentations.

ECTS:

1 ECTS

Language:

English

Teachers:

Dr Cristina Boschetti, UrbNet 
Dr Emanuele E. Intagliata, Università degli Studi di Milano
Prof Alexis Wilkin, Université Libre de Bruxelles 
Prof Allyson McDavid, The New School, Parsons School of Design, New York 
Dr Thomas Birch, Moesgaard Museum 
Dr Jonathan R. Wood, University College London 

Date and time:

9 September 2022.

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University (Campus Moesgaard), building 4230.

Additional information:

Once the participation to the course has been confirmed, each participant has to submit the following by 21st August.
A case study of 3-4 pages (including bibliography), which deals with the topic of the course. The cases can relate to an own project, previous experience, or a case inspired by academic literature. These will be pre-circulated among the guest speakers and PhD students before the course.

Student presentations
The participants will be required to present their case study. The presentation will last approximately 10 mins (depending on the number of participants) and will be followed by a  Q&A session in which the students will receive feedback by the lecturers and their peers. 

Application deadline:

Please sign in via this link https://au.phd-courses.dk/CourseCatalog/ShowCourse/974 no later than 7 August 2022.

Between the lines: reading archaeological legacy data

Description:

Archaeological archives and legacy data provide critical information about ancient cultures as well as early excavation practices. Yet, this data should not only be taken at face value – there is the inherent bias of the archaeologist that, in the late 19th and early 20th century, was shaped by the acceptance of colonialism. The assumptions that underride much of early archaeological and historical practices has been the recent focus of scholarly attention and broad efforts across the humanities to decolonize history. Such challenges to traditional narratives are critical for making both past and present more inclusive.

Archaeology and history have typically focused on elite groups and such narratives were written from privileged perspectives. This PhD course is a challenge to past norms and concerns itself with using traditional data in non-traditional ways to give voice to the underrepresented. Although archives and legacy data offer a wealth of information on the past, what is unwritten is as important as what is. For example, reading between the lines can subvert past non-critical acceptance of legacy data, or close looking at images and drawings can be more telling than what is documented in text. Such inferences are significant for developing counter-narratives.

Reading legacy data between the lines is not merely an effort to rewrite and nuance the ancient past, but it is also a way to compose deep history of the most recent past. Moreover, a reinterpretation of traditional data shapes present-day responses to heritage preservation, post-conflict reparations, and cultural healing. The course encourages students to consider the impact of their scholarship on local, unheard voices. 

The course follows up on the two-day workshop “Between the Lines: Towards a Recontextualized Archaeology” on 13-14 June 2022 at the Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University.

Aim:

The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies, methods, and techniques for the interpretation of archaeological legacy data, in particular the impact of scholarly initiatives on underrepresented communities in the preservation of their local heritage. It will focus on two main objectives:

  • To explore the importance of archives and archaeological legacy data in the study of ancient cultures and current cultural heritage initiatives
  • To explore and discuss colonialism and biases inherent in legacy data and brainstorm new approaches to making archaeology and cultural heritage preservation more inclusive.

The course encourages students in archaeology and related humanities disciplines to consider and discuss the potential of applying a wide range of approaches to their own research.

Content:

The use of legacy data in archaeology, cultural heritage preservation, and history; colonialism and representation in archaeology and history; innovative approaches to decolonizing history.

Target group:

PhD students - from year 1-3

Form:

The course will offer four lectures (Module 1) and will be followed by presentations given by the registered participants (Module 2) on their own case studies as well as in depth discussion after papers. There will be a group work module as well – during which the students will give feedback on each other’s presentations.

ECTS:

1 ECTS

Language:

English

Teachers:

Professor Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Classical Studies, Aarhus University) – rubina.raja@cas.au.dk

Dr Amy Miranda (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University) – amy.miranda@cas.au.dk

Professor Jen Baird (Birkbeck, University of London) – j.baird@bbk.au.uk

Dr Zena Kamash (Royal Holloway, University of London) – zena.kamash@rhul.au.uk

Dr Patrick Michel (University of Lausanne) – patrick.michel@unil.ch

Date and time:

15 June 2022

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet), Aarhus University, Moesgård Alle 20, 8270 Højbjerg, Denmark, 4230-232

Additional information:

Each participant is required to register via phdcourse.dk and to submit the following documents by 16 May 2022 to Amy Miranda, amy.miranda@cas.au.dk:

  • A case study of 3-4 pages (including bibliography), which details the project and its relation to the course. The cases can relate to the student’s own project, previous experience, or a case inspired by academic literature. The case studies will be pre-circulated among course participants by 30 May 2022. In addition, the will be reviewed by the course organizing team and discussed in Module 2;
  • A maximum 2-page CV;
  • A maximum 1-page cover letter explaining the motivating reasons for participation.

Student presentations

The participants will be required to present their case study in Module 2. The presentation will last approximately 10-15 mins (depending on the number of participants) and will be followed by a 10-15 mins Q&A session in which the students will receive feedback by the lecturers and their peers.  

Application deadline:

Please sign in via this link au.phd-courses.dk/CourseCatalog/ShowCourse/893 no later than 16 May 2022.

Course Finding the untold stories: invisible people of the past

Description:

Past scholarship has often explored the life of elite groups: archaeologists and historians studied the monuments, houses, sculptures, and literary sources in relation to the rich and powerful of societies. Research on past societies and their material and written records, however, needs to be aware also of less visible groups, very often from the lower class, and how they actively shaped the socio-economic environment they lived in. 
 
Some groups are invisible because they leave little footprints in the material and written record. Others are invisible due to the research focus on the elite groups and their lives. Researching these understudied groups will help us to understand ancient societies in all their complexity. In this course we will shift the emphasis towards invisible groups, such as the poor, unfree, or marginalised, and on new interdisciplinary methodologies to uncover their lives. 

This course will be open to PhD students with an interest in marginalised non-elite groups and to those who want to include a different perspective to their research topic. The course will help PhD students to see their own research under the premise of certain research biases, and to gain a better understanding of the influence the marginalised groups have on their research topic.
 
In the first part of the course, the archaeological and written evidence of less visible and understudied groups will be discussed, to showcase approaches to the topic. We will focus on the reevaluation of previous research, and explore how new research agendas and a shift in research can help our understanding of lesser known groups; and we will show how this can be beneficial to build a more complex and realistic picture of ancient societies. 
In the second part of the course, the PhD students will actively contribute to the course by presenting their own research. In so doing, the course aims to provide the participants with a forum to discuss their work with peers and specialists and to receive feedback. 

Aim:

The aim is to encourage students from archaeology, history, and related disciplines from the humanities to consider and discuss the potential of applying a wide range of approaches to their own research.
The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies, methods and techniques for the study of less visible groups of societies. It will focus on three main objectives:

  • To reassess former research in a new light
  • To explore the importance of researching invisible and understudied groups for the understanding of ancient societies and their economy
  • To provide useful approaches to be applied on archaeological and historical evidence 

Target group:

Early and late stage PhD

Form:

Lectures and presentations

ECTS:

1 ECTS

Course leaders:

Julia Steding, Guido Furlan and Irene Bavuso

Lecturers:

Julia Steding (j.steding@cas.au.dk)

Irene Bavuso (irene.bavuso@cas.au.dk)

Guido Furlan (g.furlan@cas.au.dk)

Petra Heřmánková (petra.hermankova@cas.au.dk)

James Harland (dharland@uni-bonn.de)

Melania Gigante (melania.gigante@unipd.it)

Date and Time:

4 May 2022 08:30 - 17:00

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University (Campus Moesgaard), building 4230-232

Application:

When you have signed up please submit the following documents by 1st April to Julia Steding: j.steding@cas.au.dk

  •  A case study of 3-4 pages (including bibliography), which deals with the topic of the course. The cases can relate to an own project, previous experience, or a case inspired by academic literature.These will be pre-circulated among the participants of the course by 17th April.
  • A max 2-page CV
  • A max 1-page cover-letter, motivating the reasons for participation
  • Field of research (e.g archaeology or history)

Archaeological and Historical Network Research

Description:

Network research refers to the use of networks data (nodes and links) to visualize and explore historical or archaeological sources, or to represent relational theories about past phenomena. The approach is now firmly established in archaeology and history, with an increasing number of case studies published each year. But dedicated training in this technical specialism is very rare in archaeological and historical postgraduate education.

