The course offers an introduction on the ways archaeology has been conceived, has evolved and is practiced today. Every year different modules are presented. This year the first module of the course will be entirely devoted to landscape archaeology and run by Visiting Professor J. Casana. The second module will deal more directly with the archaeological site, the ways in which an excavation is organized and the way in which the finds – both artefacts and ecofacts - are studied and contribute to the reconstruction of the past. The third module offers a short survey on the history of thought in the discipline and some current theoretical venues.