ART 111: Study Guide Test #1

register

(i) a written record containing regular entries of items or details (ii) a book or system of public records; a roster of qualified or available individuals

composite view

A convention of representation in which part of a figure is shown in profile and another part of the same figure is shown frontally; also called twisted perspective.

llamasu

A lamassu (Cuneiform: 𒀭𒆗, AN.KAL; Sumerian: dlammař; Akkadian: lamassu; sometimes called a lamassus) is an Assyrian protective deity, often depicted as having a human's head, a body of an ox or a lion, and bird's wings

megaron

A large, rectangular room, often with four columns supporting the ceiling. In the middle of the room was often a large hearth, which was vented through a hole in the ceiling.

post-and-lintel

A system of construction in which two posts support a lintel.

corbel vaulting

A vault formed by the piling of stone blocks in horizontal courses, cantilevered inward until the two walls meet in an arch.

ziggurat

An ancient Mesopotamian temple tower consisting of a lofty pyramidal structure built in successive stages with outside staircases and a shrine at the top; also : a structure or object of similar form

apadana

As a word, "apadāna" (Old Persian𐎠𐎱𐎭𐎠𐎴, masc.) is used to designate a hypostyle hall, i.e., a palace or audience hall of stone construction with columns.

cuneiform

Cuneiform is a system of writing first developed by the ancient Sumerians of Mesopotamia c. 3500-3000 BCE. It is considered the most significant among the many cultural contributions of the Sumerians and the greatest among those of the Sumerian city of Uruk which advanced the writing of cuneiform c. 3200 BCE. The name comes from the Latin word cuneus for 'wedge' owing to the wedge-shaped style of writing. In cuneiform, a carefully cut writing implement known as a stylus is pressed into soft clay to produce wedge-like impressions that represent word-signs (pictographs) and, later, phonograms or `word-concepts' (closer to a modern day understanding of a `word'). All of the great Mesopotamian civilizations used cuneiform (the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Elamites, Hatti, Hittites, Assyrians, Hurrians and others) until it was abandoned in favour of the alphabetic script at some point after 100 BCE.

Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia (from the Greek, meaning 'between two rivers') was an ancient region in the eastern Mediterranean bounded in the northeast by the Zagros Mountains and in the southeast by the Arabian Plateau, corresponding to today's Iraq, mostly, but also parts of modern-day Iran, Syria and Turkey. The 'two rivers' of the name referred to the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers and the land was known as 'Al-Jazirah' (the island) by the Arabs referencing what Egyptologist J.H. Breasted would later call the Fertile Crescent, where Mesopotamian civilization began.

canon

The canon can be seen as a body of work, which has been established as representative of the best examples of a particular genre. The works of art that are included in the canon are considered to be masterpieces. The works included in the canon set a standard from which other works of art, whether new or old, which are not included in the canon can be judged. A rule, for example, of proportion. The ancient Greeks considered beauty to be a matter of "correct" proportion and sought a canon for proportion, for the human figure and buildings.

What was the foundational difference between the Paleolithic and Neolithic?

The foundational difference between the Paleolithic and Neolithic was the development of agriculture. The impact of the change from a hunting-gatherer culture to a farm-based culture that stores food cannot be over-emphasized. It transformed the ways in which people lived and what they are able to produce in terms of art. Because people were now able to store food for later use and ensure a more sustained and predictable food supply, the labor of these peoples could be divided into more specialized skills that reflected the demands of their community. In terms of artistic and architectural production, what we begin to see during the Neolithic period is the development of monumental architecture and organized community living.

axial plan

The horizontal arrangement of the parts of a building or of the buildings and streets of a city or town, or a drawing or diagram showing such an arrangement. In an axial plan, the parts of a building are organized longitudinally, or along a given axis; in a central plan, the parts of the structure are of equal or almost equal dimensions around the center.

cella

The inner area of an ancient temple, especially one housing the hidden cult image in a Greek or Roman temple.

clerestory

an outside wall of a room or building that rises above an adjoining roof and contains windows

hierarchy of scale

artistic convention in which greater size indicates greater importance

Interior of the Treasury of Atreus, Mycenae

c. 1300-1250 BCE Treasury of Atreus, also called Tomb of Agamemnon , a beehive, or tholos, tomb built at Mycenae, Greece. This surviving architectural structure of the Mycenaean civilization is a pointed dome built up of overhanging (i.e., corbeled) blocks of conglomerate masonry cut and polished to give the impression of a true vault. The diameter of the tomb is almost 50 feet (15 metres); its height is slightly less. The enormous monolithic lintel of the doorway weighs 120 tons and is 29.5 feet (9 metres) long, 16.5 feet (5 metres) deep, and 3 feet (0.9 metre) high. It is surmounted by a relieving triangle decorated with relief plaques.

Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and 3 Daughters

c. 1353-1335 Check out this 5 minute video: https://www.khanacademy.org/video/house-altar-depicting-akhenaten-nefertiti-and-three-daughters

Sarcophagus, from Hagia Triada

c. 1450-1400 BCE The Hagia Triada sarcophagus is a late Bronze Age 137 cm-long limestone sarcophagus. It was rediscovered in Hagia Triada on Crete in 1903. It provides probably the most comprehensive iconography of a pre-Homeric thysiastikis ceremony and one of the best pieces of information on noble burial customs when Crete was under Mycenaean rule, combining features of Minoan and Mycenaean style and subject matter.

Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut

c. 1473-1458 Hatshepsut is arguably one of the most formidable women in ancient Egypt. After the death of her husband, Thutmose II, Hatshepsut served as co-regent to her nephew and stepson, the infant Thutmose III, who would eventually become the 6 th pharaoh of the 18 th Dynasty. The roughly 22 year reign of Hatshepsut is generally regarded as one of Egypt's most prosperous, and major accomplishments were achieved by this extraordinary pharaoh, including the construction of her mortuary temple in Deir el-Bahri.

Snake Goddess, Knossos

c. 1600 BCE In 1903, Sir Arthur Evans, excavating at the palace of Knossos on the island of Crete, discovered fragments of faience statuettes depicting female figures holding snakes. Two of these statuettes were extensively restored and identified by Evans as a "Mother Goddess" and a "Priestess." These figures became iconic images of Minoan civilization as soon as they were published, and ever since archaeologists, art historians, and feminist scholars have worked to determine their role and significance in Minoan culture. There is still confusion as to whether images of Minoan goddesses represent a single goddess with varying aspects or multiple goddesses with different functions. The term "Minoan goddess" is often used to identify the visual evidence of an ancient religious concept that is not yet fully understood. It also remains uncertain whether some female figures are priestesses or worshippers rather than divinities, which complicates the question of identity.

Plan of the palace, Knossos

c. 1700-1400 BCE Knossos was undeniably the capital of Minoan Crete. It is grander, more complex, and more flamboyant than any of the other palaces known to us. Knossos was inhabited for several thousand years, beginning with a neolithic settlement sometime in the seventh millennium BC, and was abandoned after its destruction in 1375 BC which marked the end of Minoan civilization. Arthur Evans, the British Archaeologist who excavated the site in 1900 AD restored large parts of the palace in a way that it is possible today to appreciate the grandeur and complexity of a structure that evolved over several millennia and grew to occupy about 20,000 square meters. Walking through its complex multi-storied buildings one can comprehend why the palace of Knossos was associated with the mythological labyrinth.

Stele with law of Hammurabi ("Hammurabi's Code")

c. 1780 BCE. Oldest known set of laws/code known in great detail.

Ziggurat at Ur

c. 2100 BCE. Largest Ziggurat ever erected. Led to exclusive temple features. Has large flights of stairs in triangular shapes

Spotted Horses (of Pech-Merle Cave)

c. 22,000 BCE Pech Merle cave is located near the village of de Cabrerets, in the Lot. The painted chambers, which are to be found in the lower network of the cave were first discovered in 1922 by teenagers Andre David and Henri Dutertre, and initially examined by Father Amedee Lemozi, amateur archeologist and curate of Cabrerets. The great masterpiece of the early phase of art at Pech Merle (Gravettian) is the dappled or spotted horse panel - four metres in length, carbon-dated to roughly 25,000 BCE. It features two horses back-to-back and partly superimposed, as well as numerous red and black hand stencils and other abstract imagery. This period of activity also features the series of dots, circles, hand stencils and crude finger drawing on the large "hieroglyph ceiling."

Stonehenge

c. 2250-1600 BCE *from class notes* Neolithic Monuments: People can now build, and build big - no longer need portability for a nomadic life. The one everyone recognizes is Stonehenge. HENGE: A *sacred enclosure* typically comprising a circular bank and a ditch. Found throughout the British Isles. Stonehenge: C. 3000 B.C.E. and set on Salisbury Plain in England, it is a structure larger and more complex than anything built before it in Europe. The stones which compose the outer ring weigh as much as 50 tons; the small stones, weighing as much as 6 tons, were quarried from as far away as 450 miles. But Stonehenge is 'only' 4-5000-years old. Neolithic Revolution began 13,000-years ago. Lets look at some less familiar sites in the fertile crescent.

