75770 - Archaeology and History of Art of the European Middle Ages (LM)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student knows in depth the European medieval civilization in the period that involves the rise of the Christian religion and the Middle Ages. Through the examination of a specific theme, analysed in order to illustrate the correct methods of interpretation, the student learns every type of data and possesses the tools to critically deal with the issues related to the period under examination and their historical contextualization. The course gives the possibility to obtain the critical ability to set up and carry out a methodologically correct research using every kind of source.

Course contents

The course is divided into two sections. The main themes and methodologies of Medieval Archaeology in Europe will be presented during the first section. The lessons will therefore address the ways of city dwelling and farming the countryside since the Early Middle Ages to the Modern age (5^th-15^th c.); Archaeology of craftsman, production and building techniques; the evolution of funerary practices and ritual. In a second section a number of specific insights about the origins and evolution of the European urban settlements will be carried out through the study of material evidence.

Readings/Bibliography

Introduction:

James Graham-Campbell (ed.), The Archaeology of Medieval Europe, Vol. 1: The Eighth to Twelfth Centuries AD, Aarhus University Press, Aarhus 2007.

Recomended readings (mandatory for non-attending students):

Andrea Augenti, Archeologia dell'Italia medievale, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2016.

Monographic course: The origin of towns in Medieval Europe

Jacques Heers, M. Tangheroni (a cura di), La città nel Medioevo, Jaca Book, 2018.

Recommended readings (mandatory for non-attending students):

Enrico Cirelli, Ravenna: rise and decline of a Late Antique capital, in D. Sami, G. Speed (eds.), Debating Urbanism, Leicester, 2010, pp. 239-263.

Gian Pietro Brogiolo, Le origini della città medievale, Mantova 2011.

Teaching methods

The course is structured in frontal lessons and discussion of the data presented with the students. Visits and seminars will also be offered on the main sites mentioned during the classes.

Assessment methods

Oral exam about the contents of the classes (for attendants) and the recommended readings (for those who will not be able to follow the classes). Learning contents and methods will be evaluated. Lessons and knowledge required for discipline, the demonstration of the possession of an expressive and specific speaking will be evaluated with the highest grade

Teaching tools

During the lesson, archaeological contexts and themes will be presented through simple slides and with plans and texts distributed to the classroom and left available to non-attendants on my web page.

Office hours

See the website of Enrico Cirelli