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 course work with first-hand experience in recovery, conservation, and interpretation of material remains.

The archaeology program has had affiliations over the years with several summer field schools and other institutes, including the Murlo excavation in Italy, the Talloires/Mt. Musièges excavation in France, the Old Sturbridge Village Field School, and with the Center for Materials Research in Archaeology and Ethnology (CMRAE), an alliance of Boston-area programs which offers specialized course work in the scientific dimensions of archaeological study based at M.I.T., an alliance of Boston-area programs which offers specialized course work in the scientific dimensions of archaeological study. Students are also encouraged to take appropriate coursework at the universities affiliated in the Boston Consortium (Boston College, Boston University, Brandeis University).

Program Requirements and Policies

11 courses are required for the Archaeology major.
No major course may be taken pass/fail.
Seniors are encouraged to write an interdisciplinary capstone (research paper).

Course Requirements

Four required courses
- Anthropology 39: Gateway Course In Sociocultural Anthropology (may substitute ANTH 20: Global Cities or ANTH 27: Human Rights and Justice in Cultural Context)
- Archaeology 27: Classical Archaeology (co-listed as FAH 19 and CLS 27)
- Archaeology 30: Prehistoric Archaeology (co-listed as ANTH 50)
- Earth & Ocean Sciences 2: Environmental Geology W/lab
Seven elective courses from History, Natural Science, and Art with the following distribution:
- Two (2) History courses taken from:
  CLS 26: Ancient Egypt
  CLS 37: History of Ancient Greece
  CLS 38: History of Ancient Rome
  CLS 47: Greece, Rome And China
  CLS 85: Special Topics in Ancient History
  CLS 142: The Rise of the Greeks
  CLS 143: Greeks And Barbarians
  CLS 144: Athens: Marathons to Socrates
  CLS 146: Ancient Greek and Roman Medicine
  CLS 147: Greece, Rome And China
  CLS 185: Seminar in Ancient History
  HIST 6: World Trade, 1000-2000
  HIST 13: Reconstructing Africa's Past to 1850
  HIST 17: The Americas
  HIST 23: Colonial North America & The Atlantic World To 1763
  HIST 40: History of Pre-Modern China
  HIST 50: History of Ancient Greece
  HIST 51: History of Ancient Rome
  HIST 72: World of Islam
  HIST 76: Ancient Egypt
  HIST 105: Greece, Rome, And China
  HIST 148: The Rise Of The Greeks
  HIST 149: Greeks And Barbarians
  HIST 151: Athens: Marathon To Socrates
- Two (2) Natural Science courses taken from:
  ANTH 40 (formerly 20): 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:
  ARCH 26: Ancient Egypt
  ARCH 49: Archaeology Of Complex Societies
  ARCH 51: Special Topics In Archaeology
  ARCH 52: Special Topics In Archaeology
  ARCH 128: Mesoamerican Archaeology
  ARCH 160: Giza Pyramids: Archaeology, History, And Technology
  ARCH 163: Aegean Archaeology
  ARCH 164: Greek Art and Archaeology
  ARCH 167: Tyrrhenian Archaeology
  ARCH 168: Roman Art And Archaeology
  ARCH 187: Problems In Classical Archaeology
  ARCH 188: Problems In Classical Archaeology
  ARCH 190: Materials In Archaeology And Anthropology
  ARCH 191: Advanced Study Or Seminar In Archaeology
  ARCH 192: Advanced Study Or Seminar In Archaeology
  CLS 26: Ancient Egypt
  CLS 87: Special Topics In Old World Archaeology
  CLS 160: Computational Methods for the Humanities
  CLS 163: Aegean Archaeology
  CLS 164: Greek Art And Archaeology
  CLS 167: Tyrrhenian Archaeology
  CLS 168: Roman Art And Archaeology
  CLS 187: Problems In Classical Archaeology
  FAH 103: Aegean Archaeology
  FAH 104: Greek Art And Archaeology
  FAH 105: Tyrrhenian Archaeology
  FAH 106: Roman Art And Archaeology