This PhD course offers an overview of historical and archaeological network research, what makes the approach different, and how to apply it in practice. It combines lectures by practitioners that illustrate the advantages and challenges of the approach in a relatable way, with computational tutorials that develop the technical skills needed to perform network research independently. Students will learn how to prepare their archaeological and historical sources for computational network studies. How do you import, visualize and analyse archaeological and historical networks?

How do you critically interpret the results of these computational analyses? Three software packages will be taught (The Vistorian, Visone and Pajek), allowing students to compare the features present in each.

The course will include lectures by subject specialists, discussion opportunities, and hands-on tutorials. Participants will be supported throughout with computational questions and issues by the lecturers. The PhD students will also actively participate in this research-led course, by developing their own case-study ahead of the course, modifying it and presenting their thoughts about it after having worked with network research for two days.

Aim:

This course aims to offer PhD students:

  • an introduction to network research, and how it has been applied in the Humanities;
  • practical computational training in network research in archaeology and history;
  • a critical perspective of theoretical considerations and challenges in network research;
  • the ability to critically evaluate existing network research, and to independently perform network research in their own studies.

Content:

The use of network research in history and archaeology; the advantages and challenges of the approach; technical computational skills to visualize, explore and analyze networks.

Target group:

PhD students

Language:

English

Form:

The course is offered as a combination of lectures, computational tutorials, and critical discussions. Module 1 provides an introduction to network research, examples, and the basic skills to visualizing and exploring network data. Module 2 will provide more advanced skills in network visualization, exploration and analysis, and a critical discussion of theoretical considerations and challenges. In module 3 the registered participants present their own case studies.

Additional information:

Each participant is required to register via phdcourse.dk and to submit the following documents by August 1st, 2021:

  • A case study of 3-4 pages (including bibliography), which deals with the topic of the course. The cases can relate to a personal research project, previous experience, or a case inspired by academic literature. These will be pre-circulated among the participants of the course by September 17th, 2021. In addition, they will be reviewed by the course organising team and discussed in Module 4.
  • A max 2-page CV;
  • A max 1-page cover letter, motivating the reasons for participation.

Student presentations:

The participants will be required to present their case study in Module 4. The presentation will last approximately 10-15 mins (depending on the number of participants) and will be followed by a 10-15 mins Q&A session in which the students will receive feedback by the lecturers and their peers.

ECTS:

1,5 ECTS

Lecturers:

Associate Professor Tom Brughmans (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Classical Studies, Aarhus University) – t.b@cas.au.dk

Professor MSO Søren Sindbæk (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Archaeology, Aarhus University) – farksms@cas.au.dk

Professor Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Classical Studies, Aarhus University) – rubina.raja@cas.au.dk

Dr Lieve Donnellan (Lecturer in Classical Greek Archaeology, University of Melbourne) – lieve.donnellan@unimelb.edu.au

Dr Fiona Coward (Principal Academic In Archaeological Sciences, Bournemouth University) – fcoward@bournemouth.ac.uk

Dr Anna C. F. Collar (Lecturer in Roman Archaeology, University of Southampton) – A.Collar@soton.ac.uk

Dates and time:

27 - 28 September 2021 at 9 am - 16.30 pm

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet) Aarhus University Moesgård Allé 20, DK-8270 Højbjerg, Denmark

Application deadline:

Please apply via this link https://events.au.dk/archaeologicalandhistoricalnetworkresearche21 no later than 1 August 2021.

Reuse practices in Roman period and Late Antique cities. Current perspectives and new approaches

Description:

The reuse of architecture and sculpture for the construction of new buildings was an integral part of the process of transformation of cities in the Roman world and particularly in late antiquity. Besides being a way of optimising the use of existing resources, a reused architectural or sculptural element could acquire different meanings or functions (for example, aesthetical or ideological) depending on the way in which it was was embedded into a wall. Therefore, the study of reuse practices bears a great potential to answer a varied array of research questions – from the organization of a workforce to how the past was perceived and reinterpreted in Late Antiquity.

This one-day research-led course will provide the participants with an introduction to a diverse range of methodologies and approaches to the study of reuse practices in the Roman world. The course will focus in particular on the reuse of architecture and sculpture, but it will also touch upon the reuse of ceramic material – especially amphorae – to shed light on the evolution of the Roman economy. The course will consist of four keynote lectures that will explore how the topic can be tackled from different perspectives and with different tools. The PhD students will actively contribute to the course by presenting their own research. In so doing, the course aims to provide the participants with a forum to discuss their work with peers and specialists and to receive feedback.

Aim:

The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies, methods and techniques for the study of reuse practices in the Roman world. It will focus on two main objectives:

  • To explore the importance and potential of reuse practices for the study of cities in the ancient world.
  • To explore and discuss traditional and innovative approaches to the study of reuse practices.

 

The aim is to encourage students from archaeology and related disciplines from the humanities to consider and discuss the potential of applying a wide range of approaches to their own research.

Content:

Reuse of architecture and sculpture for the constructions of new buildings; reuse and recycling of ceramic material; reuse of public space.

Target group:

PhD students

Language:

English

Format:

The course will offer four lectures (Module 1) and will be followed by presentations given by the registered participants (Module 2) on their own case studies. The language of the course is English.

Case studies and requirements for admission:

Each participant is required to register via phdcourse.dk and to submit the following documents by April 15th, 2021:

  • A case study of 3-4 pages (including bibliography), which deals with the topic of the course. The cases can relate to an own project, previous experience, or a case inspired by academic literature. These will be precirculated among the participants of the course by May 10th, 2021. In addition, they be reviewed by the course organising team and discussed in Module 2.
  • A max 2-page CV;
  • A max 1-page cover-letter, motivating the reasons for participation.

Student presentations:

The participants will be required to present their case study in Module 2. The presentation will last approximately 10-15 mins (depending on the number of participants) and will be followed by a 10-15 mins Q&A session in which the students will receive feedback by the lecturers and their peers. 

ECTS:

1

Speakers:

Professor Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Classical Studies, Aarhus University) – rubina.raja@cas.au.dk

Assistant Professor Emanuele Intagliata (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University) – e.e.intagliata@cas.au.dk

Associate Professor Tom Brughmans (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Classical Studies, Aarhus University) – t.b@cas.au.dk

Dr Simon Barker (Universität Heidelberg) – simon.barker3@gmail.com

Date and time:

19th May 202 – 9am–16.15pm (virtual)

Application deadline:

Please apply via this link https://events.au.dk/reusepracticesinromanlateantiquecitiesf2021 no later than 4 May 2021.

Networks in Archaeology 2.0

Date: 22-23 May 2019

 

Venue

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet)
Aarhus University, Campus Moesgaard
Moesgård Allé 20, 4230-232
8270 Højbjerg
Denmark

 

Organisers

Professor Rubina Raja and Professor MSO Søren M. Sindbæk

For more information, visit

phdcourses.dk/Course/64993

.

Geoarchaeology Digest, 8-9 May 2018

Venue: UrbNet, Aarhus, Denmark.

