From Lab to Museum: Thinking with Things

Undergraduate / Graduate

Most people know that archaeologists dig things up. But what happens to those artifacts after they're excavated? This class explores how archaeologists, anthropologists, historians, art historians, and museum professionals make use of the rich data available from archaeology to answer questions about the past, reconsider the present, and imagine the future. Through a variety of course materials, field trips and hands-on practice, students will gain a foundation in thinking through things from a wide range of times and places. We will consider the ethics of working with archaeological collections, including questions of access and efforts to repatriate stolen belongings and ancestors. As we follow archaeological materials from their excavation to their arrival in a lab and through their curation and eventual storage, we will examine how different forms of public engagement can help make the study of the past relevant and accessible to present-day communities.