Undergraduate Courses

The courses listed below are provided by Student Information Services (SIS). This listing provides a snapshot of immediately available courses within this department and may not be complete. Course registration information can be found at sis.jhu.edu/classes.

Please consult the online course catalog for cross-listed courses and full course information.

Column one has the course number and section. Other columns show the course title, days offered, instructor's name, room number, if the course is cross-referenced with another program, and a option to view additional course information in a pop-up window.

Tombs for the Living
AS.010.398 (01)

Centering on the tomb as the unit of analysis, this course examines the cultural and material aspects of death and funerary ritual. Case studies are drawn from North America, Mesoamerica, and the Andes. Collections study in museums.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
  • Instructor: Deleonardis, Lisa
  • Room: Hodson 303  
  • Status: Waitlist Only
  • Seats Available: 0/25
  • PosTag(s): ARCH-ARCH, HART-ANC

Exploring the Ancient Astronomical Imagination
AS.040.216 (01)

This course takes us on an exploratory journey through the ancient astronomical imaginary. We will focus on ancient Greek and Roman ideas about the structure of the cosmos, the substance and nature of the stars, the Earth’s place and role in the universe, ancient attempts to map the stars, and ancient beliefs about the significance of cosmic phenomena for events in the human world. The course will culminate in the extraordinary ancient tradition of lunar fictions, which are our earliest imaginative accounts of life on other worlds. Come join us for a voyage to the stars!

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:45PM
  • Instructor: ni Mheallaigh, Karen (Karen)
  • Room: Maryland 109  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 2/49
  • PosTag(s): n/a

Conversion and Apostasy in the Middle Ages
AS.100.383 (01)

Compares religious transformation in medieval Europe and the Middle East (ca. 600-1500), including conquest and conversion; conversion narratives; apostasy, martyrdom and other encounters between medieval Jews, Christians, and Muslims. Pre-requisite for enrollment: Students must have taken one history course.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: M 1:30PM - 4:00PM
  • Instructor: El-leithy, Tamer
  • Room: Gilman 219  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 7/12
  • PosTag(s): HIST-MIDEST, HIST-ASIA, HIST-EUROPE

Gods and Monsters in Ancient Egypt
AS.130.126 (01)

A basic introduction to Egyptian Religion, with a special focus on the nature of the gods and how humans interact with them. We will devote particular time to the Book of the Dead and to the "magical" aspects of religion designed for protective purposes.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: MWF 11:00AM - 11:50AM
  • Instructor: Jasnow, Richard
  • Room: Gilman 50  
  • Status: Waitlist Only
  • Seats Available: 0/66
  • PosTag(s): ARCH-RELATE

After Babylon: Mesopotamia from Athens to Anime
AS.130.152 (01)

This course is an exploration of how ancient Mesopotamian art, literature, history, and culture have been transmitted from the fall of Babylon in 539 BCE to the present day and the ways in which they have been adapted and transformed along the way. While all aspects of ancient Mesopotamia will be under discussion, the course will principally focus on the narratives of Gilgamesh, Semiramis/Shammuramat, and Sardanapalus/Assurbanipal. After briefly introducing ancient Mesopotamia, we will see how the region and its history are portrayed in biblical, Classical, Quranic, and medieval sources. From there we will discuss the “rediscovery” of Mesopotamia and the decipherment of cuneiform. The latter half of the course will then be devoted to Mesopotamia in 20th and 21st century popular culture.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
  • Instructor: Chapin, Michael Arthur
  • Room: Gilman 75  
  • Status: Waitlist Only
  • Seats Available: 0/18
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-HISCUL

Ancient Mythology
AS.130.202 (01)

