Unit information: Bronze Age Europe and Britain in 2011/12

Please note: you are viewing unit and programme information for a past academic year. Please see the current academic year for up to date information.

Unit name Bronze Age Europe and Britain
Unit code ARCH35017
Credit points 20
Level of study H/6
Teaching block(s) Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12)
Unit director Professor. Heyd
Open unit status Not open
Pre-requisites

None
Co-requisites

None
School/department Department of Anthropology and Archaeology
Faculty Faculty of Arts, Law and Social Sciences

Description including Unit Aims

This unit provides a general introduction to the European and British Bronze Age (c. 3200 to 750 BCE). It will guide students through Continental European regions, mostly unfamiliar to students, and will analyse in an introductory way major developments of the Bronze Age in the British Isles. The Bronze Age stands for an era of emerging complexity and is the first consistent formation of elites; key innovations are incorporated and applied in everyday life; international links are set up, and exchange and trade are playing unprecedented roles. We see also the rise of warriors and organised warfare, and the exploitation of European and British landscapes and their resources. This course will explore these interrelations in a systematic way, and discuss major issues of current research.

Aims:

To give students a first picture of the European and British Bronze Age, c. 3200 - 750 BCE ; to introduce and guide students in a systematic way through different periods, regions and landscapes; to present and begin an analysis of graves, hoards and settlements, as well as the social, economic and ritual foundations; to make known to students with relative and absolute chronologies, distribution maps, theories, hypotheses and models ; to support students in developing a first critical understanding of later Prehistory in Europe and Britain, together with their relevant archaeological sources and interpretations.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Successful completion of this unit will allow students to gain:

  • a general overview of a number of Bronze Age sites both in Continental Europe and Britain;
  • a basic understanding of settlements of that period and their patterns; of graves, cemeteries and burial customs; of hoards and hoarding practices; and of key Bronze Age artefacts;
  • an introduction to more abstract questions relevant to later Prehistory such as development of bronze technology; social complexity and formation of elites; weapons, warriors and warfare; exchange and trade; human mobility and migration; and acculturations and transmission of innovations and ideas in their practical application to Bronze Age contexts in Europe and Britain.

Teaching Information

A mixture of lectures by the unit director, student led seminars, discussion and revision classes and individual tutorials.

Assessment Information

All the assessment is summative:

One oral presentation: 25% One in-class test: 25% One essay (3500 words): 50%

Reading and References

  • Barber, M. 2003. Bronze and the Bronze Age: Metalwork and Society in Britain c. 2500-800 BC London: Tempus.
  • Harrison, R.J. 2004 . Symbols and Warriors: Images of the European Bronze Age. Bristol: Western Academic & Specialist Press.
  • Kristiansen, K. 1998. Europe before History. Cambridge: University Press.
  • Kristiansen, K. & Larsson, T.B. 2005. The Rise of Bronze Age Society: travels, transmissions and transformations. Cambridge: University Press.
  • Galanaki, I. & Galanakis, I., Tomas, H. & Laffineur R. (eds.) Between the Aegean and Baltic Seas: Prehistory across Borders. Proceedings of the International Conference ‘Bronze and Early Iron Age Interconnections and Contemporary Developments between the Aegean and the Region of the Balkan Peninsula, Central and Northern Europe’, University of Zagreb/Croatia, 10-14 April 2005. Aegaeum 27. Liège: Université & Austin: University.
  • Parker Pearson, M. 2005. Bronze Age Britain. London: Batsford.

Related links