CL3BSA: Archaeology and Topography of Ancient Greece

Module code: CL3BSA

Module provider: Classics; School of Humanities

Credits: 20

Level: Level 3 (Honours)

When you'll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Professor Emma Aston, email: e.m.m.aston@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s): Before taking this module, you must have secured a place on the undergraduate course of the British School at Athens and you must be able to attend the course in its entirety. (Open)

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: No

Talis reading list: No

Last updated: 21 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

This module is offered in conjunction with the British School at Athens (BSA). All teaching takes place in Greece over a three week period in August/September. This module consists of an intensive introduction to Prehistoric, Classical, Roman, and Byzantine Greece, with specialist lectures, guided site visits both in Athens and in central and southern Greece (often conducted by those responsible for the site or excavation) and opportunities to gain first-hand experience of objects and monuments not accessible to the individual traveller, and to undertake projects of student's own (approved) choice. Students intending to take this module must make an application to the BSA for a place on their Undergraduate Course. The deadline for applications is usually in March or April: see the BSA website for more details of the course and how to apply. Students are responsible for the cost of travel and accommodation and for some additional costs: see the BSA website. 

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Understand the material culture of Greece over a long time span, and particularly of the built environment
2. Understand the relationship between sites and their environments
3. Understand diachronic change in individual sites and across whole settlement patterns
4. Interpret archaeological evidence on site, and to apply the knowledge gained to other sites
5. Evaluate historical and literary evidence in interpreting sites and the possible conflict between textual and archaeological evidence

Module content

An intensive course on Prehistoric, Classical, and Roman Greece with specialist lectures, guided site visits (often conducted by those responsible for the site or excavation) and opportunities to gain first-hand experience of objects and monuments not accessible to the individual traveller, and to undertake projects of students' own (approved) choice. Sites studied may include Prehistoric and Early Iron Age: Athens, Eleusis, Mycenae, Olympia and Tiryns. Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic: Argive Heraion, Athens (Acropolis, Agora, Kerameikos), Piraeus, Brauron, Corinth, Delphi, Eleusis, Oropos, Epidauros, Messene, Olympia, Sounion, Sparta, Rhamnous, Thorikos, Bassai. Roman: Athens (Roman Agora, Library of Hadrian, Acropolis South Slope, Hadrian’s Arch, Temple of Olympian Zeus), Corinth, Eleusis, Oropos, Messene, Sparta. Museums which may be visited at Athens: National Museum, Acropolis Museum, Agora Museum, Epigraphic Museum, Kerameikos Museum, Piraeus Museum. Museums which may be visited outside Athens: Brauron, Corinth, Delphi, Eleusis, Epidauros, Nafplio, Mycenae, Olympia. This is an indicative list and not all sites mentioned here may be visited. 

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

This module is taught via a series of lectures, and on-site visits in Greece over a three week period in the preceding Part 2 summer vacation. It includes approximately 150 hours site visits or trips and 9 hours of introductory lectures, plus 10 hours study in a specialist library. 

Students are obliged to cover costs of the BSA course, which are currently described as follows on the BSA’s website (www.bsa.ac.uk): ‘The course fee is £875. This includes BSA one-month membership, housing, breakfast, meals as specified in the program, required travel within Greece, museum and site fees, one-year museum pass, one-month 24h access to the BSA library. Not included are: international airfare to and from Greece and meals not included in the program. Incidental expenses are the participant’s responsibility.’  N.b. – the course fee is subject to change.   

Study hours

At least 9 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Reassessment

Additional costs