This paper surveys the archaeology of south-west Asia from the emergence of sedentary lifeways in the late Pleistocene to the collapse of Bronze Age civilisations at the close of the second millennium cal B.C. For the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age, emphasis is placed on the Levant (including modern Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel), to complement the Mesopotamian component of FHS paper 4.  Key issues include the origins and nature of early agriculture, the emergence of social stratification and institutionalised authority and the archaeology of identity in the context of state formation and imperial domination during the Bronze Age.

This option incorporates a practical archaeological approach using the collections of the Ashmolean and Pitt Rivers museums. Classes provide an opportunity for object-focussed discussion and complement essay-based tutorials.