Archaeology of the Ancient World (AAW) is a two-year, full-time Master’s program taught in English. It brings together three disciplines – Prehistoric Archaeology, Near Eastern Archaeology, and Classical Archaeology – to approach the past of the Mediterranean region, Eurasia, and southwest Asia.

As a consecutive program AAW builds on knowledge about the past acquired through the study of ancient material culture during a Bachelor program or through professional qualification. The program introduces you to a part of the world that has seen intense processes of transformation as well as abundant intercultural and inter-societal contacts during the last ten thousand years. You will acquire theoretical skills in dealing with scholarly arguments as well as practical skills in handling artefacts and analysing data.

Why study the ancient world? The past is an archive of human experiences. Archaeology provides a unique way to approach these experiences from different angles: How do people adapt to environmental change? How does artistic choice reflect intercultural contact? How do soil samples or remote sensing technologies help reconstruct a long-gone world? How can we approach immaterial aspects of the distant past through the study of material culture? And how does all of this help us to think in long-term perspectives and understand past cultures?

For more information on the MA program Archaeology of the Ancient World, please visit the program's website.