Welcome to Our Classical Archaeology Homeschool History Course

Course Sample for Our Classical Archaeology Homeschool History Course

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Classical Archaeology
The Riot in Ephesus (Acts 19:23-41)

Goals of this Lesson The student will be able to:

• briefly explain what archaeology is, as well as its use and limitations
• locate Ephesus on a map, explain the significance of its location, and give a brief account of its history
• explain the major factors involved in the riot recounted in Acts 19:23-41
• explain at least three types of archaeological evidence that help us understand the riot in Ephesus

Part 1: Archaeology ̶ Its Use and Limitations

The term “archaeology” comes from two ancient Greek words:

ἀρχαίος            λόγος
archaios           logos
“ancient”         “word”

Archaios (ἀρχαίος) means ancient; this is the same stem from which we get the word archaic.

Logos (λόγος) has a rich and complex range of meanings. Though its most basic meaning is “word” or “speech,” it also includes the reasoning and thought behind speech. The form –logy is widely used today to indicate a body of knowledge, academic discipline, or field of study (biology, ecology, geology).

The etymology of the word archaeology suggests a broad “study of ancient things,” but today the term has a much more specific meaning. Today’s archaeologists examine the physical remains of ancient cultures in an attempt to understand them better. They integrate the physical evidence with other kinds of evidence, like written accounts and inscriptions.

This has profound implications for the uses and limitations of archaeology. Consider a question like “did the Trojan War really happen?” The site of Troy has been identified, and archaeological work has been conducted there, off and on, for over a century. But what sort of evidence would be needed to answer the question?

Battles can certainly leave physical evidence behind, but what sort of evidence could tie a battle to the events related by Homer in the Iliad?

Could we find evidence of a woman named Helen and a warrior named Achilles?

Even if we found armor and weapons from the right time period, how could we know they belonged to Achilles?