Postgraduate Course: Hellenistic Art and Archaeology (PGHC11187)
Course Outline
| School | School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The course provides postgraduate students with a close study of the art and archaeology of the Greek world from c. 323-31 B.C. considered in its political, religious, and social context. Of special interest are the development and political manipulation of ruler portraiture, the manifold use of styles, including the rise of the Hellenistic baroque style, wall painting, and interactions with non-Greek cultures (including the Romans), which produced a hybrid art in response to new concerns. |
| Course description |
This course focuses on the art and archaeology of the Mediterranean and its surrounding regions between c. 323 and 31 BC. In the East this was a period dominated by the newly-established Hellenistic kingdoms that followed in the wake of Alexander's conquests, one which saw the old cities of Greece and Asia Minor increasingly adapt in the face of a new political reality and large numbers of non-Greeks come under Greek-Macedonian control for the first time. In the West, this was the period in which Rome first emerged as a superpower, establishing its influence in Italy and then coming into direct contact with both the Hellenistic kingdoms of the East and Carthage. Visual and material culture survives from this period in abundance and this course concentrates on what this evidence reveals about the changing cultural, political, religious and social priorities of individuals and communities across this timeframe, from as far apart as Afghanistan and Spain. Particular themes that will be explored include the new visual language of royal imagery established by Alexander and his successors, the interaction between Greeks and non-Greeks, the development of wall-painting and mosaic art, the role of honorific statuary in Greek civic contexts, the emergence of the so-called Baroque style of Hellenistic art, the impact of Greek culture in Italy, and the Hellenistic economies.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- demonstrate, by way of formative and summative assessment as required, in-depth, detailed and critical command of the body of knowledge considered in the course
- demonstrate, by way of formative and summative assessment as required, an ability to analyse and reflect critically upon relevant scholarship, primary source materials, and conceptual approaches considered in the course
- demonstrate, by way of formative and summative assessment as required, an ability to understand and apply specialised research or professional skills, techniques and practices considered in the course
- demonstrate the ability to develop and sustain original scholarly arguments in oral and written form, by independently formulating appropriate questions and utilising relevant evidence considered in the course
- demonstrate originality and independence of mind and initiative; intellectual integrity and maturity; an ability to evaluate the work of others, including peers; and a considerable degree of autonomy
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Reading List
Ashton, S.A. Ptolemaic Royal Sculpture from Egypt: the Interaction between Greek and Egyptian Traditions (Oxford 2001)
Coarelli, F. 'Public building in Rome between the Second Punic War and Sulla', Papers of the British School at Rome 45 (1977), 1-23
Davies, J.K. 'Hellenistic economies in the post-Finley era', in Archibald, Z. et al. (eds.), Hellenistic Economies (London 2001), 7-44
Erskine, A. ed. A Companion to the Hellenistic World (Oxford 2007)
Gruen, E. S. 'Culture as policy: the Attalids of Pergamon', in De Grummond, N. T. and Ridgway, B. S. eds. From Pergamon to Sperlonga: Sculpture and Context (Berkeley 2000), 17-31
Ma, J. Statues and Cities: Honorific Portraits and Civic Identity in the Hellenistic World (Oxford 2013)
Mairs, R. The Hellenistic Far East: Archaeology, Language and Identity in Greek Central Asia (Berkeley 2014)
Pollitt, J.J. Art in the Hellenistic Age (Cambridge 1986)
Prag, J. R. W. and Quinn, J. C. eds, The Hellenistic West: Rethinking the Ancient Mediterranean (Cambridge 2013)
Smith, R.R.R. Hellenistic Sculpture: A Handbook (London 1991)
Stewart, A. F. Faces of Power: Alexander's Image and Hellenistic Politics (Berkeley 1993)
Wallace-Hadrill, A. Rome's Cultural Revolution (Cambridge 2008) |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | HellenisticArtandArch Hellenistic Art Archaeology |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof Judith Barringer
Tel: (0131 6)50 3584
Email: |
Course secretary | Mr Gordon Littlejohn
Tel: (0131 6)50 3782
Email: |
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