This course is designed to provide a general introduction to the time before Egypt emerged as one of the first nation states in human history. The time period covers the Lower Palaeolithic to the end of the Chalcolithic (ca. 500 000 - 3000 BC). The lectures will also discuss the evolution from early hominids in Africa to modern humans in North Eastern Africa and their material culture and subsistence economy. A special emphasis will be placed on the dramatic changes in human lifestyle from nomadic hunter-gatherers to settled Neolithic farmers along the Nile Valley. The end of the lecture series will describe the emergence of élites and specialized craftsmen in the hierarchical societies of the 4th millennium BC and then touch upon state formation in Ancient Egypt.

The course has been rescheduled!

12:00 pm - 1:20 pm MW Seminar room of the Department of Egyptology, Wilbour Hall

Instructor: Thomas Hikade

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Class Readings