Power, Profit, and Pillage: The Rise and Fall of Trading Kingdoms in Asia

A course survey of the pre- and protohistoric archaeology of the eastern half of Asia. Topics include the origins and evolution of agricultural societies, the emergence of village and urban life, and the rise of states and kingdoms. The early states were often characterized and even reinforced by elaborate symbolic and religious systems expressed through ritual, art, and architecture-topics also covered by the course.