ARCHEOLOGY OF INDIAN AND CENTRAL ASIA

Course objectives

In consistency with the educational purposes of the whole teaching course, aim of the teaching unit is to give students knowledge and comprehension skills in the field of ARCHAEOLOGY OF INDIA AND CENTRAL ASIA that complete and/or reinforce those acquired in the first grade of studies. Moreover, it will make the students able to approach orginal themes in a research context, making more complex judgments, communicating knowledge and its process, and studying the subject in an independent and self-educational way. The aim of the course is to provide detailed knowledge of the material culture and artistic expression of a particular period in the archaeology of India and Central Asia. Studies aim at providing a critical understanding of the themes and problems discussed, through an extensive analysis of materials and a reconstruction of the history of the studies.

Channel 1
CIRO LO MUZIO Lecturers' profile

Program - Frequency - Exams

Course program
The archaeological research in Eastern Central Asia (Xinjiang, China) The course will provide an overview of archaeological research in Xinjiang, from the late nineteenth century to the present. The Bronze and Iron Age: funeral practices, material culture, relations with China and the Eurasian cultures. Historic period: the oases cultures in southern and northern Xinjiang; archaeological evidence versus Chinese written sources; the impact of the international trade; The spread of Buddhism in Central Asia: Central Asian teachers and translators; architectural and figurative models. Urban centers and Buddhist settlements in the oases along the southern and northern edges of the Takla Makan: Loulan, Miran, Khotan, Kashgar, Tumshuq, Kucha, Karashahr and Turfan Architecture, visual arts, material culture.
Books
C. Lo Muzio, Archeologia dell'Asia Centrale preislamica, Mondadori Università 2017, Introduction and Chapters 7, 9, 10, and 11. Further bibliographical references will be provided during the course.
Teaching mode
The course will take place in one semester and will consist of frontal lessons, with the constant support of photographic material (maps, plans, detailed pictures of monuments and artworks).
Exam mode
The exam consists of questions concerning the topics covered in the course: the description of an artistic phenomenon, a site, a specific repertoire of religious iconography, and any other theme included in the programme. In addition to the knowledge of the specific topic and to the ability to express himself/herself properly, the student must demonstrate that he has understood the relationship between the artistic or architectural evidence and the historical, cultural and religious context it belongs to.
Lesson mode
The course will take place in one semester and will consist of frontal lessons, with the constant support of photographic material (maps, plans, detailed pictures of monuments and artworks).
CIRO LO MUZIO Lecturers' profile

Program - Frequency - Exams

Course program
The archaeological research in Eastern Central Asia (Xinjiang, China) The course will provide an overview of archaeological research in Xinjiang, from the late nineteenth century to the present. The Bronze and Iron Age: funeral practices, material culture, relations with China and the Eurasian cultures. Historic period: the oases cultures in southern and northern Xinjiang; archaeological evidence versus Chinese written sources; the impact of the international trade; The spread of Buddhism in Central Asia: Central Asian teachers and translators; architectural and figurative models. Urban centers and Buddhist settlements in the oases along the southern and northern edges of the Takla Makan: Loulan, Miran, Khotan, Kashgar, Tumshuq, Kucha, Karashahr and Turfan Architecture, visual arts, material culture.
Books
C. Lo Muzio, Archeologia dell'Asia Centrale preislamica, Mondadori Università 2017, Introduction and Chapters 7, 9, 10, and 11. Further bibliographical references will be provided during the course.
Teaching mode
The course will take place in one semester and will consist of frontal lessons, with the constant support of photographic material (maps, plans, detailed pictures of monuments and artworks).
Exam mode
The exam consists of questions concerning the topics covered in the course: the description of an artistic phenomenon, a site, a specific repertoire of religious iconography, and any other theme included in the programme. In addition to the knowledge of the specific topic and to the ability to express himself/herself properly, the student must demonstrate that he has understood the relationship between the artistic or architectural evidence and the historical, cultural and religious context it belongs to.
Lesson mode
The course will take place in one semester and will consist of frontal lessons, with the constant support of photographic material (maps, plans, detailed pictures of monuments and artworks).
  • Lesson code1027479
  • Academic year2025/2026
  • CourseArchaeology
  • CurriculumArcheologia orientale
  • Year2nd year
  • Duration12 months
  • SSDL-OR/16
  • CFU6