Investigating domestic crafts and subsistence activities through experiments and material analysis

The meaning of the Swifterbant Culture for the process of neolithisation in the western part of the North European Plain (4900-3400 BC)

An early farming community in Thessaly, Greece.

The times between the Neolithic and Urban revolutions in Mesopotamia have for a long time been interpreted as a period of stagnation. This volume is part of an emerging discourse that challenges such assumptions.

Report on the Excavations of the University of Amsterdam (1988) and the National Museum of Antiquities Leiden (1991-1993) in Syria.

Tell Sabi Abyad is a major Late Neolithic settlement mound in Northern Syria, belonging to the seventh and early sixth millennium bc. This book presents the results of large-scale fieldwork conducted at the site between 1994 and 1999, under the auspices of the Netherlands National Museum of Antiquities…

Papers in honour of Professor Annelou van Gijn

In the master’s programme in Archaeology, you can follow courses on the archaeology of West Asia, deepening your understanding of this region’s fascinating past.

New insights into the Fayum Epipalaeolithic and Neolithic.

Numerous beads and pendants of amber, jet and bone have been found in Dutch Neolithic and Bronze Age context, both in settlements and in graves. Because ornaments are personal items, they are closely linked with people’s identity.

The project seeks to come to an understanding of the archaeology of the desert and the ways in which its inhabitants engaged with their constraint, marginal environments through time. It compares and interprets site distribution and community organisation over a long time scale and across several different…

Past, Present and Future of Nubian Communities in Sudan

The researchers in the World Archaeology department of the Faculty of Archaeology concentrate on a range of different periods and regions: from humanity’s origins to the Middle Ages and the modern age, and from Asia to South America.

The Near East, situated at the nexus of Europe, Africa, and Asia, was central to the development of ancient societies in all three continents.

Report on the Excavations of the National Museum of Antiquities Leiden in the Balikh Valley, Syria.

Essays in Honour of Olivier P. Nieuwenhuyse

With the emergence of new methods and technologies such as improved DNA analysis and big data, archaeological research has changed radically in recent decades. The researchers from the Department of Archaeological Sciences at the Faculty of Archaeology use new scientific knowledge to answer fundamental…

In this book, Peter Akkermans provides a systematic overview of the Halaf culture of the 6 th millennium BC in the Syrian portion of the valley of the Balikh River, a tributary of the Euphrates.

We will use Artificial Intelligence to make an intelligent, multilingual search engine for archaeological texts, which will enable new discoveries about the human past.

Archaeologist Annelou van Gijn received an NWO Archeologie Telt grant to investigate domestic craft and subsistence activities of late Neolithic peoples in the coastal area of the Netherlands

The past, present, and future for local people and archaeologists in Sudanese Nubia

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The Faculty of Archaeology

The Faculty of Archaeology has three departments:

Alternatives to current practice

At the Faculty of Archaeology, we investigate the development of human societies worldwide, from the earliest beginnings to modern times. We also study the heritage of mankind, which evokes this deep history, and which connects with, and informs, contemporary society.

We are very happy to welcome you to spend a semester or year studying with us at the Faculty of Archaeology. Here you will find practical information on studying Archaeology in Leiden as an exchange student.

Are you thinking about studying Archaeology? Learn more and watch the introduction video.

The Archaeology of Imperial Landscapes examines the transformation of rural landscapes and societies that formed the backbone of ancient empires in the Near East and Mediterranean. Through a comparative approach to archaeological data, it analyses the patterns of transformation in widely differing imperial…

This PhD project develops and applies a GIS procedure to use legacy survey data in settlement pattern analysis. As part of the research by the LERC project (NWO, Leiden University, KNIR), legacy data produced by surveys in central and southern Italy are examined in a comparative framework to investigate…

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Throughout history, a large portion of the world's population has lived under imperial rule. Although scholars do not always agree on when and where the roots of imperialism lie, most would agree that imperial configurations have affected human history so profoundly that the legacy of ancient empires…

Case-studies on use-wear analysis of prehistoric flint tools

This volume provides one of the most comprehensive overviews of the archaeology of a single Caribbean island yet published. Drawing together scholars from the Caribbean, north America and Europe, all working from a range of disciplines within the broader scope of archaeology, and drawing upon recent…

Leiden archaeologists have set fire to a reconstructed Neolithic house in Horsterwold: all in the name of science. Studying the remains will help them understand present and future finds.

The sites of Norman Estata, Anse des Pères and Hope Estate with a contribution to the 'La Hueca problem'

Digital Archaeology is concerned with digital data for for archaeological research, and the computational methods and tools required to collect, analyse and manage it.

The Department of Archaeological Sciences seeks to achieve the highest standards of excellence in science-driven education and archaeological research across the globe and across all periods.

Archaeology in Leiden encompasses the study of societies, cultures, and human behaviour from the past, aiming to reconstruct and revive them. With our mix of education and research you lay a strong foundation for an international career in archaeology or heritage management.

In several Mediterranean regions archaeological sites have been mapped by fieldwalking surveys, producing large amounts of data. These legacy site-based survey data represent an important resource to study ancient settlement organization. Methodological procedures are necessary to cope with the limits…

Archaeological expeditions from the Netherlands and Flanders for which the NVIC acts as the primary facilitating institution in Egypt.

Two Decades of Research in Nicaragua and Costa Rica

The department of World Archaeology combines research and education about regions all over the world, from Human Origins to the Middle Ages, and from Europe, to Asia, Africa and the America’s. That broad range in time and space makes the department a dynamic pluriform community with many different approaches,…

The Netherlands-Flemish Institute organizes every year its unique "Egyptology in the Field " study programme for MA students of Egyptology and Archaeology at Leiden University and KU Leuven. This two month programme takes place in January and February and aims to broaden the study of Egyptology with…