Summer 2006

This course is offered abroad only for a five-week long season. Students will attend ten 2-hour seminar discussions every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon. The topics are designed to encourage students to think contextually and critically about archaeological excavation procedures, the specific features of the Villa of Maxentius and late Roman art, architecture and history. Readings included in the course pack will be assigned for each topic. The topics to be discussed include: Late Roman political history, Roman coins and the Late Roman economy, Tetrarchic sculpture, Late Roman wall painting and mosaics, Roman building techniques and materials, Late Roman imperial villa design (Split, Piazza Armerina, Gamzigrad), Late Roman pottery, Maxentius' Building program in Rome.

Students will also participate on three field trips led by the instructors on Saturdays. The field trips include archaeological sites and museums related to the history, art and architecture of the villa complex of Maxentius. Proposed field trips include: Via Appia -Tomb of Caecilia Metella and the Villa of the Quintilli (approx. 5 hours); Palatine and the late buildings in the Forum Romanum - Palatine including House of Augustus, The Domus Flavia/Augustana, Temple of Romulus, Basilica of Maxentius, Arch of Constantine, Temple of Venus and Roma (approx. 7 hours); Tivoli - Villa of Hadrian and Villa d'Este (approx. 7 hours)

The final component of the historical course consists of two required independent visits to sites and museums in Rome that contain materials related to the villa complex of Maxentius. All sites and museums are easily accessible by foot or bus from the housing on the Appia Antica. Students will be given an assignment sheet to guide them. Assignment sheets will be handed in and graded. YOUR ORIGINAL ENTRANCE TICKET MUST BE ATTACHED TO EACH ASSIGNMENT SHEET. Museum and site locations and hours will be provided. The options for independent site/museum visits are: The catacombs and basilica of S. Sebastiano, the exhibition of "Maxentian regalia" at the Palazzo Massimo, and the Roman houses under the church of Santi Giovanni e Paolo.

TENTATIVE SEMINAR SCHEDULE:

Week 1 : Orientation mtg; Maxentius' building program
Undergraduate Readings: Coursepack Contents Numbers 2, 6
Additional Graduate Readings: Coursepack Content Number 4; Curran, Pagan City, chapter 1

Week 2 : archaeological stratigraphy, Roman contructions methods
Undergraduate Readings: Coursepack Contents Numbers 15 (focus on sections 2 & 5), 5
Additional Graduate Readings: Coursepack Content Number 15 (all)

**Saturday, July 8th: Field Trip: THE LATE BUILDINGS OF THE FORUM ROMANUM AND THE PALATINE
-graduate presentations: Temple of Romulus, Curia, Temple of Venus and Roma, Basilica of Maxentius

Week 3 : Comparative earlier imperial villas, later Roman palaces
Undergraduate Readings: Coursepack Contents Numbers 7-10; Greene, Roman Pottery (optional)
Additional Graduate Readings: Curran, Pagan City, chapters 3 & 4

**Saturday, July 15: Field Trip: THE VIA APPIA AND THE VILLA OF THE QUINTILLII
-graduate presentations: Tomb of Caecilia Metella, Villa of the Quintillii

Week 4: Mosaics & wall painting, late Roman sculpture
Undergraduate Readings: Coursepack Contents Numbers 11, 12, 14
Additional Graduate Readings: Curran, Pagan City, chapter 6

**Saturday, July 22: Field Trip: THE VILLA OF HADRIAN AT TIVOLI

Week 5 : Late Roman history, numismatics
Undergraduate Readings: Coursepack Contents Numbers 1, 4, 13
Additional Graduate Readings: none

July 27th - Two assignment sheets due
Final Exam: July 28th, 4-6 p.m. (16.00 - 18.00)

Undergraduate work required:
Attendance and participation at lectures, discussions and site trips (45%); final exam (35%); assignment sheets for independent site visits (2 total) (20%) . The undergraduate final exam will consist of objective questions (multiple choice) and two short essays (one of which will require discussion and interpretation of information acquired through the required independent site visits). In addition, undergraduates will not lead on-site presentation of related monuments.

Graduate work required:
Attendance and participation at lectures, discussions and site trips (35%); Final exam that consists of three essays (one of which will require discussion and interpretation of information acquired through the required independent site visits). The graduate exam will ask students to discuss the course material in a comprehensive and critical manner. (25%); Assignment sheets for independent site visits (2 total) (20%); On-site presentations of pre-assigned monuments or artifacts (20%).