This course explores the mythology of the ancient Near East from the invention of writing in Sumer in 3000 B.C. until the conquest of Alexander the Great near the end of the first millennium B.C. Mythological texts from Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia, the Levant, and the Bible will be read from a comparative perspective. Special attention is paid to the origin and development of the epic, culminating in the great Epic of Gilgamesh, but considerable time is also given to the vast mythological and historical literature, and such diverse genres as love poetry, proverbs, humorous dialogues, Omens, and legal and medical texts. All readings are in English translation.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 3:00PM - 4:15PM
  • Instructor: Delnero, Paul
  • Room: Croft Hall G02  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 8/30
  • PosTag(s): n/a

History of the Jews in Pre-Modern Times, from the Middle Ages to 1789
AS.130.216 (01)

A broad survey of the significant political and cultural dynamics of Jewish history in the Medieval, Early-Modern, and Modern Eras.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
  • Instructor: Katz, David
  • Room: Smokler Center Library  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 1/19
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-HISCUL, INST-GLOBAL, INST-NWHIST

Ancient Revolutions: The Archaeology of Culture Change
AS.130.223 (01)

The last 250,000 years have seen many moments that could be referred to as “revolutions” in art, technology, or other aspects of human society. The “Human Revolution” of the Upper Paleolithic saw the birth of artistic ability and symbolic thinking in hominids. We call the transition from hunting and gathering to settled agriculture the “Neolithic Revolution,” while the “Urban Revolution” gave us complex societies and urban life. Times of dynamic change gave rise to important aspects of our shared behavioral and societal identity. They have become the subject not only of much archaeological investigation, but also of popular discourse about the human past. This class will explore famous cultural “revolutions” by looking at the causes and consequences of these important changes. We will evaluate the archaeological evidence, and through it interrogate the term “revolution” itself. What do we mean when we speak of “revolutions?” Are there other ways to think of past social and technological change, and when, if ever, do we truly see “revolutions” in the human condition in the ancient past?

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
  • Instructor: Poolman, Laurel Ames
  • Room: Krieger 302  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 5/15
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH

The Archaeology of Gender in the Ancient Eastern Mediterranean
AS.130.245 (01)

How do art historians and archaeologists recover and study genders and sexualities of ancient people? This writing-intensive seminar looks at texts and objects from ancient Egypt, Assyria, and Greece through the lens of gender and sexuality studies. Beyond exploring concepts of gender in the ancient Eastern Mediterranean, students will also consider how modern scholars have approached, recovered, and written about ancient gender identities. There are no prerequisites for this course.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: M 3:00PM - 5:30PM
  • Instructor: Taylor, Avary Rhys
  • Room: Gilman 130G  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 1/10
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH

Writing History in the Ancient Mediterranean World
AS.130.246 (01)

Just what does it mean to "write history"? In this course, we will read a selection of historical texts from ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome, in order to examine how these cultures conceived of, and narrated, their own pasts. A major focus will be how these texts were created in order to understand or control the present. We will also examine how these texts have come down to us, and in what ways this might affect how we use them in constructing our own historical narratives. No prior knowledge of the ancient world necessary; all texts read in English translation.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: WF 4:30PM - 5:45PM
  • Instructor: Essam, Richard James Llewellyn
  • Room: Krieger Laverty  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 12/19
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-HISCUL

History: Ancient Syria-Palestine II
AS.130.302 (01)

A survey of the history of Ancient Syria and Cannan, including ancient Israel. Taught with AS.134.661. Cross-listed with Jewish Studies.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: W 1:30PM - 4:00PM
  • Instructor: Mandell, Alice H
  • Room: Gilman 130G  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 6/10
  • PosTag(s): n/a

The Talmud as Read in the Middle Ages: The Sugya of Kavod HaBriot (Human Dignity)
AS.130.338 (01)

In the early Middle Ages the Talmud emerged as the defining document of official Jewish religion and culture, and remained so until the dawn of the Modern Era. Jewish scholars in many different countries, and in a wide variety of cultural contexts, developed certain ways of reading, interpreting, and applying the Talmud. In the process, they produced an immense corpus of commentary and law. This course will examine how and why the Talmud was studied in these centuries by Jews who mined it, subject by subject, for emotional, philosophical, and legal meaning.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PM
  • Instructor: Katz, David
  • Room: Smokler Center Library  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 16/19
  • PosTag(s): n/a

