ANTH 396: Issues in Anthropology: Social Sciences

ANTH 396-003: Andean Archaeology
(Fall 2016)

04:30 PM to 07:10 PM T

Section Information for Fall 2016

This class offers an archaeological overview of the pre-Hispanic cultures of the Andean South America. The temporal coverage of the course spans some 12,000 years where students will discover the most remarkable civilizations of the pre-industrial New World – from the hunter-gatherers of the Late Pleistocene to the rise of the Cupisnique and Nasca chiefdoms, the resplendent Moche and Sicán states, and the Wari, Chimú, and Inka empires. The course explores the development of these Andean complex societies, as well as their key achievements, art and symbolism, political and social organization, and religious systems. Students will also gain an appreciation of: (a) the potential and limitations of unique and often hostile Andean environments and how humans creatively coped with them; (b) the oscillation of political power between a handful of cultures and centers of power; (c) the short and long-term impacts of the Spanish conquest and how they relate to modern-day South America, and; (d) factors and conditions that have affected the nature, priorities, and accomplishments of scientific Andean archaeology.

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Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 3

Topic of contemporary interest in anthropology, focusing on social science topics of interest. Notes: May be repeated when topic is different. May be repeated within the term for a maximum 18 credits.
Mason Core: Social/Behavioral Sciences
Specialized Designation: Topic Varies, Non-Western Culture
Schedule Type: Lec/Sem #1, Lec/Sem #2, Lec/Sem #3, Lec/Sem #4, Lec/Sem #5, Lec/Sem #6, Lec/Sem #7, Lec/Sem #8, Lec/Sem #9, Lecture, Sem/Lec #10, Sem/Lec #11, Sem/Lec #12, Sem/Lec #13, Sem/Lec #14, Sem/Lec #15, Sem/Lec #16, Sem/Lec #17, Sem/Lec #18
Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

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