Unit name | Archaeology of Death, Burial and Ritual |
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Unit code | ARCH35003 |
Credit points | 30 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
Unit director | Dr. Tubb |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of Anthropology and Archaeology |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
The archaeology of death, burial and ritual is a complex topic requiring study using a number of archaeological and anthropological methods. This option will examine themes relating to death burial and ritual from the Neolithic to the Medieval period and will include monument morphology, the archaeology of ritual landscapes, changes and significance of mortuary practice, cultural and social interpretation of funerary practices and paleopathology. Consideration will also be given to current opinion on the ethical implications of the study of human remains.
Aims:
The unit aims to provide students with: a critical comprehension of the nature of rituals and religions and critical approaches to them; familiarity with common themes and traditions in rituals and religions; the social and ideological implications of rituals and religions; a sound and critical knowledge of ritual practices in a variety of prehistoric and historic societies in Britain and Ireland, Europe and some other regions of the world; an appreciation of the problems and potentials of archaeological approaches to ritual and religion; a thorough awareness of the roles of material culture, sensual experience and the importance and symbolism of plants and animals to ritual and religious practices and ideologies, and the way that these can be explored through archaeological evidence and ethnographic analogy.
Students completing this unit students will:
Taught over 8 weekends (x8 all day lectures, x8 all day field trips)
Bell, C. 1992. Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Bell, C., 1997 Ritual :perspectives and dimensions. Oxford : Oxford University Press
Bowie, F. 2000. The Anthropology of Ritual. Oxford: Blackwell
Bradley, R. 2005. Ritual and Domestic Life in Prehistoric Europe. London: Routledge.
Kreinath, J., Snoek, J. and M. Stausberg (eds.) 2006. Theorizing Rituals, Issues, Topics, Approaches, Concepts. Leiden: Brill.
Insoll, T. 2004. Archaeology, Ritual, Religion. London: Routledge
Merrifield, R. 1987. The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic. London: Batsford.
Rappaport, R.A. 1999. Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.