Introduction to the History of Rabbinic Literature
AS.130.346 (01)

Broadly surveying classic rabbinic literature, including the Talmud and its commentaries, the legal codes and the response, this seminar explores the immanent as well as the external factors that shaped the development of this literature, the seminal role of this literature in Jewish self-definition and self-perception, and the role of this literature in pre-modern and modern Jewish culture.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
  • Instructor: Katz, David
  • Room: Smokler Center Library  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 8/19
  • PosTag(s): n/a

Space Archaeology: An Introduction to Satellite Remote Sensing, GIS and GPS
AS.130.353 (01)

This course introduces technologies archaeologists use to map ancient landscapes. These include Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping software, advanced Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers, and various types of satellite imagery. Taught together with AS.131.653.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 9:00AM - 10:15AM
  • Instructor: Harrower, Michael James
  • Room: Krieger 108  
  • Status: Waitlist Only
  • Seats Available: 1/15
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH, ENVS-MAJOR

Archaeology of Arabia
AS.130.364 (01)

This course examines the archaeology of the Arabian Peninsula from the earliest Paleolithic in the region (c. 1.5 million years ago) through the first few centuries of the Islamic era (c. 1000 AD). We will review basic geology and environmental conditions, examine the development of animal herding and crop cultivating lifeways, and scrutinize the rise of ancient South Arabian complex societies and civilizations. Co-listed with AS.131.664.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
  • Instructor: Harrower, Michael James
  • Room: Bloomberg 176  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 10/15
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH

Introduction To Middle Egyptian
AS.130.401 (01)

Introduction to the grammar and writing system of the classical language of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom (ca. 2011- 1700 B.C.). Co-listed with AS.133.601.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: MW 4:30PM - 5:45PM
  • Instructor: Praet, Maarten
  • Room: MSE Library Eisenberg  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 2/4
  • PosTag(s): n/a

Elementary Biblical Hebrew II
AS.130.441 (01)

Survey of grammar and reading of simple texts. May not be taken on a satisfactory/unsatisfactory basis. A continuation of Elementary Biblical Hebrew I.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AM
  • Instructor: Cooper, Stephanie Lynn
  • Room: MSE Library Eisenberg  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 7/9
  • PosTag(s): n/a

Readings - Hebrew Prose and Poetry
AS.130.443 (01)

Reading of Biblical Hebrew Prose, from texts such as the Pentateuch, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: T 3:00PM - 5:30PM
  • Instructor: Cooper, Stephanie Lynn
  • Room: MSE Library Eisenberg  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 6/9
  • PosTag(s): n/a

GOD 101: The Early History of God - Origin, Character, Practice
AS.134.101 (01)

In a world of big ideas, there is none larger than that of God. Divinity is an ever-present topic for both religious devotees and hard core secularists—for anyone who embraces the humanities or ponders what makes us human. Humans are, for better and worse, homo-religiosus (humans who practice religion) as much as homo-sapiens. But what do we know of God historically? How do we go about reconstructing divinity from ancient texts and archaeology? How do we best walk back in time to understand ancient Middle Eastern cultures that gave birth to notions of the divine that have come down to today’s Judaism, Christianity and Islam? This course looks synthetically at the vast topic of God—exploring questions of historical origin, how God was characterized in literature (mythic warrior, king, parent, judge, holy, compassionate) and how God was represented in iconography, both materially and abstractly. Secondly, how did belief intersect with practice? Using the indow of divinity, this course will peer into the varieties of religion experience, exploring the royal use of religion for power, prestige and control balanced against the intimacy of family and household religion. It will probe priestly prerogatives and cultic status, prophetic challenges to injustice, and the pondering of theodicy by poetic sages.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 12:00PM - 1:15PM
  • Instructor: Lewis, Theodore (Ted)
  • Room: Gilman 130G  
  • Status: Waitlist Only
  • Seats Available: 0/15
  • PosTag(s): n/a

