The University of North Carolina Summer School Abroad, 2008

 

Field School in Archaeology and History

In the Shala valley, Albania (June 22-July 6, 2008)

 


Learn excavation, survey, ethnohistoric, and ethnographic techniques while working in the high mountains of northern Albania

 

Academic Program


This course, Hist 674 Field Methods in Archaeology and History (3 credits) introduces you to the many techniques employed by archaeologists and historians in locating and excavating sites of past human activity.  Students participate in the on-going archaeological excavation of a late bronze age/early iron age fortress and settlement site on the southern edge of the village of Theth.  The site was discovered in 2006 and so far has only had test pits excavated and cores taken.  It is the first evidence for bronze or iron age occupation in the whole region, and overturns the traditional understanding of the settlement of the valley.  The eventual findings from this excavation potentially will rewrite the history of northern Albania.

 

We also introduce you to the process of survey and ethnographic interview that we have used in the village.  The overall project is intended to compile a regional history from prehistory to the present, and the interviews combined with archival and ethnohistoric work help fill in the more recent history of the valley.  You learn how archaeologists, historians and ethnographers can work together to create a more comprehensive portrait of a society and how it has changed over time.  Theth is at the center of an Albanian national park, in some of the wildest and most remote mountains in Europe.


For more detailed information about the overall project:   The Shala Valley Project


Faculty


Wayne E. Lee, Dept. of History, UNC Chapel Hill (bio)

Michael L. Galaty, Dept. of Sociology/Anthropology, Millsaps College (bio)

 

photomapphoto of kulla                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

 

Cost


$1350 Includes your room and board for the two weeks you are overseas (incl. three meals per day) and all transportation costs in country.  You are expected to provide your own transportation from the states to the Tirana airport in Albania and home again (ca. $1,000-1,200).  We work in a remote village and there are few opportunities for you to spend any additional money, but some additional personal spending money is advised.

 

Payment schedule:        $300 deposit due with summer school application

                                    Remaining balance due March 6, 2008

 

Application

 

Registration for summer courses begins October 22.  Enrollment in the field school is limited to 5 students.  Students should consult with Dr. Lee in the History Department with additional questions and to be approved to take the course.  Selection is based on academic performance with preference given to history, anthropology and classical studies majors.  The course is physically strenuous and in a rugged, mountainous region.  Students are advised to take this into consideration before applying.  There are two required course meetings on campus in April.  Students must have a passport.

 

Information

 

For further information:                                       For application:

Professor Wayne Lee                                       Summer School

Department of History                                      CB#3340, 134 E. Franklin St. Room 200

CB#3195, 400 Hamilton Hall                           Chapel Hill, NC 27599

Chapel Hill, NC 27599                                     (919) 966-4364 (office)

(919) 962-3973                                               summer_school@unc.edu

wlee(at)unc.edu                                                summer.unc.edu