The format of this course consists of two evenings a week
with no discussion sections.
During the semester we will examine significant monuments and art
objects dating from around 4000 B.C. to 1400 A.D.  The primary objective
of the course is to understand the civilizations of the important
periods of antiquity and the Middle Ages by means of an
examination of their visual material remains.  For example, we
will learn what the pyramids and colossal sphinx tell us about
ancient Egyptian civilization, what the Acropolis and Parthenon
of Athens tell us about the Greek civilization, and what Gothic
cathedrals with their sculptures and stained glass windows tell
us about the late Middle Ages and Christianity.  We will be
taking a look not only at actual works of art but also
archaeology, religions, society, and literature and other salient
remains of culture.