Course I.1205 · Year I · Summer 2025-2026

Introduction to Archaeology

Compulsory course in History, taught by Mihai Gligor.

This course page is from 2025-2026 and is archived.
See this course for the current academic year

Overview

Lecturer
Mihai Gligor
Seminar tutor
Ana Fetcu
Type of course
Compulsory
Language of instruction
Romanian
Erasmus language
English
Domain
History
Field of study
History
Form of education
Full-time
Form of instruction
Lecture
Credit awarded by
Grade
Teaching methods
Power Point presentation

Aims

The Lecture Notes Introduction to Archaeology are aimed towards all the archaeology students. The main goal of these lectures is to gather the most relevant aspects of the study of archaeology and to become a useful tool for the students.

By presenting a series of case studies, the investigation methods used in the archaeological research and relevant discoveries can be much easily understood.

In exploring past civilizations, by bringing them back to the surface, archaeology uses unitary research methods, accepted by all archaeological schools. Today, more than ever, archaeology benefits from other sciences, such as physics, chemistry, biology, and the IT sector.

Course contents

Course I: Archaeology, what does it mean?; Course II: A brief history of archaeology; Course III: The main concepts and theoretical approaches towards archaeology; Course IV: History of research and development of archaeological sciences in Romania; Course V: Experimental archaeology and reconstructing production processes; Course VI: Classical methods used in archaeological research; Course VII: How to research an archaeological site? Classification of archaeological researches; Course VIII: Methods of recording archaeological data on-site; Course IX: Notions concerning preservation and restoration of artefacts and archaeological sites; Course X: Landscape archaeology and archaeology of settlement. Archaeological topography; Course XI: Non-destructive prospections in archaeology; Course XII: Methods of absolute dating in archaeology; Course XIII: Methods of research in archaeology. Archaeometry; Course XIV: Archaeology as an interdisciplinary science (Zooarchaeology, Archaeobotany)

Learning outcomes

The acquisition of the basic knowledge in archaeology and the ability to operate with the specific concepts of this field

Assessment

80% - oral examination; 20% - paper presentation from the seminar themes

Recommended reading

The Archaeology. Coursebook
J. Grant, S. Gorin, N. Fleming
Routledge, London, 2008
Archaeology
P. Wilkinson
Archaeopress, Oxford, 2007
Archaeological Investigation
M. Carver
Routledge, London, 2009
Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice
C. Renfrew, P. Bahn
Thames & Hudson, London, 2008
Archaeological Approaches to Technology
H. Miller
Elsevier Academic Press, New York