 

Organisation and contacts:

Federica Sulas (sulas@cas.au.dk)

Genevieve Holdridge (g.holdridge@geo.au.dk)

 

Download outline and programme

 

REGISTRATION

Registration closed.

Spring School: Urban Religion, Rome, 12-16 Mar 2018

International Spring School in Paris: "The Ancient City", 25 Feb-3 Mar 2018

Kolloquium Phd/Post-Doc der Klassischen Archäologie im Wintersemester 2017/2018, 13-16 December 2017

PhD course, co-organized by Rubina Raja and Søren M. Sindbæk, in Kiel, 13-16 December 2017.

Download programme

Networks in Archaeology, 6-7 December 2017

Graduate School, Arts at Aarhus University: https://phdcourses.dk/Course/58491

Programme

Description:

Network analysis is increasingly explored as a way to trace complex cultural flows and fluctuations in past societies. In the past decade, archaeological studies have shown how important knowledge on networks interactions can be acquired through analysis of quantitative data, or through assessment of qualitative evidence such as the formation or disruption of connectivity. This research-led course explores how to integrate formal network analysis with contextual archaeological and historical approaches in analysing relationships and interaction in the past. It introduces the students ‘hands-on’ to advanced modes of quantitative network analysis through practical workshops. It brings together approaches that point the way as to how contextual interpretations of network data may clarify the structure, dynamics and agency of past connectivity, and reflects on how this may inform an understanding of past practices and interactions.  

Introduction and aims:

The course will offer research-led teaching on the concepts and methods of network analyses in archaeology and will focus on three main objectives:

  • To develop knowledge on network theory and concepts in archaeology. The course will equip students with basic conceptual and analytical tools to assess the nature, significance and application of network analysis in archaeology.  
  • To train students to assess how archaeological and historical questions may be productively framed as network problems, and how network data is identified and processed in archaeology.
  • To develop reflection as to how formal analysis methods, together with qualitative, contextual approaches, may contribute to elucidate and interpret network structure, dynamics and change in the archaeology and history of past societies?

The course aims to encourage students from archaeology, history and related disciplines from the humanities to consider and discuss the potential of network analysis to their research questions by building on the latest analytical advances.

Contents:

The course will offer a set of specifically designed modules to provide conceptual and analytical background to the applications of network analyses to key research topic of contemporary archaeology and related disciplines.

Learning outcomes:

By the end of the course, the participants should be able to:

  • describe key principles of archaeological network data and network analysis methods;
  • consider and assess the application of network analyses in their own work;
  • reflect on, analyse, and critically discuss interpretations of the past based on network analyses.

Format:

The course will offer a mixture of lectures, exercises and workshops where active participation will be expected. The language of the course is English.

Case studies

Each participant is required to submit a case study or abstract of 1-2 pages beforehand, which deals with questions relevant to the course. The cases can relate to an own project, previous experiences, or a case inspired by academic literature. These will be reviewed by the course organising team and discussed during the workshops.

Exercises

XXXX

Workshop

XXXX

ECTS:

ECTS credits and successful completion requirements

The course will count 3 ECTS credits. PhD students are required to submit a case study (1-2 pages) related to one or more of the subthemes addressed by the course, to discuss this at the course, and to engage actively in class discussions and activities. 

Organisation and contacts:

Prof. Rubina Raja (rubina.raja@cas.au.dk)

Prof. Søren Sindbæk (farksms@cas.au.dk)

Lecturers:

TBC

Dates and time:

6 – 7 December 2017,

9:00–17:00

Venue:

UrbNet, AU Campus Moesgård, Moesgård Allé 20, 8270 Højbjerg, building 4230, room 232

Application / registration:

Please apply for a spot via https://auws.au.dk/networksinarchaeologyE2017 no later than 26 November 2017.

This course is part of UrbNet:

UrbNet PhD courses

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet) organises a series of four PhD courses designed to create an environment for discussions about the latest developments within well-known fields of archaeology such as cultural layers, dating methods and typology, as well as exploring new developments in isotope analysis on archaeological material and network theory. Each course stands alone, and can be signed up for individually.

With these courses UrbNet wishes to encourage a wider use and a more in depth understanding of these tools in order to further the process of refining the precision of dates, origin of materials and the interpretation of the archaeological record. They are all indispensable aspects of the “High Definition“ approach that UrbNet aspire to develop further in context. The approach aims to maximize the amount and quality of data extrapolated from even the smallest elements of an archaeological site, which in turn enables new and more precise arguments on big and decisive questions of “when, where and why?”. The courses are:

  • Contextual archaeology as a high definition tool – which aims at dissecting the complexity of contextual archaeology and suggest tools which enable us to make the most out of the stratigraphical records (23rd – 24th November 2016)
     
  • Isotopes in archaeology - aims to introduce the range of applications that isotopes can have in archaeological studies, as well as practical matters. The focus of the course will be the two main research areas: dietary studies and provenance studies (17th – 18th May 2017)
     
  • Constructing high definition chronologies – chronologies in context – an introduction to the newest research and methodology on dating archaeological material (23rd – 24th November 2017)
     
  • Networks in archaeology - The aim of the course is to teach the participants how to analyse networks and integrate theory and methodology in the analyses of networks. The course also aims to enable the student to handle the specific challenges related to network analyses (6th – 7th December 2017)

The courses aim to promote interdisciplinary collaboration, enable archaeologists working with all periods and geographic areas, as well as archaeoscientists and anyone who works with material related to archaeology to speak a common language and communicate in an effective manner. Furthermore we wish to equip researchers with ability to critically evaluate scientific methods and interpretations, as well as encourage archaeoscientists to translate the data in a manner that is meaningful to other disciplines.

The courses are aimed at PhD students from a range of disciplines, such as archaeology, geoscience, history and other related fields.

Each course will run over two consecutive days and primarily take place at UrbNet locations at Campus Moesgård, Aarhus University. The course will consist of lectures by leading researchers, student presentations, exercises, visits to relevant laboratories and workshops where it will be possible to work on issues related to the participants’ own research with input from lecturers and course participants.

High-Definition Chronologies, 23-24 November 2017

Graduate School, Arts at Aarhus University: https://phdcourses.dk/Course/58314

Download programme

Description:

Estimating age is crucial for understanding the past. If we want to ascertain the chronological sequence of events and activities, the flow of objects, the emergence of networks, or the life cycles of settlements, we have to attribute dates to objects and contexts.

Absolute dating methods developed over the last decades are continually being improved are becoming increasingly more refined in their precision and accuracy. The application of these dating methods allows archaeologists and historians to develop precise narratives of the past, as well as to review and re-evaluate chronologies narratives afresh.

More recently, it has become more common to combine different dating methods and information from multiple contexts or objects, to advance increasingly more refined dating sequences and narratives. At the forefront of this has been the adoption of Bayesian statistics, which has proved to be an extremely powerful tool combining archaeological information (i.e. stratigraphic) with calibrated radiocarbon dating. Specifically, it uses archaeological data to improve the probability estimates of carbon-14 dates, creating ‘modelled’ dates with narrower date ranges that can often be a significant improvement on regular ‘calibrated’ dates.

The use of Bayesian methods has emphasised the importance and complementary nature of field archaeology and contextual information, without which such modelling would not be possible. Hence it is mandatory not only to focus on scientific methods as key to high definition chronology, but also to reflect upon and to further improve the accuracy of traditional archaeological dating methods like seriation and relative dating, and in general, the ability to understand archaeological contexts and stratigraphy.

