Aims of the course
- To introduce participants to the varied ways in which humans have treated their dead throughout time and across the world, and how this impacts death and burial today
- To provide the necessary knowledge for a better understanding of mortuary studies in archaeology and anthropology and how scientific studies and humanities play a role in this
- To familiarise participants with case studies that emphasize the significance of death studies not only in learning more about the peoples of the past but where we are going with how we treat our dead in the future
Course content overview
Why is the skull such a fascinating subject for artists? And why are catacombs popular tourist destinations? These are just some of the questions we will discuss in this course about the unique and unusual ways we honour and inter our dead. Burial sites, human remains, grave goods, and memento mori have embedded information to offer not only about the deceased, but also shifts in ideology of living populations. This course will present a wide range of topics relating to the beliefs and treatment of the dead, across cultures and through time, with current research including how archaeologists are using biomolecular evidence to access how identity is encoded in bones and teeth. There will also be discussion of new and unique ways contemporary society interacts with the deceased, featuring cremation ash tattoos, jewelled skeletons, and zombie history.
Schedule (this course is completed entirely online)
Orientation Week : 23-29 May 2022
Teaching Weeks: 30 May-3 July 2022
Feedback Week: 4-10 July 2022
Teaching Week 1 - The archaeology of death and burial
In our introductory session we will take a look at the major themes and contributors in mortuary archaeology and discuss how burials and bones are analysed via excavations. We will also discuss the ethics of working with human remains and the importance of ethical guidelines when working with the dead.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the participants should have:
- A basic understanding of the burial archaeology and the role that human remains and burials play in understanding the past.
- A knowledge of what ethical considerations there are in working with human remains and how osteoarchaeologists try to address the ethics in every day practice.
Teaching Week 2 - The Ancient Dead
In this session we will focus on more specific forms of burial treatment such as mummification, excarnation, and cremation and look at examples from around the world via a death map activity. We will also look at deviant burials with unique case studies such as Vampire burials and human sacrifice. I will take you on a virtual tour of my lab to show you what scientific methods we use to study human remains.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the participants should have:
- A better idea of the way in which peoples of the past dealt with their deceased and the reasons why which leads to inferences made about societal structure and belief systems.
- Familiarity with the scientific techniques osteoarchaeologists use to analyse human remains
Teaching Week 3 - Memento Mori: the relationship between death and art
This week we will examine the pre-historic and historic relationship between death and art through modified skulls, painted effigies, bejewelled skeletons, Renaissance art, and zombie culture. We will dive into the ways in which philosophy, spirituality, demonology, and medicine influenced how humans have expressed concerns about death through various media.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the participants should have:
- A stronger sense of how humans express views about death in creative ways.
- A familiarity with the how humans have modified their bodies throughout prehistory as a way to signal social status and economic power.
Teaching Week 4 - Catacombs, crypts, and graveyards: death tourism
This week will travel the world looking at places of memory and spaces of commemoration including charnel houses, catacombs, royal crypts and mortuary monuments. We will evaluate why these places have become popular tourism sites and discuss the impact this has on these places through a ‘dark tourism’ lens.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the participants should have:
- A better understanding of deathscapes and why these appeal or not to a wider audience and the emotional impact these places can have on the living.
Teaching Week 5 - Ashes to Ink: new ways of engaging with the dead
In the final teaching week of this course we will look at new and innovative ways in which humans today are treating our dead with a focus on modern anthropology. We will review what options are now available for dealing with the deceased and discuss the death positive movement as well as cremation tattoos and how popular culture is influencing the field of mortuary studies.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the students should have:
- A more thorough understanding of how the business of death is changing and what options are available to the public now.
- A new appreciation of how ancient rituals are being revitalised in new death practices.
Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.
While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).
Virtual Learning Environment
Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards etc).
Certificate of participation
A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.
