Four lost cities of the Ancient World

This unit will explore the archaeology of four of the most famous cities of the ancient world: Babylon, Amarna, Troy and Pompeii. These cities not only had a profound impact on the cultures that produced them, but their rediscovery in the 19th and 20th centuries left an enduring legacy in the art, literature, and popular culture we enjoy today. This unit will be divided into 4 three-week modules, each focussing on one of these cities. Each module will be led by a specialist in the relevant field. We will examine 3 overall themes for each city: the city’s historical and environmental context, the everyday experience of people living in the city, and the impact on the modern world of the city’s rediscovery by archaeologists.

We will address such questions as:

Was Babylon the city of luxuriant debauchery that Greek historians describe?

How did the memory of Troy live on after its abandonment? How did a slave experience walking down the streets of Pompeii?
How did the exhibition of the bust of Nefertiti from Amarna in 1924 influence the fashion and art of the jazz age?

Tying these modules together will be an examination of current theoretical models of urbanism, lived experience, and reception of the ancient world.

How does archaeology provide context for the myths that have grown up around these iconic cities for the past three millennia?