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NSW Education Standards Authority

11–12Ancient History 11–12 Syllabus

Record of changes
Implementation from 2027
Expand for detailed implementation advice

Content

Year 11

Investigating ancient history – Case studies

Students study TWO case studies, choosing ONE from List A and ONE from List B. The studies may incorporate methods and issues involved in investigating the ancient past, as relevant.

Teachers may develop their own case studies. These may be designed to provide a context for options selected in the Year 12 course. However, case studies must not overlap with or duplicate significantly any option to be attempted in the Year 12 Ancient History or History Extension courses. Teacher-developed case studies must follow the geographical division indicated in Lists A and B.

List A: Case studies from Egypt, Greece, Rome and Celtic Europe

  • List A: Old Kingdom Egypt
  • List A: Tutankhamun’s tomb
  • List A: Deir el-Medina
  • List A: Alexandria
  • List A: Thera
  • List A: Troy
  • List A: The Roman games
  • List A: The Celts
  • List A: Boudicca

List B: Case studies from Australia, Asia, the Near East and the Americas

  • List B: Ancient Australia
  • List B: The Shang dynasty
  • List B: Ashoka
  • List B: Nineveh
  • List B: Persepolis
  • List B: Civilisations of the river – Mesopotamia and the Indus Valley
  • List B: Masada
  • List B: Palmyra and the Silk Road
  • List B: Teotihuacan

Other possible case studies related to List A could include:

  • the Valley of the Queens
  • Mycenae
  • Greek drama
  • the Etruscans
  • the impact of expansion on Rome
  • Tiberius Gracchus
  • the city of Rome
  • Roman Britain.

Other possible case studies related to List B could include:

  • Jericho
  • Lachish
  • the Akkadian Empire
  • Carthage
  • Hannibal and the Punic Wars
  • the Battle of Red Cliffs
  • the Moche
  • the early Maya.

Teacher-developed case studies must include the aspects of study identified in the following framework:

  • the geographical and historical context
  • the range and issues of sources
  • the historical features, people, places, events and developments of the ancient world selected for study
  • differing interpretations and representations.
List A: Deir el-Medina
The geographical and historical context
  • The location and purpose of Deir el-Medina

  • The role of Amenhotep I and Ahmose-Nefertari in its foundation

The range and issues of sources
  • The work of modern Egyptologists, including Auguste Mariette, Gaston Maspero, Ernesto Schiaparelli, Bernard Bruyère and Jaroslav Černý

  • Archaeological and written sources

Features of life at Deir el-Medina
  • Social structure, occupations, commerce and trade

  • The roles and images of women in the written and archaeological record

  • The nature of everyday life

  • Religious beliefs and practices

  • The construction of royal and non-royal tombs, such as the those of Thutmose III, Seti I, Sennedjem, Kha and Meryt

  • Burial beliefs and practices

  • The workers’ strike and tomb robberies

  • Differing interpretations and representations of Deir el-Medina

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