This course involved a lot of independent research, and throughout the semester we worked on a developing an extensive final research paper. It was helpful to be challenged by this process, and be supported in developing the skills of in-depth research and long form writing that will be necessary for graduate level work. The course also required a fair amount of group work, in-class participation, and presentations to the class. This was a bit difficult for me and other students who struggle with anxiety around public speaking, but it was helpful to practice these skills in a supportive environment.

Dr Shahat is very knowledgable, and he also brings a really interesting and important perspective to the subject of Egyptology that is rare to find. Dr Shahat focuses on material culture, specifically archaeobotany, and his methods and teaching style are informed by anthropology as much as egyptology. Egyptology curriculums that mainly focus on philology sometimes skip over material culture so it was very refreshing to learn from him and hear about his work. Dr Shahat did a great job of including everyone, even though some students came to the course with little to no background or knowledge of egyptology. He is genuinely kind and approachable, and he created a really welcoming atmosphere in the classroom.

The final research paper is expected to be long and detailed, it is a lot of work, but Dr Shahat spaces out the deadlines for different parts of the paper throughout the semester, to help students work on it step by step. Do not procrastinate on any of the assignments, because if you do it makes it a lot harder to complete the next steps. It is a good idea to go to office hours early in the semester to discuss ideas for the paper, and to reach out for help if you need it.

Class was centered around the completion of a capstone project/essay that could be based on any topic related to ancient Egyptian technology or material culture.

This course provided both scientific and cultural lessons about archeology in the field of Egypt. We discussed ancient Egyptian time periods, as well as various methods of scientific analysis used today like Mass Spectrometry and isotope analysis. We had ample opportunity to see samples of plant material professor Amr had brought back from Egypt.

Professor Amr is involved in very niche scientific work that few others are capable of teaching. In this course, we learned about his work using Oxygen isotope analysis to link ancient remains to specific waterways. There was a lot of practical knowledge he shared and his lessons were always based around things he felt would benefit us as archeologists. I felt this made Amr's class unique because it was so focused on scientific method and actual forms of analysis, not just theory. There are not many other offerings in Anthro here that went so in-depth on forms of destructive analysis. He was always very approachable and very enthusiastic to support his students unique interests. He is also very passionate about the environment and shared different plants native to Egypt and their folk usag...read more

I would consider it to be helpful to have taken a lower div or 101 class on ancient Egypt prior to this one. It is an upper div, and Amr will make everyone in the class feel comfortable regardless, but it may seem like a lot of information if its all new to you.