Aim:

The course will offer research-based teaching on the concepts and methods of high definition chronology in archaeology. The aims are:

  • To understand important scientific dating methods. The course will equip students with basic conceptual and analytical tools to assess the nature, significance and application of absolute dating techniques;
  • To understand traditional archaeological dating methods like seriation, sequential ordering of artefacts, and stratigraphy, including the importance of relative dating;
  • To understand and to assess the use of Bayesian statistics in the establishing of high definition chronologies;
  • To identify developments in dating methods, research issues and problems and research questions inherent to the application of the various dating methods, including potential limitations and constraints;
  • To appreciate the interdependency between scientific and traditional archaeological dating methods, emphasising the importance of accurate context recording and sampling (preselection) to construct high definition chronologies.

The course has a focus on key questions of contemporary archaeological, historical, and material science studies: the establishment of precise chronologies.

Content:

Module 1: Absolute methods of dating

The first module will offer an expert introduction and overview on the principles, limitations, challenges and use of absolute dating methods, which will include radiocarbon dating, optical stimulated luminescence, dendrochronology and tephrochronology. How are these methods used to determine the age of contexts and objects? What are their strengths and limitations? Which method(s) are appropriate?

Module 2: Traditional archaeological dating

The second module will cover in detail the complexities of traditional archaeological approaches to establishing chronology. This will include the contextual analysis of finds, such as pottery and coins, and the use of objects in seriation and typological dating. At many sites, it is possible to determine precise chronologies based on the contextual interpretation of finds. We will explore the relations between these issues and the similar problems encountered in relation to the contextual interpretation of objects dated by means of scientific methods. This module will also reflect on the importance of relative dating and how traditional archaeological approaches are entangled with scientific dating methods.

Module 3: Bayesian methods

This module will provide a detailed introduction to the concept of Bayesian methods in archaeological dating. It will focus on the interaction between radiocarbon dating and other sources of dating information, specifically how this can be combined using Bayesian statistics to improve calibrated radiocarbon dates and deliver more precise modelled dates. This module will illustrate the power of Bayesian methods through case-studies where it has been successfully implemented to revitalise and sometimes redefine chronologies.

Module 4: High definition chronologies and history

Using a selection of case-studies, this module will demonstrate how high definition chronologies are constructed and how they are used to further archaeological interpretation and narratives of particular sites and events. It will provide an overview of dating methods in practice, focusing on the importance of creating, using and interpreting chronology.

Target group:

PhD level

Archaeologists, Historians, Geosciences

Language:

English

Form:

The format of the course will be a mixture of lectures, exercises and workshops. Attendees will be expected to participate actively and may be asked to deliver short presentations. Exercises will involve group discussion, Q and A sessions or quizzes, as well as short presentations. Students will be expected to deliver a short 2 page case study (written) prior the course commencing, which will then be presented to the group during the workshop sessions.

ECTS:

3

Lecturers:

Course co-ordinators

Thomas Birch (t.birch@cas.au.dk)

Michael Blömer (michael.bloemer@cas.au.dk)

 

Teaching staff:

Heide Wrobel Nørgaard (AU, farkhw@cas.au.dk)

Mads Bakken Thastrup (MoMu/AU, mads.thastrup@cas.au.dk)

Jan-Pieter Buylaert (AU, janpieter.buylaert@geo.au.dk)

Aoife Daly (Copenhagen, dendro@dendro.dk)

Jesper Olsen (AU, jesper.olsen@phys.au.dk)

ONE OTHER SPEAKER (TO BE CONFIRMED)

Dates and time:

23rd and 24th November 2017

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet)

Aarhus University, School of Culture and Society

Moesgård Allé 20, 4230-232

8270 Højbjerg

Denmark

Application / registration:

Please apply for a spot on the course via https://auws.au.dk/highdefinitionchronologiesE2017 no later than16th November 2017.

Urban Religion, 22 May 2017

Outline

The urban can be seen as the product of specific economic and social developments in the aftermath of the Neolithic revolution, embedded in cultural schemes of interpretation comprising religious ones. For the individual actor, it presents an enormously complex environment of constraints and affordances. Previous sacralisations and contemporary religious practices are part of that, reaching beyond the situation into the transcendental or at least “vertical”, thus implementing far or even “global” horizons into the complexities of the local. Thus, religious actions, communications and identities offer tools to carve out social spaces and to make or at least modify urban space. Neither is religion specifically urban nor the city specifically religious, but historically, in many periods and cultures, the shape and development (including growth as much as decline) of cities – and even more the different urban spaces created by individuals and different social groups within such built environments – and the shape and development of religious practices and ideas have significantly influenced each other.

The role of religion in creating spatial, temporal and social order in cities has been an important topic in research on ceremonial centres and cities of Meso- and South America to Near Eastern and ancient Mediterranean, but also on Chinese, Indian and medieval European cities. A growing number of inhabitants and the increased density of interaction seem to have prompted (and enabled) processes of institutionalisation and the formulation of norms. Referring to non-human agents beyond the human agents in a situation contributed to organising economic exchange and redistribution. Furthermore, it has been functional in defining property rights as well as rights of political participation. Vice versa, citizenship could regulate access to gods; for example, “synagogue” and “ekklesia” refer first of all to voting assemblies. Historical research has reconstructed such functions for many instances and recent sociological research, above all research on migration, has consequently enquired into processes of inclusion and exclusion, tolerance and competition caused or experienced by immigrating minorities proffering different or identical religious identities.

Rarely and never comparatively, however, has the interrelationship of city and religion been investigated with a view to other social differences of gender and age, social position and literacy, rural and trans-regional relationships. How is religion used by different agents to appropriate (and that is to say, also craft) urban space? How does this specific religious agency shape and change urban space over time? And how does the urban context change different or even competing practices of religious communication and the ensuing forms of sacralisation?

These are questions that will be introduced within the framework of a doctoral course intended for students from Archaeology to Religious Studies. The one-day course will be conducted by Rubina Raja (professor of Classical Archaeology and centre leader of UrbNet, Aarhus University) and Jörg Rüpke (professor of comparative history of religion, Max-Weber-Kolleg, Universität Erfurt). The course will take the shape of introductory lectures followed by 20-minute presentations by the participating PhD students, followed by 20 minutes of discussion. Each PhD student will be asked to chair the papers of another student in order to stimulate synergy between the various fields. The course is interdisciplinary and the first of a string of PhD courses on the theme “Urban Religion”.

Organisers

Rubina Raja (Aarhus University) and Jörg Rüpke (Universität Erfurt)

Venue

UrbNet, Aarhus University Campus Moesgaard
Moesgaard Allé 20
8270 Højbjerg

ECTS

1,5 points

Registration

https://auws.au.dk/urbanreligionF2017



Isotopes in archaeology, 17-18 May 2017

Outline

Over the last few decades, isotope analyses have opened new, exciting avenues for understanding the past.  From reconstructing changing climate and people’s diet to tracing trading networks, new dimensions of the past are emerging from archaeological isotope studies. Such an impact is rooted in the wide range of materials storing isotopes and technological advances to extract and measure past records at atomic and molecular scale. Isotopes occur in different ratios and sources but they all provide important records on what people and animals ate in the past, types and conditions of crops, land uses, provenance and processing of materials and resources. From these records, we can infer information on past environmental and climatic conditions, subsistence strategies, cultural practices, and choices. This research-led course will provide an introduction to the applications of isotope analyses in archaeology and a forum to discuss and reflect on how isotope studies are transforming approaches to the past.

