Undergraduate Course: The Scottish Lowlands: Archaeology and Landscape before the Normans (ARCA10035)
Course Outline
| School | School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | The course investigates the archaeological landscape of the Scottish Lowlands, by assessing the potential and limitations of its archaeological record, and by tracing how people of the past explored and exploited this landscape over time, from the earliest settlers to AD 1000. Course material benefits from having most data sources (aerial photographs, finds archives, grey literature reports) as well as the professionals generating these (RCAHMS, National Museums Scotland, commercial units) in close proximity of the University. As most data now derive from developer-funded archaeology, the course also offers insight into commercial archaeology practice in Scotland. |
| Course description |
The course introduces the concept of 'archaeological landscapes' using the University's immediate hinterland as a case study. The core area comprises the lowland landscapes between the Moray Firth and the Scottish Borders and the particular character of their archaeological record. The chronological scope extends from the initial colonization of Scotland, but more specifically from the Neolithic period to c. AD 1000, with the main focus on later pre- and proto-history: c.1500 BC - AD 500. Building on content from Archaeology 2A, the course concentrates on key concepts such as survival and detection of the archaeological resource and the impact of developer-funded archaeology in preserving archaeological remains through record. The course content will include active projects and guest lectures delivered by professional archaeologists from various sectors. The course presents a diachronic, comparative approach to critically examine one type of an archaeological landscape. Course work will capitalise on locally-accessible resources such as the National Monuments Record (delivered via CANMORE and CANMAP/PASTMAP) and the National Museums Scotland. It will allow students to explore developer-funded archaeology, a major branch of employment for graduates. Compared to other taught undergraduate courses in archaeology the specific course content and student course work can greatly benefit from the geographical proximity of the study area and the generators of primary data and their interpretation (e.g. RCAHMS and most commercial units). The course may also provide students with a platform from which to develop dissertation topics in the local environment and to enhance their expertise in Scottish prehistory.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Pre-requisites: Archaeology 2A and 2B, or Honours entry to degrees in Classics, or equivalent. |
| Additional Costs | Possible field visit costs. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should have at least 3 Archaeology courses at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this). We will only consider University/College level courses. |
| 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 coursework and examination as required, command of the body of knowledge on the archaeology of lowland landscapes with the Scottish Lowlands as the case study;
- demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, an ability to read, analyse and reflect critically upon relevant scholarship and case study sites in the geographical and chronological scope of this course;
- demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, an ability to understand, evaluate and utilise a variety of primary source material, specifically from record archives, on-line databases and museums in proximity of the University;
- demonstrate, by way of coursework and examination as required, the ability to develop and sustain scholarly arguments in oral and written form, by formulating appropriate questions and utilising relevant evidence;
- demonstrate independence of mind and initiative; intellectual integrity and maturity; an ability to evaluate the work of others, including peers.
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Reading List
1. Armit I, McKenzie J, 2013 An inherited place: Broxmouth hillfort & the south east Scottish Iron Age. Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.
2. Cook M., Dunbar L, 2008 Rituals, Roundhouses and Romans: excavations at Kintore, Aberdeenshire 2000-2006. Edinburgh: Scottish Trust for Archaeol Research Monogr.
3. Dunwell A, Ralston I, 2008 The archaeology and early history of Angus. Stroud : Tempus Publishing.
4. Gwilt A, Haselgrove C, 1997 Reconstructing Iron Age societies : new approaches to the British Iron Age. Oxford: Oxbow Books (Monograph 71.
5. Halliday S, 2006 'Into the dim light of history: more of the same or all change?' in: Landscape and environment in Dark Age Scotland / edited by Alex Woolf. University of St Andrews, 11-27.
6. Halliday S, 2007 'Unenclosed round-houses in Scotland: occupation, abandonment and the character of settlement', in Burgess, C., Topping, P. & Lynch, F. (eds) Beyond Stonehenge: Essays on the Bronze Age in Honour of Colin Burgess. Oxford: Oxbow Books, 49-56.
7. Harding D W, 2009 The Iron Age Round-House : Later Prehistoric Building in Britain and Beyond. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
8. Haselgrove C, 2009 The Traprain Law Environs Project Fieldwork and excavations 2000-2004. Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.
9. Hunter F, 2001 'Roman and native in Scotland: new approaches', Journal of Roman Archaeology 14, 289-309.
10. Hunter F, 2007 Beyond the edge of the empire : Caledonians, Picts and Romans. Rosmarkie: Groam House Museum.
11. RCAHMS (ed.) 2007, In the Shadow of Benachie. Edinburgh: Society of Antiquaries of Scotland / RCAHMS.
12. Welfare A (ed. Halliday, S.), 2011 Great Crowns of Stone: the recumbent stone circles of Scotland. Edinburgh: RCAHMS.
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Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Tanja Romankiewicz
Tel:
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Summer Wight
Tel: (0131 6)50 4580
Email: |
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