Admission requirements
Admission to an MA programme in a relevant subject area.
Description
Papyrus documents and ancient books written on papyrus scrolls or papyrus codices were not produced and used in isolation in antiquity. Most of them were kept, used and preserved in the context of ancient collection, such as a private or public archive or library. This is not, however, how papyrus artifacts have been transmitted to us, since papyri were often dispersed after their original use, have typically been found in clandestine excavations and were sold individually or in heterogenous groups. The original context has to be reconstructed based on the contents, acquisition history and our knowledge of ancient societies.
In this course students will learn about the archeological contexts, acquisition history and reconstruction methods of papyrus archives and libraries from the oldest Egyptian texts in hieroglyphs, hieratic and demotic scripts, to the use of Greek and Latin in the Eastern Mediterranean, down to the production of Aramaic, Coptic and Arabic texts in Late Antiquity in Egypt and the Middle East.
All texts will be discussed in translation during classes, but students with knowledge of a relevant language will the study the papyri in their chosen papyrus archive in the original language. They conduct their research and present the results in collaboration, looking at the reconstruction and composition of the archive and taking an interdisciplinary approach to production and use of the papyri in their original historical and cultural context.
Course objectives
Knowledge and insights
The student will have:
knowledge of papyrus archives and libraries and the scholarly reconstruction of ancient archives and libraries;
knowledge of printed and digital papyrological resources, such as editions, corpora, websites and databases;
knowledge of ancient reading and writing habits and the historical and cultural context of the production and use of papyrus texts in antiquity;
understanding of the provenance and acquisition history of textual artifacts and their cultural heritage.
Skills
The student will be able to:
independently consult digital and non-digital papyrological resources and cite editions according to modern conventions in papyrology;
independently situate a given papyrus in the historical and cultural context with the help of papyrus editions and relevant secondary literature;
formulate a research question, collect and interpret relevant papyrological sources and secondary literature, to solve problems, construct an argumentation and formulate conclusions;
work together with a student from a different scholarly background, discuss and complement each other’s research to apply an interdisciplinary approach to the material;
present the results of a collaborative study together in an oral presentation and written paper.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
Seminar with compulsory attendance and active participation. The maximum of absences during a semester is two.
Assessment method
Assessment
Presentation(s) in class (40%)
Written paper(s) (60%)
The requirements for MA and ResMA students are differentiated: ResMA students are expected to come up with their own original research question and an innovative selection and critical interpretation of other papyri and literature; MA students may expect more help in choosing their research question and their papers may consist of an assessment of the status quaestionis as presented in literature.
Weighing
The final grade for the course is established by determining the weighted average with the additional requirement that the written paper must always be 5.5 or higher.
Resit
Should the overall mark be unsatisfactory, the paper is to be revised after consultation with the instructor.
Inspection and feedback
How and when an exam review will take place will be disclosed together with the publication of the exam results at the latest. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results, an exam review will have to be organized.
Reading list
Available on Brightspace.
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Registration Exchange
For the registration of exchange students contact Humanities International Office.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the right information bar.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office: Arsenaal
Remarks
Not applicable.