University of Oxford Online Courses in Archaeology
Cave paintings, castles and pyramids, Neanderthals, Romans and Vikings - archaeology is about the excitement of discovery, finding out about our ancestors, exploring landscape through time, piecing together puzzles of the past from material remains.
Our courses enable you to experience all this through online archaeological resources based on primary evidence from excavations and artefacts and from complex scientific processes and current thinking. Together with guided reading, discussion and activities you can experience how archaeologists work today to increase our knowledge of people and societies from the past.
Exploring Roman Britain
Britain’s inclusion in the Roman empire for c.400 years has left us with impressive remains - Hadrian’s Wall, the Roman baths at Bath and villas, forts and roads all recognisable in the British landscape today, but what was life like and how affected were people in different communities around the country during that time? Find out more about this course
Origins of Human Behaviour: the evidence from archaeology
What makes the human species different from other primates? When did we become human? How did the brain and intelligence, language and social organisation evolve, and art, symbolism and religion emerge? Explore these questions and others through the archaeological and fossil evidence for the development of human behaviour from six million years ago to the end of the last ice age. Find out more about this course
Ritual and Religion in Prehistory
How can we begin to understand the spiritual lives of people in the distant past? When do religious ideologies first appear on the human evolutionary timescale? How can we recognise and interpret ancient myth and ritual from prehistoric burial mounds, temples, art and artefacts? Examine how tangible archaeological evidence from across the world can demonstrate ritual activity and sacred tradition. Find out more about this course
Vikings: Raiders, Traders and Settlers
Ravagers, despoilers, heathens - the Vikings are usually regarded as bloodthirsty seafaring pirates, causing fear and terror throughout Europe, yet they were also traders, settlers and farmers with a highly developed artistic culture and legal system. Discover the real impact of the Vikings through recent archaeological evidence and documentary sources. Find out more about this course
The Department for Continuing Education also offers a class-based, Undergraduate Certificate in Archaeology. See here for details.
http://onlinecourses.conted.ox.ac.uk/subjects/archaeology.php
