Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Korshi Dosoo
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Credit points |
Credit points
3
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
12cp or admission to GCertArts
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
This unit deals with the art and archaeology of Egypt in Late Antiquity. Themes studied include: ecclesiastical and non-ecclesiastical architecture; settlement and cemetery archaeology; paintings and decorative motifs; objects of daily life; and religious iconography.
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Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Submission and Extensions
Assignments are to be submitted online, using Turnitin. All assignments are due in by 5pm Friday on the relevant week. The class test will be administered in-class for internal students, and on iLearn for external students.
Extensions are available on medical grounds and may be requested under other special circumstances. Apply direct to the Convener.
Penalties for Late Submission
A penalty of 2% per day (including weekends) will be imposed for late submission of assessment tasks unless medical grounds or other special circumstances apply.
Name | Weighting | Due |
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Short paper 1 | 15% | Week 5 |
Short paper 2 | 25% | Week 8 |
Exhibition catalogue | 40% | Week 10 |
In-class test | 20% | Week 13 |
Due: Week 5
Weighting: 15%
Please choose one of the following websites (either archaeological projects or museum exhibitions) for evaluation (500 words ±100):
Group A: Museum exhibitions
Choose one of the following exhibition websites:
(1) Byzantine and Islam: Age of Transition, The Metropolitan Museum, 2012: http://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2012/byzantium-and-islam
or:
(2) Coptic Art Revealed, Palace of Amir Taz, 2010-2011: http://copticartrevealed.coptic-cairo.com/index.html
Group B: Archaeological digs
Choose one of the following archaeological websites:
(3) IFAO, Baouît excavation page: http://www.ifao.egnet.net/archeologie/baouit/
or:
(4) Archaeological Museum in Kraków, Marea excavation page: http://www.pcma.uw.edu.pl/pl/newsletter-pcma/2006/late-roman-byzantine-and-medieval/marea-egypt/
Whichever topic you choose, please discuss – briefly – most of the following points:
Background of the website
Goals and methods
Technical side
Evaluation
Do not simply summarise the contents of the information on the website, briefly mentioning what the topic and the sub-topics are. Specific details should be discussed in order to make a comment or criticism.
The assessment criteria against which this task will be assessed are clarity of expression, and degree and sophistication of analysis.
Due: Week 8
Weighting: 25%
Summarize in a short essay (2000 words ± 250) a period of the history of the Coptic Church as reflected in art and archaeology.
The goal of this short paper is two-fold:
How to proceed:
The assessment criteria against which this task will be assessed are accuracy of information presented, coverage of required content, and sophistication, clarity and originality of the argument.
Due: Week 10
Weighting: 40%
You have all seen museum exhibitions and consulted or bought museum catalogues. You will make your own exhibition catalogue of First Millennium art. Produce a short exhibition catalogue (2500 words ± 250 – which should not make more than 10 pages including pictures) on one of the following topics:
The catalogue needs to have the following elements (with “introduction” and “description”):
Search the museum websites indicated in the study guide for suitable pieces. Integrate the pictures. Use colour if possible. Write captions for the individual items on the basis of the museum descriptions.
NOTE: You are allowed to copy the technical data for the artefacts from the museum website including provenance, material etc. – this is not considered plagiarism.
Write for a general audience, but ensure that your information is accurate and rigorously researched.
The catalogue may be submitted as a word document, image (jpeg, tiff etc.), PDF, or website. If you need technical help with this task contact the convener. The focus of this assessment is research and writing skills rather than design ability.
The assessment criteria against which this task will be assessed are accuracy in the information presented, clarity, insight and originality of expression, and fulfilment of bibliographical and presentation requirements.
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 20%
The in-class test will consist of a short (20 minute) test covering all of the subjects discussed during the semester. For external students, the test will be available on iLearn.
The assessment criteria against which this task will be assessed are accuracy, clarity of expression, recall of key information, and demonstration of insight into the key themes of the course.
Delivery mode
This course will consist of a two-hour lecture and a one-hour tutorial each week. Attendance at all classes and lectures is compulsory. The lectures and tutorials will be recorded via the Echo360 system, and made available for download on iLearn: https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/
Students are required to have regular access to a computer and the internet, not only for iLearn and e-reserve content, but also to access online catalogues for assessment. Mobile devices alone are not sufficient.
For technical support go to: http://mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/informatics/help
For student quick guides on the use of iLearn go to: http://mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/guides.htm
For lecture times and classrooms please consult: https://timetables.mq.edu.au/2015/
Completion of the unit
In order to complete the unit all assessments must be submitted and an overall mark of 50% or above is required.
Readings
There is no comprehensive and accessible English-language textbook which covers the entire field of Coptic art and archaeology. Those who wish to purchase a book related to the topics dealt with in this course can chose the following one:
Roger S. Bagnall and Dominic W. Rathbone, Egypt From Alexander to the Copts - An Archaeological and Historical Guide, London: The British Museum Press 2004. (also available in a US edition: Egypt: from Alexander to the early Christians: an archaeological and historical guide, Los Angeles : J. Paul Getty Museum, 2004)
This book contains an overview of all the archaeological sites of Egypt from the Ptolemaic, Roman and Christian period, and contains brief description of the important sites from the Christian era drawing both on archaeological and literary sources. Because many of the sites discussed in this book are monastic, it will also be a useful investment for students intending to enrol in AHIS360 Monasticism in Egypt. The absence of the textbooks will be supplemented by readings from books, journals, and encyclopedias. These will be available either on e-reserve (see below), freely on the web or through the subscriptions to electronic journals and other electronic resources Macquarie University Library has entered into and which students can access from their own computers. Readings not accessible via these avenues of access are available in the collection of materials students will be able to download from the electronic reserve part of the unit’s website (see below “Accessing the unit on-line”).
