Classics 239AC - Topics in Classics: 'Development of Ancient Cities'

The world's first large, vibrant, and developed cities arose in antiquity, fundamentally changing the lives of those who inhabited these ancient urban centers. Cities became places not only with large populations, but also economic and religious centers, venues in which the powerful could communicate their authority, and loci of social change. This course introduces the urban centers of the ancient Middle East, Egypt, and Mediterranean and also interrogates processes of urbanization and how urbanization affected residents of ancient cities. The city will be the lens through which we will investigate ancient politics, religion, social organizations, and cultures. We will study cities as dynamic environments, as places that were constructed by people but that also influenced the people inhabiting them. To accomplish these goals, we will make extensive use of archaeological evidence and will closely examine the public spaces, religious structures, houses, and infrastructures constructed in ancient cities. This course will begin with some of the earliest cities on earth, in Mesopotamia and Egypt, then will progress to cities of the Greco-Roman Mediterranean, and will culminate with the creation of Christian cities in late antiquity.

Course limited to sophomores, juniors and seniors