The Book of Job
AS.134.404 (01)

Reading portions of the Book of Job in Hebrew. In addition to increasing proficiency in biblical Hebrew, the course also involves critical exegesis including grammatical analysis and textual criticism. Students will interact with various aspects of interpretation for the Book of Job (e.g., philology, text history, structure, literary history, message, poetics, rhetoric, philosophy, theology and reception history).

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: Th 3:00PM - 5:30PM
  • Instructor: Lewis, Theodore (Ted)
  • Room: Gilman 130G  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 7/10
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-HISCUL

Kings, Prophets, and Scribes: The Creation of "Israel" in the Deuteronomistic History
AS.134.406 (01)

This class will introduce students to “The Deuteronomistic History,” which comprises the biblical books of Deuteronomy, Joshua, 1-2 Samuel and 1-2 Kings. The narrative arc of this “history” spans the giving of the law to Moses to the rise and fall of the monarchies of Israel and Judah, respectively in the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods. During this course we will examine the reasons why biblical scholars have argued in varying ways that this body of text represents the work of a group of ideologically driven scribes, the Deuteronomists; we will also investigate the primary texts themselves for evidence for divergent views about the need for a king in Israel and the role and fate of the royal house of David. We will also explore the relationship between the books of the former prophets (Joshua>2 Kings) and Deuteronomy, which is a book that concludes the Pentateuch. This course requires students to engage with the biblical text in the original Hebrew language at an advanced level. We will also engage with biblical scholarship regarding the scope, purpose, and nature of a cohesive Deuteronomistic History, as well as with dissenting voices that probe the unity of these biblical books.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Upper Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: F 1:30PM - 4:00PM
  • Instructor: Mandell, Alice H
  • Room: MSE Library Eisenberg  
  • Status: Approval Required
  • Seats Available: 6/7
  • PosTag(s): NEAS-HISCUL

Introduction To Archaeology
AS.136.101 (01)

An introduction to archaeology and to archaeological method and theory, exploring how archaeologists excavate, analyze, and interpret ancient remains in order to reconstruct how ancient societies functioned. Specific examples from a variety of archaeological projects in different parts of the world will be used to illustrate techniques and principles discussed.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PM
  • Instructor: Schwartz, Glenn M
  • Room: Gilman 17  
  • Status: Waitlist Only
  • Seats Available: 1/40
  • PosTag(s): ARCH-ARCH

Introduction to Geographic Information Systems and Geospatial Analysis
AS.270.205 (01)

The course provides a broad introduction to the principles and practice of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and related tools of Geospatial Analysis. Topics will include history of GIS, GIS data structures, data acquisition and merging, database management, spatial analysis, and GIS applications. In addition, students will get hands-on experience working with GIS software.

  • Credits: 3.00
  • Level: Lower Level Undergraduate
  • Days/Times: MW 1:30PM - 2:45PM
  • Instructor: Kelly, Rebecca E
  • Room: Krieger 108  
  • Status: Open
  • Seats Available: 3/24
  • PosTag(s): ARCH-RELATE, ENVS-MINOR

Course # (Section) Title Day/Times Instructor Room PosTag(s) Info
AS.010.398 (01)Tombs for the LivingTTh 10:30AM - 11:45AMDeleonardis, LisaHodson 303
 		ARCH-ARCH, HART-ANC
AS.040.216 (01)Exploring the Ancient Astronomical ImaginationMW 1:30PM - 2:45PMni Mheallaigh, Karen (Karen)Maryland 109
 