Another important resource is the Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia. References to this work in the unit schedule refer to the printed version, but students may wish to use the free on-line version instead, which has the same articles: http://ccdl.libraries.claremont.edu/cdm/landingpage/collection/cce
E-reserve
The electronic materials for this unit placed on e-reserve can be accessed directly from the reserve page of Macquarie University Library at: http://www.library.mq.edu.au/reserve/
Just enter the unit code (AHIS260)
Week 1: General background on Roman, Byzantine and Early Islamic Egypt; the history of research on Coptic art and archaeology
Reading
Tutorial: Introduction to the unit and to one another
Questions to consider and discuss:
Week 2: Architecture: Construction materials and elements
Reading
Tutorial
Questions for consideration this week:
Week 3: Church architecture
Readings
Additional Readings
Tutorial: The Church of the Monastery of Apa Shenoute (the so-called White Monastery)
Have a look at the plan and photos of the church of the monastery of Apa Shenoute and consider the following questions:
Week 4: Monastic architecture
Reading
Additional Readings
Tutorial: The Monastery of Apa Jeremias
Please read the general background articles and the excavation report by Quibell, esp. pp. 1-30, and consider the following questions:
Week 5: The architecture of pilgrimage and domestic architecture
Readings
Additional Readings
Tutorial: Private houses
Compare the layout of the houses excavated in the city of Jeme and Armant and in the pilgrimage centre of Abu Mina and address one or more of the following questions:
Week 6: Funerary architecture
Readings
Additional Readings
Tutorial: The necropolis of Kom Abu Billu/Terenuthis in Lower Egypt
Please look at the exhibition “Portals to Eternity: The Necropolis at Terenouthis in Lower Egypt” and address one or more of the following questions:
Week 7: Sculpture
Readings
Additional Readings
Török, Laszlo, “Notes on the Chronology of Late Antique Stone Sculpture in Egypt”, Acts of the 3rd International Congress of Coptic Studies, Warsaw 1984 (BX136.2.158/1984), pp. 437-485.
Tutorial: What is Coptic? What is Coptic Art?
Thelma Thomas takes issue with the traditional use of the word “Coptic” in discussing the art and architecture of post-Pharaonic Egypt. COnsider the folowing questions:
Do the periods of Coptic Art History as advanced by Du Bourguet in his article “Art and Architecture, Coptic” and by Messiha overlap? Which definition of Coptic art is at the basis of the classification of either?
Week 8: Funerary stelae
Readings
Additional Readings
A comprehensive annotated bibliography on stelae from Egypt will be provided for your interest on the website.
Tutorial: The sociology of death
In addition to the readings indicated above, examples of stelae and texts of inscriptions will be provided on the website.
Please consider the following questions:
Week 9: Painting
Readings
Additional Readings
Tutorial: The Monastery of St Antony and its paintings
Based on the reading of Gabra and Bolman’s work, please address one or more of the following questions:
Week 10: Book art, woodwork and ivory
Readings
Additional Readings
Tutorial: Museum catalogues - what they reveal and conceal
Please look at the following museum websites, click on a few pictures of artefacts to expand, read the descriptions and consider the following questions:
Compare with the original paper labels in an old and underfunded museum with more artefacts than could possibly be exhibited (just for the record, the Coptic Museum has a new website now: http://www.coptic-cairo.com/museum/museum.html):
Coptic Museum, Cairo, (at ArtServe; the photographs include the original legends affixed to the exhibits in the museum in French and English)
http://rubens.anu.edu.au/raid5/egypt/cairo/museums/coptic_museum/ivories/
http://rubens.anu.edu.au/raid5/egypt/cairo/museums/coptic_museum/manuscripts/
http://rubens.anu.edu.au/raid5/egypt/cairo/museums/coptic_museum/woodwork/
Week 11: Ceramics, metalwork and glass
Readings
Additional Readings
Tutorial: Ceramics
Please read Winlock and Crum pp. 78-97 and study the plates mentioned in the main text. Consider the following questions:
Week 12: Textiles
Readings
Additional Readings
Tutorial: Textiles
Please address one or more of the following questions:
Week 13: Summary and general discussion
Readings
None for this week
Tutorial
There are no set questions for this week. We will reflect on the course, and try to draw some general conclusions.
Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central. Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:
Academic Honesty Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html
Assessment Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/assessment/policy.html
Grading Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grading/policy.html
Grade Appeal Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/gradeappeal/policy.html
Grievance Management Policy http://mq.edu.au/policy/docs/grievance_management/policy.html
Disruption to Studies Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/disruption_studies/policy.html The Disruption to Studies Policy is effective from March 3 2014 and replaces the Special Consideration Policy.
In addition, a number of other policies can be found in the Learning and Teaching Category of Policy Central.
Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/student_conduct/
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Date | Description |
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25/02/2015 | Clarified information on assessment due dates. |
13/02/2015 | Added additional material to reflect change from 11- to 13-week course. |