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Lecturer(s)
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Kovačiková Lenka, Ing. Ph.D.
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Ptáková Michaela, Mgr. Ph.D.
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Course content
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Students will gain hands-on experience in the field of bioarchaeology through an archaeological experiment that will relate to the specific technology of processing and use of plant and animal materials in the past. Emphasis will be placed on materials and products difficult to determine found in the archaeological record, such as textile fibers, processed and heat-treated foods, processed hard and soft animal tissues, organic binders, etc., whose preservation is significantly affected by both the technological practices and taphonomic factors. The course will include an analytical part emphasizing the search for and subsequent study of potential determination features. Students will learn the theoretical basis and practice planning the activities needed to design, implement, and critically reflect on their own experimental research project. At the end of the course, students will 1) produce a professional report and 2) present a short popularization video that includes the actual process of their own experimental research and presents its findings in a comprehensible way. The course will be taught in four blocks: I. theoretical background, presentation of archaeological evidence, technologies, and methodological approaches, formulation of hypotheses II. planning and conducting the experiment III. evaluation of the experiment IV. presentation of results: scientific report and popularization (documentary video)
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Learning activities and teaching methods
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unspecified
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Learning outcomes
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a) to implement an experimentally oriented project with clearly defined objectives and methods, thus deepening the knowledge of the past use of materials of plant and animal origin and the ability to determine them in archaeological assemblages; b) to apply the acquired knowledge and demonstrate how established techniques and methods of bioarchaeological research contribute to the generation and interpretation of knowledge in the field
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Prerequisites
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The broader theoretical framework will focus on prehistoric and medieval technologies, including examples of plant and animal materials used by our ancestors.
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Assessment methods and criteria
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unspecified
Credit will be awarded for active participation in the carrying out of the experiment, i.e. participation in the tutorials, and presentation of the achieved results, i.e. completion of the seminar.
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Recommended literature
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Flores, J. R., Paardekooper, R. 2014. Experiments past: histories of experimental archaeology. Sidestone Press..
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Millson, D. C. 2010. Experimentation and interpretation: the use of experimental archaeology in the study of the past. Oxford: Oxbow Books..
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Outram, A. K. 2008. Introduction to experimental archaeology. World Archaeology, 40(1), 1-6..
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Wood, J. 2011. Daily practices of prehistoric Europe during the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition. In: D. Gheorghiu, Children, G. (eds.), Experiments with past materialities, BAR International Series 2302, Oxford: Hadrian Books, 9-17..
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