Archaeology

The study of the entirety of human experience from its beginnings to present day.

This interdepartmental major and minor will introduce you to archaeological theory, analysis of archaeological materials, and results of archaeological research in prehistoric and early historic periods in the Old and New Worlds.

You’ll have the opportunity to work with faculty who are actively leading new archeological discoveries, participate in fieldwork, and conduct research on materials stored in our Archaeological Museum, which consists of a diverse and extensive assemblage of artifacts from ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, Mesopotamia, Palestine, and Mesoamerica.

learn more about the program

CLASSES YOU MIGHT TAKE

Decolonizing the Museum: Case Studies

How do museums represent the world? The course focuses on the colonial legacy of museums and complicated discourses of decolonization by looking at a range of case studies from the world’s fairs to repatriation requests and exhibitionary modes of display.

Space Archaeology: An Introduction to Satellite Remote Sensing, GIS and GPS

This course introduces technologies archaeologists use to map ancient landscapes, including Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping software, advanced Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers, and various types of satellite imagery.

Ancient Magic and Ritual

This course will introduce you to the vast body of rituals that were practiced and performed in antiquity, with a particular emphasis on rituals from ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, and the Hebrew Bible. You’ll read and discuss studies of ritual that shed light on the social, cultural, and political significance of ritual in the ancient world and beyond.

Faculty Spotlight

PROF. GLEN SCHWARTZ

Director, Archaeology Program Whiting Professor of Archaeology, Department of Near Eastern Studies

Inside One Archaeologist’s Mission To Rewrite the History of Writing

In 2010, archaeologist Glenn Schwartz quietly suggested that the history of writing needs, well, rewriting. More than a decade later, he still thinks he’s on to something. If he’s right, the world’s first fully developed alphabetic writing arrived on the scene some 500 years earlier than what archaeologists have long believed.

Join the Club

Hopkins students are eager to pursue their interests outside the classroom. With 450+ student-led organizations, here are just a few you could join:

Archaeology Insider

Archaeology Rocks: My Study Abroad Experience Excavating in Greece

by Willa F.