Syllabus
1. Classical Archaeology. History, progress, methods and theories
2. In the shadow of a vocano. Pompeii, Herculaneum and other Vesuvian sites
3. Where Romulus lived. Palatine, Forum and the Centre of the Roman World
4. Merciful sands of time. Masada, Dead Sea Scrolls and desert pearls
5. Deep in the forest. Roman conquest of Central Europe
6. Making history on empire's edge. Living in Vindolanda
7. From Minotaurus to tsunami. Knossos, Thera and the Minoan civilization
8. A stormy life. Uluburun and other ship-wrecks of the Aegean Bronze Age
9. Homeric Troy. From myth to reality
10. Sacrifice of Polyxena. Aristocratic tombs in Graeco-Persian borderland in NW Anatolia
11. Treasures from the depth. The unique cargo of classical Mediterranen ship-wrecks
12. Death in purple. Grave of Phillip II. and other Macedonian tombs
13. Classical Archaeology, current questions, future trends
Annotation
The course "Top Discoveries of Classical Archaology" aims to present to the Czech and international students in 13 lectures a selection of most important and (sometimes) surprising archaeological discoveries of the Classical world. The students will learn about specific position of cassical archaeology among the historical sciences as well as of its history and development in the past centuries. Subsequent lectures will guide the audience to different parts of ancient Mediterranean and to different periods from the Bronze Age to the Roman era. Basically focusing on recent discoveries and finds the course offers insight to the Minoan civilization of the island of Crete; international connections, trade routes and Bronze Age ship-wrecks; recent excavations of Homeric Troy as well as the birth of the centre of Roman power on the Palatine hill and the Forum of Rome; the aristocratic tombs in
Graeco-Persian borderland in NW Anatolia; spectacular finds of ship-wreck cargo of statues and precious items of the classical era; the Macedonian royal tombs as well perfectly preserved finds from the eastern deserts; the archaeology of tricky conquest of Central Europe by the Romans; the recent interpretation of the sites buried by
Vesuvius eruption in AD 79 and finally the insight to the life in the edge of the Roman world in north England site of
Vindolanda.