BA in Archaeology
Our understanding of the majority of the human past, for which the written record is nonexistent or minimal, is based on a material record. Archaeology examines this record of human activity to recover and interpret information about past societies and cultures.
Tufts offers a general interdisciplinary undergraduate major in archaeology, incorporating courses from the arts, humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences. Ideally, a student in archaeology will combine coursework with first-hand experience in recovery, conservation, and interpretation of material remains.
Course Requirements
Four required courses:
- Anthropology: ANTH 39: Gateway Course in Sociocultural Anthropology (may substitute ANTH 20: Global Cities or ANTH 27: Human Rights and Justice in Cultural Context)
- Archaeology: ARCH 27: Classical Archaeology (co-listed as HAA 19 and CLS 27)
- Archaeology: ARCH 30: Introduction to Archaeology (co-listed as ANTH 50)
- Earth & Climate Sciences: ECS 2: Environmental Geology + Lab (if taken prior to Fall 2024) or ECS 1 + ECS 2: Introduction to the Dynamic Earth + Dynamic Earth Lab (if taken Fall 2024 or later).
Seven elective courses from History, Natural Science, and Archaeology with the following distribution:
Two (2) History courses taken from:
- CLS 26/126: Ancient Egypt (HIST 76, ARCH 26/126, and ILVS 26)
- CLS 37: History of Ancient Greece (HIST 50)
- CLS 38: History of Ancient Rome (HIST 51)
- CLS 47/147: Greece, Rome and China (HIST 105)
- CLS 85: Special Topics in Ancient History
- CLS 108: Alexander the Great: History, Myth, Legend, and Legacy (HIST 101)
- CLS 142: The Rise of the Greeks (HIST 148)
- CLS 143: Greeks and Barbarians (HIST 149)
- CLS 144: Athens: Marathon to Socrates (HIST 151)
- CLS 146: Ancient Greek and Roman Medicine (HIST 150)
- CLS 149: Ancient Gaul: The Identity of France in Antiquity
- CLS 185: Seminar in Ancient History
- HIST 6: World Trade, 1000-2000
- HIST 13: Africa to 1800 (AFR 13)
- HIST 17: The Americas
- HIST 23: Colonial North America & The Atlantic World To 1763
- HIST 40: History of Pre-Modern China
- HIST 58: The Byzantines & Their World (CLS 39)
- HIST 72: World of Islam
- HIST 157 Empresses, Saints, & Scholars: The Women of Byzantium (CLS 110)
Two (2) Natural Science courses taken from:
- ANTH 40: Biological Anthropology
- ANTH 49: Gateway Course in Biological Anthropology
- ANTH 132: Myth, Ritual, And Symbol
- ANTH 150: Human Evolution
- ANTH 182: Human Physique
- BIO 7: Environmental Biology
- BIO 10: Plants and Humanity
- BIO 143: Evolutionary Biology w/Lab
- BIO 144: Principles Of Conservation Biology
- CHEM 2: Chemical Principles W/ Lab
- CHEM 8: Environmental Chemistry
- EOS 32: Geomorphology
Three (3) Archaeology courses taken from:
- ANTH 51: North American Archaeology
- ANTH 127: Archaeology of the Modern World
- ANTH 129: Archaeology & Colonialism
- ANTH 149-FS: Select Topics: Mohegan Archaeological Field School
- ARCH 26/126: Ancient Egypt (HIST 76, CLS 26/126, and ILVS 26)
- ARCH 28: Ancient China, Korea, and Japan
- ARCH 49: Archaeology Of Complex Societies
- ARCH 51: Special Topics in Archaeology
- ARCH 52: Special Topics in Archaeology
- ARCH 128: Mesoamerican Archaeology (ANTH 128 and LAS 128)
- ARCH 163: Aegean Archaeology (HAA 103 and CLS 163)
- ARCH 164: Greek Art and Archaeology (HAA 104 and CLS 164)
- ARCH 167: Tyrrhenian Archaeology (HAA 105 and CLS 167)
- ARCH 168: Roman Art and Archaeology (HAA 106 and CLS 168)
- ARCH 175: Introduction to Geospatial Humanities (CLS 125 and UEP 103)
- ARCH 187: Problems In Classical Archaeology (CLS 187)
- ARCH 188: Problems In Classical Archaeology (CLS 188)
- ARCH 190: Materials In Archaeology and Anthropology
- ARCH 191: Advanced Study or Seminar in Archaeology
- ARCH 192: Advanced Study or Seminar in Archaeology
- CLS 87: Special Topics in Old World Archaeology
- CLS 160: Computational Methods for the Humanities