Archaeology & Anthropology

What makes us human? Is there such a thing as human nature? Why are human societies so different? How do we find out about the past when there was no writing? What can surviving texts tell us about past human societies?

Distinctively different
If questions such as these absorb and interest you, so could our broad-ranging Tripos in Archaeology and Anthropology – commonly called ‘Arch and Anth’. Arch and Anth is unique in offering both the breadth to ask major questions and the opportunity to specialise.

It’s different. While at most universities archaeology and anthropology are either studied as a single degree or entirely separately, at Cambridge our flexible course structure enables you to combine a broad general introduction and then pursue detailed advanced study in one of the three fields (archaeology, social anthropology or biological anthropology) after your first year. From 2008-09, Ancient Near East (Egypt and Mesopotamia) subjects previously covered in the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies course will be offered as part of the Arch and Anth course, adding to the breadth and extent of the Faculty.

The unity and diversity of humankind, evolution and behaviour, technology and adaptation, cultural and social life, social and political change – our course covers all periods of the human past, combines theory and practice, and brings together the social sciences, humanities and natural sciences. Within Arch and Anth you can study and pursue specialist interests in aspects of human prehistory and the historical past, human evolution and biology, and contemporary human cultures and societies in the broad context of the development and variety of human life.

You won’t need any specific A level subjects for this course, but you will have a passionate interest in this field. Applicants wishing to take the new Ancient Near East option are encouraged to take an ancient or modern language to A level.

The Faculty and its resources
Our facilities are impressive and the scope of our teaching and research global. The Faculty of Archaeology and Anthropology comprises three connected disciplines: archaeology (including Ancient Near East subjects), social anthropology, and biological anthropology.

Archaeology is the study of past human societies through their material remains and environmental context. It deals with the millennia during which human beings developed their patterns of behaviour. It aims to reconstruct the nature and development of particular societies and explain the variations which occur among past societies. Cambridge was the first UK university to teach archaeology.

Biological anthropology explores examines human variation and diversity in terms of biological and evolutionary principles and methods. It explores the place of humans in nature, the pattern of our evolution as a species, the genetics of humans and their significance, and the ways in which individuals and populations interact with their environment today. The subject encourages the study of behaviour, ecology, genetics and fossils to understand humanity.

Social anthropology uses studies based on long-term first-hand fieldwork to understand the diversity of human societies in the world today: from the lives of indigenous peoples – their cultures and their relation to nation states and the global economy – to the social and cultural life of people in the largest cities on the planet.

A multi-disciplinary course
Cambridge is unusual in combining the three constituent disciplines during the first year (Part I of the Tripos). This provides you with a comprehensive introduction and overview of the three subjects and related techniques, and forms the bedrock of your later specialisation. The opportunity to study the ancient languages of Egypt and Mesopotamia is available from the first year.

In the second year (Part IIA), you choose which discipline you want to specialise in (although in each case you may take some papers from the other subjects, and also from outside the Faculty). This provides a detailed foundation in your chosen subject; while the third year (Part IIB) provides specialist options and courses linked to areas of current research.

Teaching and assessment
The Faculty is one of the largest in the UK with over 30 full-time permanent teaching staff – you can expect to be taught by leading experts in their field. Each department is also at the forefront of new developments and original research.

All subjects within the Faculty make use of lectures and seminar teaching, complemented by College-based supervisions. In the first year, most students have around eight lectures each week, plus three College supervisions and one seminar each fortnight. Examinations are held at the end of each of the three years.

Libraries, labs museums and online links
Our Faculty has two unique resources which are used extensively in teaching and research: the Haddon Library is one of the leading institutions of its kind and the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology houses collections of world importance; both have been built up since the nineteenth century. Online links offer access to these and other resources. Within the Faculty, there is a well-equipped IT lab and a series of purpose-built laboratories devoted to biological and archaeological science. Links are maintained with related research centres in other University departments and across the world.

Films and fieldwork
The Faculty is well supplied with multimedia equipment and has a rare collection of ethnographic films and videos. These are extensively used in teaching, training and research. There are also superb teaching ethnographic, archaeological and biological collections. However, hands-on experience and research in the field is important: you will also undertake practical and/or dissertation work in each of the three subjects, and can expect to acquire expertise in computing, museum and laboratory work, and fieldwork.