Organisers

Federica Sulas and Rubina Raja (Aarhus University)

Venue

UrbNet, Aarhus University Campus Moesgaard
Moesgaard Allé 20
8270 Højbjerg

ECTS

3 points

Registration

https://phdcourses.dk/Course/55349 

Contextual archaeology as a high-definition tool, 23-24 November 2016

Course 1: Contextual archaeology as a high definition tool (23rd and 24th November 2016) 3 ECTS

Introduction and aim

Cultural layers, their depositional process and stratigraphy is one of the oldest interpretative tools in archaeology and part of the firm empirical basis on which theories and further research is based – also within other fields of research, such as history and anthropology. Understanding archaeology through a contextual approach to cultural layers has two main purposes:

  • To understand cultural layers as much more than a container for finds and stratigraphy as more than a tool for relative dating or as a background within which the more important data are set. In the course we seek to demonstrate that cultural layers are a vast archive of knowledge of past events that has to be scrutinized on its own merit in order to truly unlock the potential that it holds.
  • To understand the cultural and geological processes that result in the creation of the archaeological record. This is crucial to everyone that works with archeological source material or results produced by others working with archaeological source material. This course aims to encourage doctoral students in archaeology and related subjects like history or archaeoscience, to reflect on the implications that a complex stratigraphy has and discuss the potential of implementing contextual and stratigraphical considerations in their own work, equipped with knowledge about the latest progress in the different fields of use.

 

Contents

Module 1: Contextual archaeology in theory

The first module will focus on the theory and ideas behind the way we view stratigraphy of cultural layers: seen as the biography of the site, as remains of actions, as an archive of knowledge of the past -much more than containers for finds and dating tools. Terms and theoretical tools related to stratigraphy, typical problems related to stratigraphy such as representability, re-deposition etc. will be discussed. Lecturer: Stefan Larsson (Arkeologerna, Statens Historiska Museum) and Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions and Classical Art and Archaeology, Aarhus University).


Module 2: Practical applications to contextual archaeology

This module will deal with practical methods and central issues when managing complex stratigraphy in different contexts. To be discussed are questions related to single context and profile documentation (three dimensions vs. two dimensions) – what questions can be asked when different methods are used? How does the documentation method influence the questions that the material can be used to answer? Focus will also be put on methods used in organizing/documenting/visualizing stratigraphy (matrix, single context documentation, land use diagrams, sections, horizontal stratigraphy etc.) Lastly, but not least, the module will present tools and cases showing how stratigraphy can be used in connection with scientific sampling, i.e. how to relate stratigraphical information to typological and scientific dating information.

Since the conditions generally are very different in a northern European context vs. the Mediterranean, and in rescue excavations vs. research excavations, there will be two lectures on this theme, covering the whole range of challenges deriving from different conditions of work. This will give great potential in discussing the central elements and strategies related to contextual archaeology. Lecturers: Heike Møller (School for Culture and Society/Centre for Urban Networks Evolutions, Aarhus University), Georg Kalaitzoglou (Institut für Archäologische Wissenschaften, Ruhr-Universität Bochum), Christina Rosén (Arkeologerna, Statens Historiska Museum) and Stefan Larsson (Arkeologerna, Statens Historiska Museum).


Module 3: Scientific relations to contextual archaeology

The module takes hold of the geological use of the term stratigraphy, and will introduce soil formation processes of interest for archaeology, and give insight in how to interpret different scenarios with geological knowledge. Lecturers: Søren Munch Kristiansen (Institute for Geoscience/Centre for Urban Networks Evolutions, Aarhus University) and Mads Kähler Holst (School for Culture and Society, Prehistoric Archaeology, Aarhus University).

Another focus will be on depositional processes/tafonomy, and how to recognize primary, secondary and redeposited material from a geological point of view. This aims to lead to an insight into what has an impact on stratigraphy – both in the past and in the present. Lecturer: Barbora Wouters (School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen).


Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, the participants should be able to:

-describe key principles and concepts regarding the contextual approach and stratigraphy as a concept

-implement stratigraphical observations in their own work, with emphasis in using stratigraphy as a high definition tool together with different types of scientific sampling.

-reflect on, analyze, and critically discuss interpretations based on stratigraphical observations

 

Format

The course will be conducted with a mixture of lectures, student presentations, exercises and a workshop where active participation will be expected. Each of the five sub themes will start with a lecture and be followed by student presentations related to the sub theme and by group exercises related to the lecture and presentations. The language of the course is English.


Case studies and student presentations

Each participant is required to submit a case study or abstract of 1-2 pages forehand, which deals with one or more of the five subthemes of the course, and to give a 15-20 minutes presentation of the case either on the first or the second day. The cases can relate to an own project, previous experiences, or a fictional case produced by the participant.


Exercises

The exercises will consist of group discussions related to the lecture and the student presentations.


Workshop

On the second day there will be a workshop where we go back to the cases from the five sub themes. Five different cases will be discussed in groups of four. Each group will choose a case that will be passed on to the next group. This group will then present a solution or debate the case/problem in plenum, based on what was learned from the lectures.  


Preliminary programme (23rd and 24th November)

Day 1:

Introduction

10.00 Welcome and coffee

10.15-11.00 Lecture (Rubina Raja, School for Culture and Society/ Centre for Urban Networks Evolutions, Aarhus University) - Introductory lecture addressing the complexity and potential of contextual archaeology

Contextual archaeology in theory

11.00-11.45 Lecture (Stefan Larsson) – Theoretical approaches to the concept of stratigraphy within archaeology

11.45-12.30 Student presentations

12.30-13.00 Lunch

13.00-13.45 Group exercises and in plenum discussions

Practical applications to contextual archaeology

13.45-14.30 Lecture (Christina Rosén and Stefan Larsson) – Managing complex stratigraphy in Scandinavian urban contexts

14.30-14.45 Coffee/Tea break

14.45-15.30 Lecture (Heike Møller and Georg Kalaitzoglou) – Managing complex stratigraphy in Mediterranean/Near Eastern contexts

15.30-16.45 Student presentations

16.45-17.00 break

17.00-18.15 Group exercises and in plenum discussions


Day 2:

Scientific relation to contextual archaeology

9.00-9.45 Lecture (Søren Munch Kristiansen and Mads Holst) – Geology and soil formation processes

9.45-10.30 Lecture (Barbora Wouters) – Micromorphology and tafonomy

10.30-10.45 Coffee/Tea break

10.45-12.00 Student presentations

12.00-12.30 Lunch

12.30-13.45 Group exercises and in plenum discussions

13.45-15.00 Workshop

15.00-15.15 Final discussion – sum up.


ECTS credits and successful completion requirements

3 ECTS credits

PhD students are required to submit a case study (1-2 pages) stating a case that exemplifies challenges related to stratigraphy, to make a presentation of the case study at the course and participate actively in class discussions and activities.


Venue

The course will be held at:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions

Campus Moesgård

Aarhus University


Course organiser:

Rubina Raja, rubina.raja@cas.au.dk


Application / registration:

Please apply via https://auws.au.dk/contextualarchaeologyE2016 no later than 23 October 2016.

For questions on the application procedure, please contact Marianne Hoffmeister, mho@au.dk

Houses in an Urban Context – High Definition Approaches, 1-2 November 2018

PhD Course, Graduate School, Arts at Aarhus University

Date: Thursday 1st – Friday 2nd November 2018

 

Description:

For a long time urban archaeology was primarily concerned with monumental architecture, public buildings, and single finds of high artistic value. On a broader level, the reconstruction of the political and cultural development of civic life was the main concern of both archaeological and historical research of past cities. Recently however, the everyday practice of living in cities has begun to arrest attention. There is a growing interest in the reconstruction of every day social practice and the understanding of the interaction between families and individuals in an urban environment. At the heart of such advances is research into households and domestic spaces, which form the smallest units of the cityscape, both architecturally and socially. Domestic archaeology offers a unique opportunity to investigate how religion, gender, ethnicity, and identity shaped the life of the individual in the past.

