Applications are being invited for a five-week Archaeological Summer School which is being organised by the University of Aberdeen.
Based in one of Scotland’s most historic universities, Stone Circles, Celts, Picts and Vikings: A Journey through Prehistoric Scotland, aims to maximise the experimental learning in and around Scotland while minimising the amount of time spent in the classroom.
The Archaeological Summer School programme, being run between July 2 and August 5, is open to all students and is designed to give them a real summer school study experience as well as giving those with a general interest in Scotland a unique opportunity to see the country.
The journey back to 7000BC set against a background of spectacular scenery, historic castles and dramatic landscapes, aims to uncover the mysteries of Scotland’s ancient peoples, while enjoying one of the most dynamic, beautiful and prosperous regions of the UK, with miles of beaches, dunes and cliffs.
The course will be taught through a mix of illustrated lectures, providing the theoretical background to Scotland’s archaeology, excursions and hands-on sessions at the University’s Marischal Museum.
Excursions, led by a member of University staff, will include three full-day excursions departing from Aberdeen, and one five-day excursion with two overnights in Caithness and Sutherland and in the Orkney Islands.
The programme will cover the period from the end of the last ice age to the founding of the nation and cover the first peoples – hunters and gatherers, the first farmers: megalithic tombs and stone circles, the Beaker People and arrival of bronze, the Celts, Picts and Romans and the Vikings.
Scotland is well known for the quantity of its surviving archaeological remains. Evidence of the past has attracted the interest of antiquarians and archaeologists for many years and it continues to inspire survey, excavation and new interpretations.
Donald Paterson, Continuing Education Adviser, Centre for Lifelong Learning, is looking forward to this year’s Archaeological Summer School. He said: “Here in the North-east of Scotland, we are in an area which has been inhabited continuously since the end of the last ice age! Within 20 miles of Aberdeen, one can see a range of sites going back anything up to 9000 years: mesolithic middens, flint scatters, stone circles, iron age farm steadings, and of course the enigmatic symbol stones left by our Pictish forebears.
“Indeed, here we are in the Pictish heartland as evidenced by the Pictish place name elements which abound in the present day!
“Within easy reach of the north of Scotland and the Orkney Isles by a short drive or ferry crossing, we have available to us some of the best chambered cairns in Britain and prehistoric settlements such as Skara Brae - older than the great pyramid of Giza, and Norse settlements built by the vikings over 1,000 years ago.
“Illustrated lectures will allow us to explore the cultures that came into Scotland after the ice age, excursions will enable us to visit a number of magnificent sites (justifiably, Orkney has been recognised on the World Heritage list for its outstanding archaeology), and hands-on sessions at the University’s Marischal Museum will enable us to handle objects made 5,000 years ago.
“At weekends, centres like Dublin with its Book of Kells, its collection of Irish Bronze Age gold and Celtic artwork - and its Guinness Factory are a short flight away as are London and Paris.”
Applications for the Archaeological Summer School must be received by the University of Aberdeen by April 30. Early application is advised. To register, please request an application form from Sharon Brady, University of Aberdeen – Summer School 2006, Tel: (01224) 272026 or Email: s.brady@abdn.ac.uk or download a form from the web: www.abdn.ac.uk/lifelonglearning/archaeology_summer_school/application.shtml