Welcome to World Rock-Art, Landscapes and Creativity

World Rock-Art, Landscapes and Creativity is an intensive Trent & Peak Archaeology and University of Nottingham fieldschool offered in conjuction with Univesiti Sains Malaysia (USM) focusing on world rock art. The highly successful 2008 course will be followed in 2009, by a fieldschool based in USM Penang and in the Lenggong Valley in Upper Perak.

Several hundred thousand rock-art sites lie scattered across Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Americas and Pacific islands. Together these sites contain millions of images of individual or group identity, most of which were made from about 30,000 years ago. As paintings, drawings, engravings, prints, stencils and beeswax designs, rock-art has captured Western and Asian imagination since at least the late 1700s but it was only in the early 1900s that Science accepted rock-art as something legitimate to study. However, rock-art remained marginal to archaeology until the early 1980s, with it only recently emerging as an area of serious and concerted research. Today new discoveries and ideas of their origin are trumpeted in academic journals and on the front pages of newspapers and magazines on a regular basis and rigorous methods have been developed to study rock-art. In this course students are introduced to world rock-art and many of its major art bodies.

The aim of the fieldschool is to introduce students to world rock-art and the landscapes in which they are placed. Of particular interest will be the way we interact with our shared palaeoart heritage; to illustrate its connection and relevance to contemporary art and culture; to introduce the protocols and ethics of studying art produced by other cultures; and to develop a range of research and presentation skills. An overriding aim to emphasise the key role creativity plays in everyone’s lives, including those of the students themselves.

In 2009, there will be a strong field based element with visits to a number of rock-art sites in the Lenggong Valley, as well as the spectacular site of Gua Tambun in the south of the state of Perak.

Within the Lenggong Valley there are a number of fascinating Palaeolithic sites, which are amongst some of the oldest in South East Asia, dating as far back as 200,000 years. At one location students can see thick volcanic ash, known as Toba Ash covering parts of valley, dating to around 74,000 years ago. The Lenggong Valley and the surrounding countryside are still covered in dense jungle, making this an exciting and enticing location for a fieldschool.

The dates and costs will be anounced soon and it is anticipated that there will be considerable interest. Early enquires should be direct to Barry Lewis.


Friday, February 27, 2009



WORLD ROCK-ART, LANDSCAPES AND CREATIVITY FIELDSCHOOL
3rd to 13th September 2009


Trent & Peak Archaeology (TPA) and the University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC) in conjunction with Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) are pleased to offer the ‘World Rock-Art, Landscapes and Creativity Fieldschool’. This follows on from last years highly successful course offered at the University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus in Kuala Lumpur, which attracted students from Britain, USA, Canada, Australia, Malaysia and Singapore.

This years fieldschool is based partly at USM on the island state of Penang close to the UNESCO World Heritage listed George Town and in the Lenggong Valley in Perak, an archaeologically rich valley containing some of East Asia’s oldest sites. Field skills will be a vital component of this fieldschool with hands-on training demonstrating key recording methods. Visits to several important sites in the region are also planned.

Taught by a team of international experts with decades of experience between them, this unique course offers an intensive introduction to key skills and methods in rock-art recording, analysis and interpretation.



Location

Penang is an island and part of Malaysia’s smallest state, located just off the north-west coast of peninsula Malaysia and connected to the mainland by a bridge. The first three days will be spent on the USM campus near historic colonial George Town, preparing for fieldwork and studying the theoretical aspects of rock-art. George Town, along with Malacca, are now inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list.

The Lenggong Valley is in the State of Perak and still contains considerable jungle cover. The valley has a number of significant Palaeolithic archaeological sites including Kota Tampan, Bukit Jawa and Gua Gunung Runtuh – the cave where Perak man was discovered. The Lenggong Valley therefore represents an important site in the history of the migration of Anatomically Modern Humans out of Africa on their journey through to Southeast Asia and Australia.




Who Can Apply?

There are no minimum entrance requirements for this fieldschool. Applications from people of all nationalities as long as they are over the age of 18 are welcome.

Acceptance into the fieldschool is not guaranteed as there are limited places.

This fieldschool to be of particular interest to:

Students of archaeology, anthropology, Indigenous studies and other related fields

Archaeology and heritage management professionals

Members of the general public with an interest in archaeology, rock-art, art history and anthropology

Indigenous people from around the world

Some level of fitness is necessary for fieldwork in the Lenggong Valley. Please contact the fieldschool coordinator if you need more information


Academic

Overseas Students receive a Certificate of Achievement which states that the short course is equivalent to the completion of a University of Nottingham 20 Credit module. Participants may be able to use this to negotiate their own credit transfer with their home institution.



Non-Nottingham University EU and UK students also receive a Certificate of Achievement and may be able to receive credit at their home institution equivalent to the value of a 20 credit University of Nottingham archaeology postgraduate topic.




Costs

Fieldwork and accommodation costs UK£385
Applicable to all students. Includes accommodation (for 10 nights), lunches during the class based element (in Penang) and all meals during the fieldwork, transfers between Penang and the Lenggong Valley and all field trips.


Plus



UK and EU Students
Tuition Fees UK£670
Non-University of Nottingham Students

International Students
Tuition Fees UK£1150
Non-USM Students

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Course Convenors

Professor Paul S.C. Taçon, Griffith University, Australia
Dr. George Nash, University of Bristol
Dr. Sally K. May, Griffith University, Australia
Professor M. Mokhtar Saidin, USM, Malaysia
Mr. Barry Lewis, University of Nottingham, UK