ARCHKRA055 Organic Materials in Archaeological Practice

Faculty of Philosophy and Science in Opava
Winter 2025
Extent and Intensity
0/2. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Hana Lafková (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Hana Lafková
Institute of Historical Sciences – Faculty of Philosophy and Science in Opava
Timetable of Seminar Groups
ARCHKRA055/A: Mon 10:35–12:10 H5, H. Lafková
Prerequisites
The student must have a basic understanding of the periodization of prehistory and the Middle Ages, as well as of fundamental material culture.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
Familiarizing students with bone, wooden, and leather objects of everyday use made by our ancestors, and with the technologies of their production from the Paleolithic to the Early Modern Period. Students will gain an overview of technological changes in manufacturing across the centuries, acquire a basic understanding of typological series, and become acquainted with key literature that they can draw on in their further studies as well as in their professional careers.
Learning outcomes
Familiarization with key literature; development of foreign-language competencies for working with international scholarship in English, German, and Polish; the ability to correctly assign artifacts to their typological categories; proper photographic and drawn documentation of objects.
Syllabus

1.     Introduction to the study and history of specialized research.

2.     Introduction to the material properties of bone, leather, and wooden artifacts.

3.     Finds of bone, wooden, and leather objects or their fragments from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic.

4.     Finds of the target group of objects from the Eneolithic to the La Tène period.

5.     Selected finds from the Roman period to early Slavic settlement.

6.     Bone artifacts of the Early Middle Ages.

7.     Bone artifacts of the High Middle Ages and the Early Modern Period.

8.     The use of wood as a construction material from the Early Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period.

9.     Wooden artifacts – manufacturing technologies and typological series of objects from the Early and High Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period; specialized crafts.

10.  Tanners and other medieval crafts; the production process.

11.  The development of shoemaking from the Early Middle Ages to the 19th century at selected European sites.

12.  Other leather artifacts.

13.  Practical exercises – drawing and photographing bone, wooden, and leather artifacts.

Teaching methods
The course material is presented to students in the form of a visual presentation accompanied by text and expert commentary. Independent study of both Czech and international literature is an integral part of the course. During class sessions, students are introduced to citation practices and to the literature that they may continue to consult in their further studies.
Assessment methods
Attendance and active engagement with the course material; evaluation of summaries of both Czech and international literature; understanding of photographic and drawn documentation of the artifacts discussed.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
Study Materials
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