Most promising are holistic approaches to the study of domestic space, which pay attention to social, behavioural and material aspects of houses and their inhabitants. To further our understanding of these complex processes and to get a truly high-resolution image of the complex use of domestic spaces, archaeological sciences have developed news tools that help to develop more precise narratives of the uses of domestic space, as well as to review and re-evaluate existing narratives. They are reshaping our understanding of, and approaches to, domestic archaeology. New conceptual frameworks and technological advances have pushed back the frontiers of archaeology, allowing us to interrogate and interpret domestic spaces by revising old narratives and developing new questions.

The course will introduce key current themes and methods of domestic archaeology. The focus will be on both conceptual and hands-on archaeological approaches to investigate houses in past cities, in cultures ranging from Classical Antiquity to the late Medieval period

 

Introduction and aims:

The course will offer research-based teaching on the concepts and methods of household archaeology and innovative ways to examine domestic spaces in urban contexts. The aims are:

·         To understand the scope, the objective and the methods of domestic archaeology. The course will equip students with basic conceptual and analytical tools to analyse domestic spaces in an urban context;

·         To understand the entanglement of domestic space, material culture, and identity;

·         To understand and to assess the potential of scientific methods and high definition archaeology for research on houses and households;

·         To identify research issues, problems, and research questions inherent to domestic archaeology, including potential limitations and constraints;

·         To appreciate the interdependency between scientific and traditional archaeological dating methods, emphasising the importance of accurate context recording and sampling (preselection) to construct high definition chronologies.

·         To consider the value of cross-cultural comparison of the use of domestic space in different past cultures

The course has a focus on key questions of contemporary archaeological, historical, and material science studies.

 

Learning outcomes:

The PhD modular course will enable participants to:

·         describe important methods and tools of domestic archaeology;

·         discover about how people interact with the houses in which they live;

·         compare the approaches and methods of domestic archaeology in different archaeological disciplines;

·         reflect on the relationship between humans and things in a domestic context and the interplay between houses and the city;

·         theorise about the potential of high definition methods for domestic archaeology;

·         consider and assess the application of various methods in their own work.

Format:

The course will consist of a mixture of lectures, group work, and discussions in which the participants will be expected to actively engage. The lectures will be provided by experts working on domestic archaeology in an urban context from a variety of different approaches. Students will also be required to present case-studies from their own work, to take part in in group exercises and Q&A sessions related to the lectures. In addition, two themed workshops will be held on the last day of the course. The language of the course is English.

 

Preliminary Programme of Lectures (with potential speakers in brackets and an overview of the scope each lecture)

1.      Introduction (TBA)

·         Why is domestic archaeology important?

·         Thinking about houses in an important setting

·         Using the excavations of the houses of the NW quarter in Jerash as a case-study

 

2.      Approaching the houses of past societies through archaeology (Stephanie Wynne-Jones)

·         Examining changing approaches to houses in archaeology of different regions and time over the last decade or so

·         Drawing approaches from antrhopology and cross cultural comparison

·         Changing theoretical approaches and methods

 

3.      How to excavate a house (Søren Sindbaek)

·         Ribe as case study. Thinking about the challenges that houses present to the field archaeologist

·         What kinds of questions can we hope to answer by excavating houses

·         How do you develop a strategy for excavating and documenting house sites

 

4.      Houses and neighbourhoods in the Roman World (Hanna Stöger)

·         Thinking about the relationship of houses to one another and in the larger context of urban settlements

·         How can we reconstruct neighbourhoods in ancient cities? How might the concept of ‘the neighbourhood’ have been different in past cultures from our own?

·         How can we use GIS tools like Space Syntax to analyse the relationship of houses to their urban setting?

 

5.      The spatial analysis of house layouts and associated finds for the Middle Ages (Speaker TBC)

·         Turning our attention inward to the subject of the individual house

·         Looking at architectural appearance, room layout and presence of finds as useful evidence for use of space

·         Tools of spatial analysis to explore how house spaces were used to structure familial and social relationships

·         A focus on the Medieval period and for the advantages and disadvantages of the evidence from this period

 

6.      Drawing new information from old records – Dura Europas as case study (Jennifer Baird)

·         Exploring the potential to apply new approaches and ask new questions of data from old excavations

·         Considering the evaluation of old excavation publications

·         Drawing information from archival records

·         Focussing on the city of Dura Europas a case study

 

7.      Reading the use of space in soil (Søren Munch Kristiansen)

·         Typically in situ preservation of finds within houses is very poor so how can geosciences allow us to investigate the use of space through soil analysis?

·         The potential of using these techniques to investigate the surroundings of houses in cases where permanent house-floors make their application inside impossible.

·         In what conditions can these techniques be applied? What potential might they have for application to sites/periods where they have not yet been much used?

 

Case studies

Each participant is required to submit a case study or abstract of 1-2 pages beforehand, which deals with one or more of the subthemes of the course:  

 

Exercises

The exercises will consist of discussions and group work related to the lectures and the student case studies.

 

Group work

On the second day, there will be group work based on the case studies submitted by the participants and the cases illustrated by the lectures.

 

ECTS credits and successful completion requirements

The course will count for 3 ECTS credits. PhD students are required to submit a case study (1-2 pages) related to one or more of the subthemes addressed by the course, to discuss this at the course, and to engage actively in class discussions and group work.

 

Time and venue

1st-2nd November 2018

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet)

Aarhus University, School of Culture and Society

Moesgård Allé 20

8270 Højbjerg

Denmark

 

Organisation and contacts:

Dr. Michael Blömer (michael.bloemer@cas.au.dk) and Dr. Chris Dickenson (christopher.dickenson@cas.au.dk

 

Application deadline

14 October

https://phdcourses.dk/Course/62743

Approaching pottery studies: Current perspectives and future directions

Date: 29-30 April 2020

Description:

A prime source of information for archaeologists, pottery has been studied for centuries across a wide range of cultures and periods. From a long-held focus on types and styles, ceramic study is today amongst the most dynamic and diversifying branches within archaeology, where innovative conceptual approaches and methodologies are opening new, exciting avenues into the study of the past. If defining typologies and chronologies remains the priority of any researcher dealing with this type of material, analytical approaches have considerably expanded the number of questions that archaeologists can answer. These include, for example, reconstructing the biography of pots through the profiling of food residues and use wear, mapping the provenance and processing of clay and temper, charting the use, recycling and trade, to mention but a few topics. Further important developments concern the study of people-pot interactions and the ways in which ceramic shapes and decoration evolved as a result of changing social, cultural, and economic relations. The study of the humble pot, thus, is offering new ways in which archaeologists can study societal development, culture transformation, socio-ecological changes and resilience in high-definition. This research led-course will provide the participants with an introduction to a diverse range of methodologies for ceramic studies, from traditional, typologically-driven approaches to state-of-the-art laboratory analyses. In so doing, the course will provide a forum to discuss and reflect on how new research approaches are gradually transforming archaeology.

Aim:

The course will offer research-led teaching on methods and techniques for the study of pottery and will focus on two main objectives:

  • To explore the importance of pottery study for archaeological research
  • To explore and discuss traditional and innovative approaches to ceramic analysis

The course structure consists of three modules, as detailed below. Having introduced the basics of pottery studies in module 1, the following two modules will focus on two themes that are at the forefront of current archaeological debates: Pottery and the human landscape and Urban contexts and ceramics. The aim is to encourage students from archaeology and related disciplines from the humanities to consider and discuss the potential of applying innovative approaches to their own research.

Contents

Module 1: Studying pottery – the basics

The first module will offer an introduction to pottery studies. What is a potsherd? How do we study it? What types of information can we gain from it? By focusing specifically on traditional methods of recording and studying potsherds, Module 1 will address these questions and set the background for Modules 2 and 3.

Module 2: Pottery and the human landscape

The second module will explore how the study of pottery can contribute to our understanding of the evolution of the human landscape. What can pottery tell us about changes in settlement patterns? How much can we rely on material collected from surveys? Lectures will be focusing on these questions, drawing some answers from selected case studies.

