HIST121 - SILVER AND GOLD IN THE AMERICAS FROM PRE-HISTORY TO THE PRESENT

Status
O
Activity
LEC
Title (text only)
HIST121 - SILVER AND GOLD IN THE AMERICAS FROM PRE-HISTORY TO THE PRESENT
Term
2019A
Syllabus
Subject area
HIST
Section number only
401
Section ID
HIST121401
Registration notes

CROSS CULTURAL ANALYSIS

Meeting times
TR 1030AM-1200PM
Meeting location
CLAUDIA COHEN HALL 493
Instructors
FARNSWORTH-ALVEAR, ANN
Description
Precious metals have shaped pre-Colombian economies and socio-cultural processes in the Americas for thousands of years. After 1492, gold and silver sent from the "New World" to the "Old World" played a key role in changing economies all over the world. Locally, mining centers were places marked by forced labor, conspicuous consumption, and the destruction of ecosystems. Internationally, gold and silver prices have long had outsized effects on monetary and trade policies. This course uses case studies to delve into the fascinating history of precious metals and mining in North and South America. We will analyze documents describing the gold objects ransacked by Spanish conquistadors, examine 17th Century proto-industrial silver mining at Potosi, trace the impact and human cost of the huge gold strikes in Minas Gerais, in colonial Brazil, read new work on the California and Yukon moments of "rush" and their long-term impact on US monetary policy, and follow new reports about the conflicts at the heart of transnational gold mining in the present. Students will gain experience working with primary sources and will produce an in-depth research paper.
Course number only
121
Use local description
No
Section Type
CROSS-CULTURAL ANALYSIS
LPS Course
false
Major Concentrations
Major/Minor Requirements Fulfilled