The Archaeology of Early China

Catalog description

Class Hours: 3 Lab/Discussion: 0 Credits: 3 Description: An overview of the history, practice, and achievements of archaeology in China, with a focus on early China (up to the Han dynasty). A portion of the course is devoted to those discoveries that have shed light on important de­velopments in China, including its early stone age occupation, the growth of agriculture, the emergence of civilization, as well as the construction of im­pressive structures (such as the Great Wall and the first emperor’s terracotta army). Also discusses the ways in which Chinese and Western archaeology differ, as well as the role which nationalism and regionalism have played in archaeological research and interpretation in China.