Module 3: Urban contexts and ceramics

The third module will explore how to approach the study of pottery collected in ancient urban environments. The aim is to discuss what types of data archaeologists can gather from pottery retrieved in sealed urban contexts, and the traditional and innovative methods used to study them.

Literature:

To be announced - please check: urbnet.au.dk/news/phd-courses/

Target group:

PhD students from archaeology and related disciplines with little background knowledge on ceramics

Language:

English

Form:

The course will offer lectures, exercises and a workshop where active participation will be expected. Each module consists of an overview on the main topic, followed by lectures discussing specific themes and applications, group exercises and Q&A  sessions.

Group exercises and workshop

These will consist of group discussions related to the lectures, reading material supplied and the case studies prepared by the participants. Active participation and critical engagements are expected during group activities. On Day 2, we will host a workshop to discuss case studies prepared by the participants and visit resources and laboratories facilities at Moesgaard Campus. The latter will include a short introduction and visit to relevant ceramic collections at Moesgaard Museum.

ECTS:

3

Lecturers:

Proposed keynote speakers and lecturers:

Professor Rubina Raja, CAS and UrbNet, Aarhus University

Topic: urban dynamics and networks in a million sherds – Jerash

Professor Anders Lindahl, Department of Geology, Lund University (to be confirmed)

Topic: ethnoarchaeological study of pottery production in Iron Age southern Africa and Sweden

Dr Marc Vander Linden, Department of Archaeology, Cambridge University

Topic: From production to migration

Dr Emanuele Intagliata, UrbNet, Aarhus University

Topic: Introduction and history of research

Alex Peterson,  UrbNet, Aarhus University

Topic: Ceramics, the basics

Dr Gry Barfod, UrbNet and Institute for Geoscience, Aarhus University

Topic: Profiling pottery

Dr Carmen Ting, Cyprus University - to be confirmed

Topic: Petrography

Dr Bente Phillipsen, UrbNet and Department of Physics, Aarhus University

Topic: Residue analysis

Dates and time:

29 & 30 April:

29 April: 09:00-17:00 - dinner in the evening

30 April: 08:30-13:00

Venue:

Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet) Aarhus University Moesgård Allé 20, DK-8270 Højbjerg Denmark, Building 4230, 2nd floor. (http://urbnet.au.dk)

Application deadline:

Please apply for a seat via https://events.au.dk/approachingpotterystudiesF2020 no later than 1 March 2020.

When signing up in the application facility, you are kindly requested to upload the following documents as PDF files:

  1. A case study of 1-2 pages, which deals with one or more of the subthemes of the course: Human landscapes and/or Urban Contexts. The cases can relate to an own project, previous experience, or a case inspired by academic literature. These will be reviewed by the course organising team and discussed during the workshop;
  2. A max 2-page CV;
  3. A max 1-page cover-letter, motivating the reasons for  participation

Organisers

Assistant Professors Federica Sulas and Emanuele Intagliata.

For more information, visit https://phdcourses.dk/Course/65813.

Archaeocartography: The Challenges and Possibilities of Archaeological Distribution Mapping

Date: 6-7 May 2020

Venue: Centre for Urban Network Evolutions (UrbNet)

Aarhus University, Campus Moesgaard
Moesgård Allé 20, 4230-232
8270 Højbjerg
Denmark  

Organisers: Professor Søren Sindbæk and Postdoc Pieterjan Deckers.

Short description:

Distribution maps have been part of the archaeological toolbox since the dawn of the discipline. They serve as heuristic and analytical tools in research and as a visual form of data presentation in publication, shedding light on settlement structures, cultural territories and patterns of economic exchange and social interaction in the past. Today, mapping has become easier than ever, thanks to accessible GIS applications, widely available digitized spatial data, and decreasing technical limitations for publication. However, while there is ample scholarly attention for more sophisticated techniques of spatial analysis, there is surprisingly little recent debate about the creation, use and reception of the most common form of archaeological distribution maps - a relatively simple map representation of structured, spatial data concerning a limited set of archaeological phenomena. 

This PhD course is organized around three basic but underexplored challenges in the creation of such humble, but ubiquitous distribution maps: classification, normalisation and visualisation. 

Further information and registration

The registration deadline is Monday 6 April 2020. For information and registration, please see https://phdcourses.dk/Course/72669

For additional information and programme, download pdf.

New perspectives on Archive Archaeology

Description:

Archives are an indispensable tool for deciphering the past. What composes an archive is variable almost anything can become part of an archive but no matter what type of documentation, such materials tell the stories. Archives can document objects at specific points in the afterlives, or develop historiography by providing indirect evidence of the people who collected, created, and compiled the archive. In sum, archival materials have the potential to be more than dry and “objective” documents. Archives bring past stories to life.

This course considers archival material as crucial historical data. It focuses on the archive’s value in the several different humanities fields by presenting case studies from a variety of scholarly perspectives, thus shedding light on the manifold potentials of archives.

To develop an array of research avenues for example, creating open data resources, identifying and repatriating looted antiquities, reconstructing archaeological monuments and sites in virtual reality, uncovering object provenances the course asks such questions as: How do we study archives? How can we utilize archival material? How do we critically appraise the material? What ethics should guide the use of archives?

The course will engage with different types of archival material to treat topics such as archival material as an object of study, history of collections, forensic archaeology, open data resources, and cultural heritage preservation and documentation.

This one-day, research-led course will provide the participants with an introduction to a diverse range of methodologies and approaches in the study of archives. The course will consist of five keynote lectures that will explore different perspectives, uses, and peculiarities and difficulties of working with archival material. The PhD students will actively contribute to the course by presenting their own research. In so doing, the course aims to provide the participants with a forum to discuss their work with peers and specialists and to receive feedback.

Aim:

The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies, methods and techniques for the study of archives in archaeological practice. It will focus on two main objectives:

  • To explore the importance and potential of archives for the study of ancient cultures.
  • To explore and discuss traditional and innovative approaches to the study of archive practices.

The aim is to encourage students from archaeology and related disciplines from the humanities to consider and discuss the potential of applying a wide range of approaches to their own research.

Content:

The use of archives in history and archaeology; the creation and use of archives; innovative approaches to archival material.

Target group:

PhD students

Language:

English

Form:

The course will offer six lectures (Module 1) and will be followed by presentations given by the registered participants (Module 2) on their own case studies.

ECTS:

1

Lecturers:

Professor Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Classical Studies, Aarhus University) – rubina.raja@cas.au.dk

Assistant Professor Olympia Bobou (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University) – olympia.bobou@cas.au.dk

Dr. Amy Miranda (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University) – amy.miranda@cas.au.dk

Dr. David Saunders (J. Paul Getty Museum) – DSaunders@getty.edu

Dr. Christos Tsirogianis (Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University) – ct@cas.au.dk

Associate Professor Nina Kofoed (Department of History and Classical Studies, Aarhus University) - hisnk@cas.au.dk

Dr. Nicole Budrovich (Getty Museum)

 

Dr. Judith Barr (Getty Museum)

Dates and time:

14th April 2021, 8 am – 16.15 pm (virtual)

Application deadline:

Please apply via this link https://events.au.dk/newperspectivesonarchivearchaeologyf21 no later than 1 April 2021.