AS.100.383 (01)Conversion and Apostasy in the Middle AgesM 1:30PM - 4:00PMEl-leithy, TamerGilman 219
 		HIST-MIDEST, HIST-ASIA, HIST-EUROPE
AS.130.126 (01)Gods and Monsters in Ancient EgyptMWF 11:00AM - 11:50AMJasnow, RichardGilman 50
 		ARCH-RELATE
AS.130.152 (01)After Babylon: Mesopotamia from Athens to AnimeTTh 9:00AM - 10:15AMChapin, Michael ArthurGilman 75
 		NEAS-HISCUL
AS.130.202 (01)Ancient MythologyTTh 3:00PM - 4:15PMDelnero, PaulCroft Hall G02
 
AS.130.216 (01)History of the Jews in Pre-Modern Times, from the Middle Ages to 1789TTh 10:30AM - 11:45AMKatz, DavidSmokler Center Library
 		NEAS-HISCUL, INST-GLOBAL, INST-NWHIST
AS.130.223 (01)Ancient Revolutions: The Archaeology of Culture ChangeTTh 9:00AM - 10:15AMPoolman, Laurel AmesKrieger 302
 		NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH
AS.130.245 (01)The Archaeology of Gender in the Ancient Eastern MediterraneanM 3:00PM - 5:30PMTaylor, Avary RhysGilman 130G
 		NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH
AS.130.246 (01)Writing History in the Ancient Mediterranean WorldWF 4:30PM - 5:45PMEssam, Richard James LlewellynKrieger Laverty
 		NEAS-HISCUL
AS.130.302 (01)History: Ancient Syria-Palestine IIW 1:30PM - 4:00PMMandell, Alice HGilman 130G
 
AS.130.338 (01)The Talmud as Read in the Middle Ages: The Sugya of Kavod HaBriot (Human Dignity)TTh 1:30PM - 2:45PMKatz, DavidSmokler Center Library
 
AS.130.346 (01)Introduction to the History of Rabbinic LiteratureTTh 12:00PM - 1:15PMKatz, DavidSmokler Center Library
 
AS.130.353 (01)Space Archaeology: An Introduction to Satellite Remote Sensing, GIS and GPSTTh 9:00AM - 10:15AMHarrower, Michael JamesKrieger 108
 		NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH, ENVS-MAJOR
AS.130.364 (01)Archaeology of ArabiaTTh 12:00PM - 1:15PMHarrower, Michael JamesBloomberg 176
 		NEAS-ARTARC, ARCH-ARCH
AS.130.401 (01)Introduction To Middle EgyptianMW 4:30PM - 5:45PMPraet, MaartenMSE Library Eisenberg
 
AS.130.441 (01)Elementary Biblical Hebrew IITTh 10:30AM - 11:45AMCooper, Stephanie LynnMSE Library Eisenberg
 
AS.130.443 (01)Readings - Hebrew Prose and PoetryT 3:00PM - 5:30PMCooper, Stephanie LynnMSE Library Eisenberg
 
AS.134.101 (01)GOD 101: The Early History of God - Origin, Character, PracticeTTh 12:00PM - 1:15PMLewis, Theodore (Ted)Gilman 130G
 
AS.134.404 (01)The Book of JobTh 3:00PM - 5:30PMLewis, Theodore (Ted)Gilman 130G
 		NEAS-HISCUL
AS.134.406 (01)Kings, Prophets, and Scribes: The Creation of "Israel" in the Deuteronomistic HistoryF 1:30PM - 4:00PMMandell, Alice HMSE Library Eisenberg
 		NEAS-HISCUL
AS.136.101 (01)Introduction To ArchaeologyTTh 1:30PM - 2:45PMSchwartz, Glenn MGilman 17
 		ARCH-ARCH
AS.270.205 (01)Introduction to Geographic Information Systems and Geospatial AnalysisMW 1:30PM - 2:45PMKelly, Rebecca EKrieger 108
 		ARCH-RELATE, ENVS-MINOR