PREHISTORY OF THE MEDITERRANEAN UP TO THE II MILLENNIUM
Academic Year 2023/2024 - Teacher:
SIMONA VENERA TODARO
Expected Learning Outcomes
The course aims to provide the
students with the methodological and theoretical tools necessary for achieving
an interpretation of archaeological data through a multidisciplinary approach,
using the Mediterranean as a case study. Particular attention will be paid to three
major islands of the Mediterranean (Sicily, Malta, Crete) from the first appearance
of mankind to the development of first urban centres.
75% of classes will be taught
in English
Based on the Dublin descriptors the objectives of the course
are:
1) Knowledge and understanding. Provide students with
knowledge of the cultural development of the Mediterranean from its origins to
the beginning of the 2nd century BC, through the choice of significant case
studies for the different periods.
2) Ability to apply knowledge and understanding. make
the student able to consciously tackle a research in the field of Aegean
prehistory, through the acquisition of adequate tools and methodologies, both
in the archaeological, epigraphic and bibliographic fields. This purpose will
be achieved through an in-depth examination of some specific aspects with
seminar-type methodologies.
3) Autonomy of judgment. Develop in students a
critical approach to texts with systematic comparisons between the description
of monuments and their in situ analysis.
4) Communication skills. Provide students with
specialized vocabulary to enable them to communicate adequately to the
scientific community.
5) Learning skills. Develop autonomy in the ability to
identify the most representative scientific texts and understand them
adequately.
Course Structure
The course uses lectures in the classroom, archaeological sites and
museums for an adequate deepening of knowledge on prehistory; and seminar
activities with individual and / or group presentations for the acquisition of
the ability to carry out independent research.
Required Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of the prehistory of the Mediterranean.
Attendance of Lessons
Attendance is not compulsory.
Detailed Course Content
The course is
organised in three sections, introduced by a general framework on the origin of
complex society.
A: Prehistory
of Sicily from upper paleolithic to the beginning of the II millennium B.C., with
a particular attention to climatic changes occurred during the late Holocene (3
CFU)
B: Prehistory
of Crete from the end of the 8th millennium BC to the beginning of the II
millennium BC with a particular attention to the palatial phenomenon (3 CFU)
C: Prehistory
of Malta from the VIth millennium BC with a special focus on the origin and
collapse of temple civilization (3 CFU
Textbook Information
Introduzione: A. Cazzella, G. Recchia All'origine delle
disuguaglianze. Dall'affermazione dell'economia produttiva alle prime forme di
stratificazione in Italia e nelle isole adiacenti (6000-1000 a.C.), 2021, pp. 340.
Modulo A:
R. Leighton, Sicily before history, Duckworth 1999, pp. 1-160
Modulo B:
A.L. D’Agata, L. Girella, Civiltà dell'Egeo. Archeologia e società della Grecia
nel III e nel II millennio a.C., Carocci, 2023, pp. 488.
Modulo C:
A. Cazzella, G. Recchia, Chiefdom societies in prehistoric Malta? Gangemi
Editore, 2017, pp. 242.
