Admission requirements
This course is open to all Master and Research Master students in Classics and Ancient Civilizations.
Students with an international/other degree have to contact the study advisor to check admissibility.
Description
The Amarna Seminar is offered by the specializations Egyptology and Assyriology together, with a yearly changing content that is determined by current research of the staff.
The Amarna period of the 14th century BCE, from the reign of Amenhotep III to that of Horemheb, is of great importance for Egyptian history, but it is also a period during which intensive interaction with the Near East is visible on various levels. Especially the Amarna tablets provide detailed information about the administration of the Egyptian foreign dominions, and about the foreign relations with neighbouring states.
In 2016-2017 there will be three topics in the course: Texts from the archive of El Amarna, by prof.dr. Wilfred van Soldt; The Archaeology of the city of Amarna, by dr. René van Walsem and Costume items in the tomb of Tutankhamun, by prof.dr. Olaf Kaper.
Course objectives
In this seminar the students are introduced to the study of the Amarna period through an intensive examination of different aspects. The three topics offered in 2016 provide three different perspectives on this period, and the student is familiarized with three different types of source material and its secondary literature. These are the cuneiform sources in the Amarna archive, the archaeological reports about the city of Amarna, and the royal objects preserved in the tomb of Tutankhamun. Through discussion in class, a presentation, and the writing of a research paper, the student will be able to actively engage in the debates on this period.
Timetable
The timetable is available on the Classics and Ancient Civilizations website.
Mode of instruction
Seminar
Course Load
Total course load 10 EC x 28 hours= 280 hours:
Lectures: 12 hours
Student presentations and discussion sessions: 8 hours
Study of compulsory literature: 60 hours
Presentation: 60 hours
Research paper: 140 hours
Assessment method
Participation in the discussions in the seminar (10%);
Presentation on a topic set during the course (30%);
Research paper on a topic related to one of the three themes (60%).
Weighing
The final mark for the course is established by determining the weighted average.
Resit
If the overall mark is unsatisfactory, another topic may be set for a research paper, which will then be weighed as 60% of the final grade. There is no resit for the participation and presentation components.
Blackboard
Blackboard will be used for: the distribution of literature and materials.
Reading list
Literature will be made available during the course.
Registration
Enrolment through uSis is mandatory.
General information about uSis is available in English and Dutch
Registration Studeren à la carte and Contractonderwijs
Not applicable