HIST 1418: WORLD HISTORY TO 1500 (FALL 2022)
ESSAY INSTRUCTIONS & RESOURCES
DUE: by 11:59pm on Sunday 10/23/22, via Canvas. 3-4 pages total.
GRADING: 20 percent of final grade. See separate document, “Grading Ru
ic and Historical
Thinking Skills,” for information about evaluation standards. We will also go over what
constitutesa historical argument in class.
Basic Instructions: Choose any museum artifact, everyday object, physical site, or person related to
world history before 1500, and write about it according to the guidelines below. If you choose a museum
artifact or physical site, you do not need to visit it in person in order to complete the assignment (and
you SHOULD NOT visit it in person if cu
ent COVID restrictions prohibit it). But, some research beyond
the assigned readings may be necessary. I encourage you to consult with me when choosing and
esearching your topic.
Requirements for Use of Sources: The main requirement for the assignment is to cite at least two
academic sources that help you historically contextualize your topic, and cite at least two written
primary sources that relate to the same
oad question/theme as your topic. These sources could be
ones assigned on our syllabus, ones I recommend, or ones you find yourself.
Format Requirements (from syllabus). Microsoft Word, Google Doc, or Pages file; double-spaced, one-
inch margins, 12-point Times New Roman; quotations over three lines blocked, single-spaced, and
indented .5 inches on both sides; no additional space between paragraphs or sections or at tops of pages.
The purpose of this assignment is to explain why your object, site, or person is significant to an
aspect of world history before 1500.
Your essay should address something like the following three sets of questions (with some variation
depending on the topic):
(1) What is the history of the object/site/person itself? For objects, what are its origins? Who produced
andtransported it, and who owned or consumed it? On the level of art history, what was significant about
its design, aesthetics, function, and/or symbolism in its own time? If it’s a museum object, who
found
ought/sold/donated/stole it in modern times, and does that story say anything important about
modern history or the present day? If it’s an everyday object, how did it spread and how did its use and
meanings change over time? For sites, similar questions could be asked. You should also find out how
thesite changed over time: was it destroyed and rebuilt? Did it change owners? For people, how did that
person’s life intersect with or reflect the major historical developments of their time? How did people in
later times see/portray them?
(2) What does your object/site/person show about the history of the time period it comes from? What
themes/questions/concepts from our course does the object relate to—such as race, gender, power and
politics, identity, global connections, dynastic change, religion, commerce, culture, everyday life, o
intellectual history? (Remember that your essay should reference at least two academic secondary
sources—ones from the syllabus, ones I recommend, or ones you find yourself.)
(3) Does your object/site/person reveal similar things as the written primary sources from the same
time period? How do they differ? (Remember that your essay should reference at least two written
primary sources—ones from the syllabus, ones I recommend, or ones you find yourself.)
In other words, you are using information about a period of time to contextualize the object, and using
the object to understand a period of time. The object should not just be an entry point into you
topic;the essay should also address larger historical questions beyond discussing the object itself.
many cases) an everyday object. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York has the most extensive
collections, so I would recommend starting there if you're not sure what to write about. From the toolba
atthe top of their home page, go to Art: Art Collection. From the resulting page, you can search by