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ARCH41310

Academic Year 2024/2025

Land / Landscape (ARCH41310)

Subject:
Archaeology
College:
Social Sciences & Law
School:
Archaeology
Level:
4 (Masters)
Credits:
10
Module Coordinator:
Dr Ryan Lash
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
On Campus
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

Landscape is a key concept in archaeology – and also among the most flexible.
In the most general sense, studies of landscape investigate human interactions with the natural and built elements of the lands we inhabit. Landscapes that exist today bear the traces of many millennia of human endeavours to sustain livelihoods and social formations. As such, landscapes provide essential resources for telling stories about our past.

This module will introduce students to fundamental methods and theories employed in landscape archaeology. Our focus will be on multi-disciplinary approaches that integrate scientific techniques, historical sources, and embodied experiences of landscapes. Through lectures, readings, activities, and field trips, students will learn to decipher archaeological landscapes and their power to engage the senses, evoke the past, and structure patterns of human action, affiliation, and imagination.

* Field trips for this module will include a day trip to Tara on Thursday September 12 and a three day field trip during week 8 (October 29-31).

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

1. Understand the range of methods and techniques used by archaeologists to study landscapes

2. Understand and apply theoretical frameworks used by archaeologists to analyse human engagements with landscapes

3. Develop first hand-experiences of Irish landscapes and employ publicly available resources and databases to decipher their stories

Indicative Module Content:

Methods of studying the landscape. Theoretical approaches to landscape. Interdisciplinary approaches. Field trips/discussions.

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Specified Learning Activities

75
Autonomous Student Learning

75
Lectures

10
Small Group

8
Conversation Class

2
Field Trip/External Visits

30
Total

200

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
Lectures; In-class activities and discussions; Field Trips; Reflections on personal experiences of landscape

** Field Trips planned include a day trip to Tara on September 12 and a mid-week trip (3 days, 2 nights) during the Reading week, October 29-31.**

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Assignment(Including Essay): Decipher a Landscape (800 words)

Use historic maps, aerial imagery, folklore, and existing archaeological evidence to reconstruct the chronology of a landscape in one of four case-study options.		 Week 5 Graded Yes
30
 Yes
Assignment(Including Essay): Research Project (4,000 words)

Choose an archaeological monument and show how methods and theories of landscape could enhance understandings of human interactions and experiences in the past.		 Week 12 Graded Yes
70
 Yes

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Peer review activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Written feedback within 4 weeks after submission deadline. Feedback contains feed-forward details, which will help you think about how you could improve your approach in future assignments. NOTE: You may choose to use generative AI (Artificial Intelligence) to find, learn about and understand suitable resources (i.e. for background research). You must avoid AI for writing of assessments.

Name Role
Assoc Professor Helen Lewis Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Assoc Professor Barry Molloy Lecturer / Co-Lecturer

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Autumn Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12 Wed 14:00 - 15:50
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