Anyone who has ever watched ‘Gladiator’, ‘Ben-Hur’, ‘Spartacus’, ‘Life of Brian’ or ‘Bugs Bunny: Roman Legion Hare’ has some image of Rome, the Romans and their empire. This course, while exploring and assessing these influential popular preconceptions, introduces a more balanced view of the archaeology and art of ancient Rome.

On a map of the modern world, the Roman empire would extend from Great Britain to Syria, from Germany to Egypt. The diversity of its inhabitants was equally stunning, ranging from god-like emperors to beggars and slaves. Out of the innumerable things to study in this imperial world, we will spend time in the city of Rome itself, stare at portraits of the ruling emperors, walk the streets of a doomed Pompeii, sniff out army life on the Roman frontiers, scream for blood in the Coliseum, and take baths with just about anybody.

We will also ask a range of other questions. What makes an empire? How was this particular vast and diverse empire governed? Who or what did its inhabitants worship? How did they feel about their emperor? How were they entertained? Why did the Roman empire ‘decline and fall’ (or did it?)? Are there contemporary lessons to be learned from the Roman experience?

There are no prerequisites for the course; requirements consist of a mid-term examination, a final examination, two short quizzes and four short graded writing assignments/projects. To learn more about the course requirements or weekly schedule, or to access slides from class presentations, use the menu options in the left panel.

ARCH 0520 Roman Archaeology and Art [CRN: 25378]

MWF 11:00-11:50

Prerequisites: None

Course requirements: Section participation; mid-term examination; final examination; five short writing assignments/projects

Section Participation (15%)
Midterm Examination (in class, Wednesday, Feb. 25th, on material from Weeks 1-5) = 15%
Final Exam (cumulative in nature, May 12th 2pm) = 30%
Short Writing Assignments/Projects (four in number, 10% each) = 40%

Required texts:

Nancy Ramage and Andrew Ramage, Roman Art: Romulus to Constantine (4th edition)
Chris Scarre, The Penguin Historical Atlas of Ancient Rome

Printable Version of the Syllabus :

ARCH0520_Syllabus_2015.pdf

Professor: Sue Alcock

Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology and the Ancient World
Rhode Island Hall
60 George Street
T: (401) 863-3710
E: Susan_Alcock@brown.edu

Uploaded Image

ARCH0520 Spring15 S01 Roman Archaeology and Art