Geoarchaeology

Catalog description

In this course, students will learn the basic concepts of earth systems and explore the ways that archaeologists use various environmental sciences (e.g., geomorphology, limnology, palynology, and dendroclimatology) and paleoecological modeling in their research. The course will include lectures and laboratory activities on the basics of geology, including surficial geology, rock and mineral identification, geomorphology and soils, sedimentation and stratigraphy, as well as a systematic review of depositional environments and their archaeological potential. A series of archaeological case studies will illustrate the application of these concepts in real-world field archaeology.