Guide to Courses 2009-10

M.Phil. Degree Courses

Archaeological Science

This course covers a broad range of scientific archaeological approaches with a geo-archaeological focus, from the theoretical, methodological, and practical points of view. A series of recurrent case studies is used to develop the questions, techniques, and ideas applicable in each archaeological situation. The Department has a strong group of professionals with recognized expertise in most aspects of environmental and science-based archaeology.

The course is organized into three main components:

  1. a series of lectures and seminars taught during the Michaelmas and Lent Terms with examinations in the Easter Term;
  2. a body of assessed work including two essays and two practical projects;
  3. a dissertation prepared and written after the course examinations and submitted by 31 August of the same academical year.

The taught course of the M.Phil. in Archaeological Science comprises three components:

  1. one core paper, Introduction to Science in Archaeology;
  2. a seminar course, Themes in Scientific Archaeology (Paper 2), with an assessed essay component;
  3. a part-taught, part-practical course, Scientific Method in Fieldwork (Paper 3), which is composed of any two options with an assessed practical component from: five options in the Department of Archaeology - soil micromorphology, palaeoethnobotany, zooarchaeology, human osteology, and GIS and geoprospection, with several options available from the M.Phil. in Quaternary Science, such as Quaternary landscapes, climates and palaeoclimates, dendrochronology and dendroclimatology, and a further option from the M.Phil. in GIS and Remote Sensing (all of these options are subject to availability and student numbers).

Throughout the course there is a strong emphasis on practical work which comprises an assessed component of the course. It is intended that most students tackle primary site data, in the field and in the laboratory, for their practical projects and dissertation topics. For example, the Department's Geoarchaeology Laboratory is actively involved in providing environmental site assessments and a soil micromorphology analytical service for many contract archaeology units, including the Department's own Cambridge Archaeology Unit. In addition, active research is under way into the micromorphological aspects of middens, occupation surfaces, and early agricultural soils. Most of these projects are multi-disciplinary and provide valuable practical exposure to the workings of science and environmental science in archaeology.

The title of this document is: Courses available 2009-10: Postgraduate: M.Phil. Archaeological Science
URL: http://www.cam.ac.uk/guide/pgcourses/mphil/archsci.html

Last updated: 03/07/2009