COURSE SYLLABUS FORM
American University of Beirut
Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Department : History and Archaeology
Course Number and Title: AROL 223: Archaeology of the Hellenistic world
1. Course Learning Outcomes
The course is intended as an introduction to the Hellenistic period, from Alexander the
Great to Cleopatra of Egypt. Students are expected to develop an understanding of the
historical framework of this period. They should become familiar with the various
sources of evidence for the Hellenistic world: architectural remains, coinage, inscriptions,
papyri and other written sources, and how scholars have used this evidence to construct a
picture of the Hellenistic period. Students are expected to apply the knowledge acquired
from the lectures to solve problems and synthesize material: identifying and commenting
on the significance of artifacts; and making connections between different classes of
material and textual evidence.
2. Resources Available to Students
The course is illustrated with video documentaries, overhead projections and slides.
General Reading List
Main text:
P. Green, From Alexander to Actium, chapters 1, 2, 8, 9, 18, 23, 25, 30
Other reading material:
P. Bilde et al., Centre and Periphery in the Hellenistic World
B. H. Fowler, The Hellenistic Aesthetic
J. Grainger, The Cities of Seleukid Syria
J. Grainger, Hellenistic Phoenicia
M. Grant, From Alexander to Cleopatra
J. Griffiths Pedley, Greek Art and Archaeology
A. Kuhrt, S. Sherwin-White, Hellenism in the East
S. Sherwin-White, A. Kuhrt, From Samarkhand to Sardis. A New Approach to the
Seleucid Empire
3. Grading Criteria
In addition to a mid-term and a final exam, students are expected to write a term paper on
a topic chosen by the instructor. The mid term exam consists of an essay question and a
section containing images. Students are expected to choose one essay question and one
image, explaining what the image is and how it contributes to our knowledge of the
Hellenistic period. The term paper assigns open-ended questions where there is no single
‘right’ answer, and no one source a student can turn to in order to find an answer. It
invites students to look for connections between artifacts and texts, and to deal with
ancient cultural and intellectual issues. Students are encouraged to think for themselves
and apply knowledge learned to a unique problem. The final exam covers all the material
in the course. There is an essay question and two images to choose.
The weighting is: mid-term 30%; term paper 30%; final 40%.
4. Schedule
WEEK 1
1. Introduction. Terms used.
2. The Hellenistic World: Basic Geography. The sources of evidence.
3. Philip of Macedon. Two Macedonian sites: Pella and Vergina.
WEEK 2
4. The Persian Empire: Persepolis
5. The Campaigns of Alexander the Great.
6. The Coinage of Philip and Alexander.
WEEK 3
7. The regency of Perdiccas
8. The settlement at the Three Parks. Antigonus and Eumenes.
9. Antigonus’ bid for empire 1.
WEEK 4
10. Antigonus’ bid for empire 2. The coinages of the successors.
11. Urbanization of the Hellenistic World. The Alexandrian foundations and the
successors.
12. Alexandria and Ptolemaic Egypt 1. The Library and Museum.
WEEK 5
13. Alexandria and Ptolemaic Egypt 2.
14. Antioch and the Seleucid foundations.
15. Hellenistic Sculpture: The transitional phase.
WEEK 6
16. Painting and mosaic.
17. Pottery.
18. Demetrius the Besieger.
WEEK 7
19. Seleucus’ bid for supreme power.
20. The third century.
21. Third century coinage.
WEEK 8
22. MID TERM
23. Pergamum 1.
24. Pergamum 2. The Asclepeion and Hellenistic medicine.
WEEK 9
25. The West: Italy, Sicily, Rome and Carthage.
26. The later third century. Rome and the Hellenistic World.
27. Philip V of Macedon and Rome. Antiochus III and the southern Levant.
WEEK 10
28. Mid Hellenistic Sculpture: The ‘Baroque’.
29. Mid Hellenistic coinage.
30. Hellenistic architecture: Priene.
WEEK 11
31. Hellenistic architecture: Asia Minor
32. Hellenistic architecture: Greece, Sicily, Mesopotamia.
33. Antiochus III and Rome.
WEEK 12
34. The final destruction of Macedonia.
35. Antiochus IV
36. Antiochus V, Demetrius I, Alexander Balas.
TERM PAPERS DUE
WEEK 13
37. The end of the Attalids.
38. The Greeks in Bactria.
39. The end of the Seleucids.
WEEK 14
40. The end of the Ptolemies 1
41. The end of the Ptolemies 2.
42. Late Hellenistic sculpture. Late Hellenistic coinage.
5. Course Policy (if any)
All AUB academic regulations will be followed, as in the Appendix in the Student
Handbook 2002-2003.