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Liège University - Belgium Project Team
The University of Liège has a long tradition of education in prehistory. From the beginning of the 19th century, it was one of the first in Europe to show interest in understanding prehistoric humans. The great antiquity of man was demonstrated by one of the University's members, Philippe-Charles Schmerling (1791-1836). Today the University continues this tradition in the undertaking of numerous research projects in the field of prehistory, associated with a mission of diffusion of knowledge. Furthermore, the Université de Liège hosted the XIVth Congress of the IUPPS, in September 2001, Professor Marcel Otte being its Secretary-General. The didactic aspect encompasses the different courses in prehistory offered to students in candidature and license in the History of Art and Archaeology in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters (art history, archaeology, prehistory of religions, Asian prehistory, excavation techniques), as well as empirical courses and didactic trips which are a necessary complement to the theoretically oriented courses. Open to the public as well as students and researchers, the Museum of Prehistory conserves collections resulting from early and recent excavations carried out by the Service of Prehistory (the oldest in Belgium in this field). Conceived as a window on the scientific activities of this Service, the museum aims to give a general overview of human behaviour during prehistory. The Museum and its annexes are also used for the conservation and analysis of archaeological material resulting from recent excavations. The objects are washed, labeled and inventoried before analyses. Collections are available for study by Belgian and foreign researchers. Research activities of the Service of Prehistory are manifold: they principally concern excavations, both in Belgium and elsewhere, undertaken in collaboration with diverse institutions (for example, the Grotte Scladina [Sclayn] and the Trou Al'Wesse [Modave] in Belgium; Karain and Okuzini in Turkey; the region of Tanger in Morocco), followed by detailed analyses of the material recovered. The Service has recently collaborated in programs of European research, in the field of history of archaeology ("AREA" project) and of prehistoric art ("EuroPreArt"). The Service coordinates doctoral research on various subjects (archaeology, art, history of prehistory), regularly organizes both national and international conferences and Congresses (including the most recent Congress of the UISPP, held in September 2001), edits the scientific journal Préhistoire européenne, the monograph series ERAUL (Études et Recherches Archéologiques de l'Université de Liège) and student theses (Mémoires de Préhistoire Liégoise). Address Service de Préhistoire
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XIVth UISPP Congress
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