Archaeology Portal

The poem Beowulf offers a unique window into life during the late Roman Iron Age, but how does the archaeology of the period support the poem’s portrayal? This module will analyze notable scenes and locations from Beowulf and compare the poem with archaeological evidence. For example, how do the excavations at Sutton Hoo and Oseberg burial mound provide greater context for Scyld’s ship burial? How can the archaeological record at Lejre in Denmark give us a clearer glimpse of life at Heorot? And how do Neolithic and Bronze Age burial mounds align with the dragon’s mound in the poem’s dramatic conclusion? Join us as we explore how archaeology and philology together can deepen our understanding of the past. [show less]

When one thinks of ancient, pre-classical civilisations, one thinks of Sumerians, Egyptians, Hittites, and, not least, Minoans. The Minoan civilisation, discovered around 1900 by English archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans, has often been styled as the first major European civilisation, equally proficient in technology and the arts, with a sea empire spanning across the Eastern Aegean. But how much of what we imagine about the Minoans is truthful and how much is modern mythmaking? In this module, we will examine the immense impact which the discovery of Minoan Crete and its integration with the classical myths of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth has had on literature, movies, the arts, and even computer games. We will examine the works of Sir Arthur Evans, Pablo Picasso, Nikos Kazantzakis, Robert Graves, Mary Renault, Poul Anderson, and Stephen King, among others. In so doing, we will explore such key 'Minoan' concepts and phenomena as: the sublime, utopianism, feminism, irrationality and the unconscious, mythmaking, and European identity. [show less]