Programme

Module 1. Lectures

8.00-8.20: Introduction by Assistant Professor Olympia Bobou, Dr. Amy Miranda, and Professor Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University)

8.20-8.40 (23.20 PST): Lecture by Dr. Judith Barr, Dr. Nicole Budrovich, and Dr. David Saunders (J. Paul Getty Museum): ‘The Antiquities Provenance Research Project at the Getty: Structure and Strategies’

8.40-8.50: Q and A and discussion moderated by Dr. Amy Miranda (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University)

8.50-9.10: Lecture by Associate Professor Nina Kofoed (Department of History and Classical Studies, Aarhus University): ‘Making the 18th century accessible – a digitalization and research infrastructure project’

9.10-9.20: Q and A and discussion moderated by Assistant Professor Olympia Bobou (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University)

9.20-9.30: Break

9.30-9.50: Lecture by Assistant Professor Olympia Bobou (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University): ‘The tomb of Ḥairan: from excavation to reconstruction’

9.50-10.00: Q and A and discussion moderated by Associate Professor Vinnie Nørskov (Classical Studies, and Director, Museum of Ancient Art, Aarhus University)

10.00-10.20: Lecture by Dr. Amy Miranda (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University): ‘Archive, Archaeology, Assemblage: Some Potentials of the Ingholt Archive’

10.20-10.30: Q and A and discussion moderated by Associate Professor Vinnie Nørskov (Classical Studies, and Director, Museum of Ancient Art, Aarhus University)

10.30-10.50: Lecture by Dr. Christos Tsirogianis (Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University): ‘Forensic Archaeological Research on Legally Restricted Archives’

10.50-11.00: Q and A and discussion moderated by Associate Professor Vinnie Nørskov (Classical Studies, and Director, Museum of Ancient Art, Aarhus University)

11.00-11.15: General discussion

11.15-12.15: Lunch break

Module 2. Presentations by PhD students and discussions of presubmitted papers

12.15-12.35: Rhiannon Garth Jones (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University): ‘3D digital simulation of the Sāmarrā’ archive in the Museum für Islamische Kunst, Berlin’

12.35-12.45: Q and A and discussion moderated by Jeppe Høffner

12.45-13.05: Marie Hélène van De Ven (Department of History and Classical Studies, Aarhus University): ‘Ruvo di Puglia – Tombs reconstructed in archives’

13.05-13.15: Q and A and discussion moderated by Christie Pavey

13.15-13.25: Break

13.25-13.45: Jeppe Høffner (Department of English, Aarhus University): ‘The British Empire, Ancient Rome and the Irish press, 1815-1902’

13.45-13.55: Q and A and discussion moderated by Rhiannon Garth Jones

13.55-14.15: Christie Pavey (Royal Holloway, University of London): ‘Using Archives to Connect the Church and Government in Late Antique Cyrenaica’

14.15-14.25: Q and A and discussion moderated by Marie Hélène van De Ven

14.25-14.45: End discussion

Urban resilience in the ancient world: methodological approaches and reconsiderations. Cases from the Late Antique and early Islamic Near East

Description:

While resilience has been a hotly debated theme in archaeology, it has also become clear that archaeological evidence, due to its “momentary” or “mixed” nature often only offers a glimpse into long-term complex processes. It is seldom possible to disentangle long-term processes from one archaeological context. Such disentangling requires a multifaceted approach where evidence from different contexts are pulled together and evaluated both on their own terms but also in relation to each other. This PhD course therefore aims at addressing long-term resilience issues as reflected in on the one hand short-term responses as seen through for example the tackling of post-catastrophic events in urban contexts and on the other hand in long-term developmental processes as observed in the endurance of urban patterns. 

The lectures given at the course will focus on methodological approaches and problems when discussing resilience and the evidence connected to it in the archaeological record.

Four keynote lectures together with presentations by the phd students constitute the core of the course and will give participants the possibility of discussing methodological approaches both relating to their own research but also to broader theoretical and empirical discussions of resilience and archaeological research and evidence.

Aim:

The course will offer research-led teaching on case studies. It will focus on two main objectives:

  • To explore the extent of resilience of cities in the ancient world, with specific focus on the Late Antique and early Islamic Near East
  • To explore and discuss traditional and innovative approaches to the study of urban resilience.

The aim is to encourage students from archaeology and related disciplines from the humanities to consider and discuss the potential of applying a wide range of approaches to their own research

Content:

Urban/hinterland dependencies, catastrophic events (i.e. earthquakes, diseases and wars), land management, alternative economies, resource optimization (recycling and reuse), population modeling.

Target group:

PhD students.

Language:

English

Form:

The course will offer four lectures (Module 1) and will be followed by presentations given by the registered participants (Module 2) on their own case studies.

ECTS:

1

Lecturers:

Professor Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions/Classical Studies, Aarhus University) – rubina.raja@cas.au.dk

Assistant Professor Emanuele Intagliata (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University) – e.e.intagliata@cas.au.dk

Associate Professor Søren Munch Kristiansen (GeoScience/Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University) – smk@geo.au.dk

Professor Eivind Seland (University of Bergen, Norway) – Eivind.Seland@uib.no

Case studies and requirements for admission

Each participant is required to register via phdcourse.dk and to submit the following documents by March 15th, 2021:

  • A case study of 3-4 pages (including bibliography), which deals with the topic of the course. The cases can relate to an own project, previous experience, or a case inspired by academic literature. These will be precirculated among the participants of the course by April 9th, 2021. In addition, they be reviewed by the course organising team and discussed in Module 2.
  • A max 2-page CV;
  • A max 1-page cover-letter, motivating the reasons for participation. 

Student presentations:

The participants will be required to present their case study in Module 2. The presentation will last approximately 10-15 mins (depending on the number of participants) and will be followed by a 10-15 mins Q&A session in which the students will receive feedback by the lecturers and their peers. 

Date and time:

15th April 2021, 9am – 16.15pm (virtual)

Application deadline:

Please apply via this link https://events.au.dk/urbanresilenceintheancientworldf2021  not later than 1 April 2021.

Programme

Module 1. Lectures

9.00-9.20: Introduction by Dr Emanuele Intagliata and Prof. Rubina Raja (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University): ‘Resilience and the archaeological record’

9.20-9.30: Q&A and discussion moderated by Dr Emanuele E. Intagliata and Prof. Rubina Raja

9.30-10.00: Lecture by Prof. Eivind Heldaas Seland (University of Bergen): ‘Resilience, urban sites and the global perspective’

10.00-10.15: Q&A and discussion moderated by Dr Emanuele E. Intagliata

10.15-10.30: Break

10.30-11.00: Lecture by Dr Emanuele Intagliata (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University): ‘Resilience of what? Late antique Palmyra as a case study to shed light on urban resilience’

11.00-11.15: Q&A and discussion moderated by Prof. Eivind Heldaas Seland

11.15-11.45: Associate Prof. Søren Munch Kristiansen (Aarhus University): ‘Polycultures and production gardens – did with-in city food production make Late Antique Near East cities more resilient?’

11.45-12.00: Q&A and discussion moderated by Prof. Rubina Raja

12.00-13.00: Lunch Break

Module 2. Presentations by PhD students and discussions of presubmitted papers

13.00-13.15: Rhiannon Garth Jones (Centre for Urban Network Evolutions, Aarhus University): ‘Nabataean water management at Petra, an example of urban resilience’

13.15-13.25: Q&A and discussion moderated by Maria G. Xantou

13.25-13.40: Pu Hongxia (University of Copenhagen): ‘Vernacular landscape system and water resilience in Yangtze River Delta’

13.40-13.50: Q&A and discussion moderated by Christie Pavey

13.50-14.05: Maria G. Xantou (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki): ‘Resilient Thessalonica: the diachronic transformation of a Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman, and Greek city (315AD–1912)’

14.05-14.15: Q&A and discussion moderated by Rhiannon Garth Jones

14.15-14.30: Christie Pavey (Royal Holloway, University of London): ‘A seismic event and the resilience of late antique, urban Cyrenaica’

14.30-14.40: Q&A and discussion moderated by Pu Hongxia

14.40-15.00: End discussion