GEOARCHAEOLOGY, MORPHOLOGY AND FORMATION PROCESSES
Academic year and teacher
If you can't find the course description that you're looking for in the above list,
please see the following instructions >>
- Versione italiana
- Academic year
- 2022/2023
- Teacher
- STEFANO LUGLI
- Credits
- 6
- Didactic period
- Secondo Semestre
- SSD
- GEO/02
Training objectives
- The course aim is to provide the skill to reconstruct the stratigraphic and sedimentary evolution of environments of archaeological interest. Particular consideration is given to the geoarchaeological contexts which are more common around the world, the alluvial ones, and the most famous internationally, such as Pompeii, Herculaneum.
The acquired knowledge will be developed through practical description of the stratigraphic sections, classification of sediments and sedimentary structures, and the preparation of a stratigraphic column from a core drilled through various archaeological layers. In particular, the purpose and also to provide practical tools for stratigraphic correlations and environmental reconstructions. The practical aspects are designed to prepare students for the study of the nature and origin of diverse geoarchaeological contexts. Prerequisites
- Basic knowledge of non-specialist nature for the principles of stratigraphy and archeology. The knowledge will be developed during the course in order to eventually fill gaps for students having different backgrounds.
Course programme
- The course content includes a first part (about 35% of the length of the course) focused on the study and classification of sediment according to the depositional environments. One section is describing the main sedimentary structures for the reconstruction of paleo-environments and palaeocurrents with particular reference to extreme and catastrophic events such as floods, earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.
The second part (about 30%) focuses on examples of stratigraphic and sedimentological studies in archaeological excavations in different depositional environments, with particular reference to the Po Valley.
The third part (about 35%) focused on geoarchaeological reconstructions of the most famous sites in the world: Pompeii and Herculaneum. It reconstructs the sequence of dramatic events that destroyed the sites during the eruption of Vesuvius, with particular reference to the contexts of discovery of the bodies of the inhabitants.
An integral part of the course is the laboratory work for the compilation of the stratigraphic column of a core of archaeological interest. Didactic methods
- The activities are developed through lectures, laboratory exercises with the preparation of a detailed stratigraphy column of a core of archaeological interest.
The lessons are transmitted from one of four classrooms of the partner universities and for students attending remotely at home. Lessons are recorded and made available online for students. Also the video of the laboratory practical activity (core description) is available by logging in to the network IF @ (http://sea.unife.it; e-mail: assistenzafad@unife.it. In addition, the pdf of the PowerPoint lectures are available on the online page of the course. Learning assessment procedures
- The test is oral and is aimed to assess the achievement of a sufficient level of knowledge / skills and application skills related to the expected learning outcomes (70%). It will also serve to evaluate overall transversal skills (30%): communication skills, independent judgment and learning ability. The final overall evaluation is expressed with a mark out of thirty. The evaluation consists of an oral test. An integral part of the examination is the discussion of the stratigraphic column of the core of archaeological interest compiled during the practical test. Students unable to attend the practical test are required to discuss a stratigraphic sequence of archaeological interest of their choice (published or unpublished).
Reference texts
- Cremaschi, M., Manuale di Geoarcheologia. Ed. Laterza. 2000.
A. Amorosi, R. Pignone (a cura di) 2009, La pianura. Geologia suoli e ambienti in Emilia-Romagna. Ed. Pendragon.
G. Mastrolorenzo , P. Petrone, L. Pappalardo, F. M. Guarino, 2010.Lethal Thermal Impact at Periphery of Pyroclastic Surges: Evidences at Pompeii. Plos One open access.
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0011127
