Division of Archaeology

Department of Archaeology and Anthropology

Undergraduate courses

Information for students considering archaeology

Cambridge University Division of Archaeology ranked number 1

[Undergraduates recording a trial trench at Castle Coeffin on the Isle of Lismore] Archaeology involves the study of past human diversity through material remains, sites and landscapes. If you are interested in objects, burials, buildings, settlements, ancient texts, the interaction of humans and the environment, and human social, economic and political behaviour, Archaeology may be the subject for you.

The Division of Archaeology at Cambridge is a part of the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology and the Faculty of Human, Social and Political Sciences. Students interested in Archaeology should apply through UCAS for the Human, Social and Political Sciences Tripos. The HSPS course comprises a broad introductory first year with the opportunity to specialise in Archaeology in years 2 and 3.

Specialist courses in Assyriology and Egyptology, which involve the study of the ancient languages and cultures of Mesopotamia and Egypt, are also offered within the Division of Archaeology via the HSPS Tripos.

The teaching of Archaeology at Cambridge combines lectures, seminars, practical work and lab experience. Fieldwork is a vital element of the course and there are many opportunities for students to join department-based research projects. The Archaeology Division staff includes well-established scholars who are acknowledged leaders in the field, as well as exciting young scholars with developing reputations for excellence.

[Cambridge undergraduates working with `A' level students as part of the Access Cambridge Archaeology programme] We teach courses on a wide diversity of archaeological topics ranging in time from the Palaeolithic to the modern day, and in space from the Americas through the UK and Europe, to the Middle East, South Asia, South East Asia and Australia. We also offer courses on archaeological theory and on museum and heritage studies.

[Undergraduates on a Department field trip to Moravia] There is an official student society of the Division of Archaeology at Cambridge Universitythe Archaeology Field Club, and students from the Department also publish their own academic journalthe Archaeological Review from Cambridge.

The subjects that are taught in Archaeology include archaeological theory and practice and a uniquely wide range of geographical or chronological specialties:

Part I (1st year)

  • Development of Human Society
  • Archaeology in action I
  • Introduction to Egypt and Mesopotamia
  • Akkadian language
  • Ancient Egyptian language

Part II (2nd and 3rd years)

  • Archaeological thought
  • Archaeology in action II
  • Palaeolithic of the Old World
  • Topics in Palaeolithic archaeology
  • European prehistory
  • Special topics in European prehistory
  • Archaeology of ancient Egypt
  • Ancient Egyptian religion
  • Ancient Egyptian language
  • Archaeology of Mesopotamia
  • Mesopotamian literature, religion and science
  • History of Mesopotamia
  • Akkadian language
  • Sumerian language
  • Europe in the first millennium AD: Anglo-Saxon & Scandinavian archaeology
  • Archaeology of medieval Britain
  • Archaeology of South Asia
  • Archaeology of South America
  • Archaeology of Mesoamerica and North America
  • Archaeology of Africa
  • Archaeological science

In your second and third year, it is also possible to choose some subjects offered by other Departments and Faculties, including those within the Faculty of Human, Social and Political Sciences, and the Faculty of Classics.

Joint courses are offered in:

  • Archaeology and Biological Anthropology
  • Archaeology and Social Anthropology
  • Assyriology and Egyptology
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