Academic Credit:  6 course credit hours for Classical Archaeology (CLAR) 153, Field School in Classical Archaeology.  No prerequisites.  Previous coursework in archaeology or related fields desirable, but not required.

     Dates:  June 2-July 22, 2006.

     The Program: The project is the archaeological excavation of the Early Iron Age-Archaic town of Azoria (ca. 1200-475 B.C.) on the island of Crete in the Greek Aegean, with the purpose of recovering evidence for the site's economic, social, religious, and political organization.  The focus of excavation is the Archaic-period city (ca. 600-480 B.C.) and the investigation of the process of urbanization and sociopolitical changes in the seventh c. B.C.

     Students will have the opportunity to work as assistants to field archaeologists and various specialists—such as surveyors, archaeological architects, illustrators, palaeoethnobotanists, zooarchaeologists, biological anthropologists and geomorphologists—learning excavation and recording techniques first-hand.  The site of Azoria is today a rural environment with rough and rocky terrain typical of the Cretan landscape.  And while beaches are nearby, Cretan summers are dry and hot and students should expect to work long and physically as well as intellectually demanding days.  A usual day of work would involve digging or assisting with sieving and recording on site for most of the morning and early afternoon, followed by the processing of finds in the late afternoon.  Regular tours of the site as well as reports by the various senior and specialist staff of the project will provide students exposure to an on-going discussion on archaeological methods, the historical and archaeological significance of the site and its region, and problems in archaeological field work.
     While the program will center on the actual fieldwork, formal presentations are integrated into the work schedule: (1) regular afternoon presentations by the instructor and specialist staff—field archaeologists (trench supervisors; ceramic specialist; architect; lithics specialist), scientific staff (botanist; zoologist; biological anthropologist; geomorphologist), and technical staff (registrar and finds manager; surveyor; architect; conservator; illustrator; and photographer)—offer reflection on problems of methodology, interpretation and synthesis.  (2) Weekly trench tours given by graduate student trench supervisors provide an overview of the site, methods of interpretation, and the progress of excavation.  (3) Occasional visits to other nearby sites offer a broader regional, cultural, and historical perspective.
 

     Course Requirements and Evaluation: Students are required to work on-site or at the dig house following a regular daily routine (Monday-Friday, 6:30 AM-5:00 PM; Saturday 8:00-12:00 Noon), and to participate in all scheduled duties and activities (e.g., lectures and trips).  While each week will have a special topic, around which afternoon presentations will center, the students will have a schedule of rotation on-site and at the dig house, providing exposure to all aspects of excavation, and the methods of various scientific specialists.  The student is required to maintain a critical daybook—documenting their experiences and observations.  The journal should focus on one aspect of excavation and describe and discuss the issues and problems faced in various stages of data recovery and interpretation.  The course grade will be assigned on the basis of daily work performance (in the trench and dig house) and the quality of the daybook.

     Instructor:  Donald Haggis is Associate Professor of Classical Archaeology in the Department of Classics at UNC-CH, and Director of the Azoria Project.  He has been excavating on Crete for the past 15 years.  His areas of specialization are Greek archaeology, Aegean prehistory, and early state societies.  (www.classics.unc.edu)
 

     Program Fees:  The program fee of $1500 includes housing; costs for daily transportation to the site; Field School and Summer School instructional costs.  The University Cashier will not charge additional tuition and fees.  A deposit of $400 is due with the application.  Please make checks payable to UNC-CH.  Other costs--such as travel, transportation, food, incidentals, passport and international identification card fees--are the student's responsibility.  Please see Professor Haggis as soon as possible for an estimate of costs not included in the program fee, and the estimated total expense.
 

Sample Budget (estimated costs)

While travel costs and incidental expenses will vary greatly from person to person a summary outline of basic expenses is provided below.  Total costs will probably be around $4000; students should estimate another $500-1000 in incidental and extra travel expenses, if one expects to travel around Crete on days off.  Accommodations will consist of rental rooms in the neighboring villages of Kavousi and Pacheia Ammos.  Meals are not provided for students.  While some cooking facilities might be available, both villages have a number of markets and restaurants.
 

Field School Fees and Room                              1500
Airfare (USA-Athens-USA)                        1000-1300
Airfare (Athens-Irakleion-Athens)                   140-180
Travel to and from dig house                             50-100
Food   ca. 13-26/day x 50 days                    650-1300
Incidentals                                                                  300
Books, equipment, and supplies                               50
International student identity card                              26
Passport                                                                       80
Photos for passport & Greek museum/site pass     25

The Application:  For registration instructions and further information about fees and requirements contact in the first instance the UNC Summer School:
 
 

     As many as 10 positions are available.  Students will be selected on the basis of the quality of their application and an interview with the project director. For more information contact Professor Haggis or the UNC Summer School for an Azoria Project Application form:

Professor Donald C. Haggis
Department of Classics
212 Murphey Hall, CB 3145
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3145
Work Tel: 919-962-7640
FAX: 919-962-4036
dchaggis@email.unc.edu
directors@azoria.org