PAPVA_42 Neolithic Pottery of the Near East

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2016
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
prof. Olivier Nieuwenhuyse (lecturer), Mgr. Inna Mateiciucová, Ph.D. (deputy)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Zdeněk Měřínský, CSc.
Department of Archaeology and Museology – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Mgr. Lucia Miškolciová
Supplier department: Department of Archaeology and Museology – Faculty of Arts
Prerequisites (in Czech)
PAPVA_02 Palaeolithic && PAPVA_03 Neolithic
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 15 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/15, only registered: 0/15, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/15
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course is designed for BA level students with little background knowledge of ceramics, ceramic studies, or Near Eastern archaeology. In the meetings we look at the role of ceramics in prehistoric societies of the ancient Near East. Using our imaginary time machine we travel through the early history of pottery, from the first introduction of pottery around 7000 cal. BC until the development of mass-produced assemblages in the later fourth millennium BC. From a methodological and theoretical perspective, we also look at what archaeologists actually do with pottery, and how they use ceramics to reconstruct ancient societies. Recent archaeological work in the Near East yields exciting new insights in the role of ceramics in prehistoric societies; current interpretations are discussed and summarized to provide students an understanding of the cultural context. Students become acquainted with prehistoric ceramics from the region, and they learn for themselves how to identify successive cultural stages on the basis of ceramics. The course stimulates them to adopt a critical approach to the archaeological literature, and to develop their own perspective. The course provides a firm basis for further study. The course starts with a review of pottery studies in general: the history of ceramic analysis, key concepts and models, and with a review of the application of pottery studies to, specifically, the archaeology of the ancient Near East. We continue with perhaps one of the most challenging issues in prehistoric archaeology: when, where and why did prehistoric communities in the Near East start making pottery, and what did the earliest pottery look like? Then we explore the later stages of the Pottery Neolithic, characterized by an array of attractively-decorated pottery styles, known as the Hassuna, Samarra and Halaf cultures. We go on with the final echoes of the painted pottery, during the Early Chalcolithic ‘Ubaid culture. We conclude with the rise of mass-produced, industrially-made ceramics during the Uruk period.
Syllabus
  • 1. What is pottery? Pottery studies in the ancient Near East. 2. First Pot: the introduction of pottery in the ancient Near East (7000-6700 cal. BC). 3. Painted Pots: Later Neolithic pottery in Upper Mesopotamia (6700-5300 cal. BC). 4. ‘Ubaid and beyond: Early Chalcolithic pottery in the Near East (5300-3500 cal. BC). 5. Towards modenity: pottery of the Uruk culture (3200-3000 cal. BC).
Literature
  • • Rice P.M., 1987, Pottery Analysis: A Sourcebook, Chicago
  • • Akkermans, P.M.M.G. and Schwartz, G.M. 2003: The Archaeology of Syria. From Complex Hunter-Gatherers to Early Urban Societies (ca. 16 000-300 BC). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • • Matthews, R. 2000: The early prehistory of Mesopotamia 500,000 to 4,500 bc. Subartu V, Turnhout: Brepols Publishers.
Teaching methods
Interactive lecture, discussions.
Assessment methods
essay
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
The course is taught once in two years.
The course is taught: in blocks.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2011, Spring 2013, Autumn 2016.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2016, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/spring2016/PAPVA_42