Votive Disk of Enheduanna

c. 2300-2275 BCE The only preserved part was his right hand, which is in the same position as the priest with the 'fly whisk,' thus that figure has been repeated in the restoration. A small vase is restored in his left hand found on a fragment that does not appear in the original photo. The back of the disk bears an inscription, a dedication from Enheduanna to the moon god. This is what makes the object so important — we can identify the person who dedicated it and her position as high priestess. We can also match her name with other occurrences. Cylinder seals or seal impressions of her steward and her scribe have been found at Ur, for example, both mentioning her name. We also have her writings, a collection of temple hymns that were passed down continuously, and in an Old Babylonian version we have this note: "the editor of the tablet is Enheduanna; my lord, what has been created no one else has created." The word 'editor' is somewhat loose here; it is unclear whether she only gathered them together in one place, but there is a strong indication that she wrote or rewrote them as well. This statement has often been taken to place her as the first identifiable author in history; someone who composed, compiled, and took credit for her writings.

Seated Scribe

c. 2450-2350. Location: Egypt. Significance: more attention to realistic human features signifying person is of less importance.

Figurine of a Woman (Cycladic)

c. 2500-2300 BCE The recognition of distinct artistic personalities in Cycladic sculpture is based upon recurring systems of proportion and details of execution. The stylization of the human body that is elegant almost to the point of mannerism is characteristic of the Bastis Master.

Stepped Pyramid of Djoser

c. 2500. Built by Imhotep; first known recorded artist. Tomb to protect mummified king.

Venus of Willendorf

c. 28,000-25,000 BCE Josef Szombathy, an Austro-Hungarian archaeologist, discovered in 1908 outside the Austrian village of Willendorf. She measures just under 4½" high, and could fit comfortably in the palm of your hand. This small scale was very deliberate and allowed whoever carved (or owned) this figurine to carry it during their nearly daily nomadic travels in search of food. Clearly, the Paleolithic sculptor who made this small figurine would never have named it the Venus of Willendorf. Venus was the name of the Roman goddess of love and ideal beauty. When discovered outside the Austrian village of Willendorf, scholars mistakenly assumed that this figure was likewise a goddess of love and beauty. There is absolutely no evidence though that the Venus of Willendorf shared a function similar to its classically inspired namesake. However incorrect the name may be, it has endured, and tells us more about those who found her than those who made her. *The most conspicuous elements of her anatomy are those that deal with the process of reproduction and child rearing. The artist took particular care to emphasize her breasts, which some scholars suggest indicates that she is able to nurse a child. The artist also brought deliberate attention to her pubic region. Traces of a pigment—red ochre—can still be seen on parts of the figurine. * See website for more detail: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/prehistoric-art/paleolithic-art/a/venus-of-willendorf

Palette of Narmer

c. 3000-2920. Earliest known artwork labeled with name of a ruler. Represents unification of 2 previously independent kingdoms.

Persians and Medes, detail of processional frieze, Persepolis, Iran

c. 521-465 BCE. Represents procession or royals from 23 subject nations bringing tribute to the king.

Ishtar Gate, Babylon, Iraq

c. 575 BCE. One of 8 gates.

Lamassu, from citadel of Sargon II

c. 720-705. function: to ward of enemies. Original location: Iraq

ground line

in paintings and reliefs, a painted or carved baseline on which figures appear to stand. For example, In Egyptian work the figures and objects are placed on the ground line without reference to their actual spatial relationship.

Paleolithic

of or relating to the *earliest* period of the Stone Age characterized by rough or chipped stone implements. Lithos means "stone" and Paleo means "old" or "early" in Greek. (#) time period 30,000 BCE to 8,000 BCE (#) Humans create the first sculptures and paintings, long before the invention of writing (#) The works range in scale from tiny figurines to life-size paintings and relief sculptures on cave walls.

Neolithic

of or relating to the *latest* period of the Stone Age characterized by polished stone implements. Lithos means "stone" and Neo means "new" or "late" (#) time period 9,000 BCE to 2300 BCE (#) Beginning of agriculture and the formation of the earliest settled communities, first in Anatolia and Mesopotamia and later in Europe (#) The birth of monumental sculpture and architecture and the introduction of coherent.