Our students travel widely: research trips and overseas fieldwork figure in all three subject areas. Preparation for third-year dissertations can be done close to home, but some undergraduates have carried out their research for these projects in places as far afield as Indonesia, India, Peru, South Africa and Australia. Financial support for such travel may be available from Colleges as well as from Faculty and University funds.

Careers after Archaeology and Anthropology
For nearly a hundred years graduates in Archaeology and Anthropology have gone on to become the leading figures in their field, doing ground-breaking research that has shaped the subject – Louis Leakey, Grahame Clark, Philip Tobias, Eric Higgs, Charles McBurney, David Clarke, Glyn Daniel …. Our graduates also include the poet Ted Hughes, sculptor Antony Gormley, former deputy chair of the Competition Commission Denise Kingsmill, author Tom Sharpe, restaurateur and chef Alistair Little, polymath Jonathan Miller, actor Tilda Swinton and comedian Hugh Laurie.

The analytical and critical skills, intellectual versatility, multicultural sensitivity and international outlook you will develop are widely sought after by employers in fields such as the media, finance and commerce, management consultancy, diplomacy, advertising and PR. Other graduates choose careers which build directly on Archaeology and Anthropology, including research and teaching; work for NGOs and development/overseas agencies; in museums, conservation, and heritage management; or take up careers in areas related to health.

Course outline

Part I Year 1 In the first year, most students study each of the three subjects, archaeology, biological anthropology and social anthropology with a fourth paper chosen from either: an interdisciplinary paper exploring topics such as the evolution of society, language and culture, sex and gender, and human ecology or papers shared with the Faculty of Politics, Psychology & Sociology such as Introduction to Politics, Sociology and Social Psychology or a paper introducing Egyptian and Mesopotamian Cultures Students wishing to study Ancient Near East and Egypt options take either Akkadian or Ancient Egyptian language as well as the paper Introduction to Egyptian and Mesopotamian Cultures and choose two out of three papers in archaeology, biological anthropology and social anthropology. Students may if they wish study both Akkadian and Egyptian languages and take only one core Archaeology and Anthropology option. Part II Years 2 and 3 You choose to specialise in one of the following: Archaeology (including the Ancient Near East), Biological Anthropology or Social Anthropology. The second year provides a foundation, leading to further specialism in your final year. Archaeology Students taking Archaeology take two core papers in each year of Part II on the History and Scope of Archaeology and the Practice of Archaeology, as well as: Part IIA two optional papers chosen from a range of chronologically and/or geographically focused papers and archaeological science - current options include the Americas, India and Pre- Hellenic Greece Part IIB two optional papers (see above) a dissertation or a third optional paper Those students specialising in Ancient Near East within the Archaeology option will take the core Practice of Archaeology paper, and an ancient language paper, plus: Part IIA two papers from a choice including the Archaeology or Social History of Egypt or Mesopotamia and additional language papers Part IIB two papers from a choice including the Archaeology or Social History of Egypt or Mesopotamia and additional advanced language papers a third paper from this same range or a dissertation

Social Anthropology Part IIA core paper on the anthropology of economics and kinship core paper on the anthropology of religion and politics core paper on anthropological theory a choice of optional papers such as Anthropology of Colonialism and Empire, Anthropology and Law, Anthropology, Communication and the Arts. Part IIB core papers on advanced social anthropology; thought, belief and ethics; political economy and social transformations a choice of optional papers (see above) a choice of regional papers including Southern Africa, Europe and Latin Americ Biological Anthropology Part IIA The second year explores theories and methods in biological anthropology, with an emphasis on how to study humans from a biological perspective. Evolutionary Anthropology Ecological Anthropology a seminar-based course on a special subject (recent examples include the Impact of Disease in the Third World, Sex in Primates, the Evolution of the Human Mind) Analytical Methods Part IIB The third year consists of advanced papers that look at major issues in the different branches of the subject. Human and Primate Genetics and Behaviour Human Evolution Human Ecology a dissertation or project on a topic of your own choice