History of Western Art and Architecture
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Questions and Answers

Where can the Great Hall of the Bulls cave paintings be found?

  • Lascaux, France (correct)
  • Chauvet Cave, France
  • Blombos Cave, South Africa
  • Altamira, Spain

    • What significant development in tool usage occurred during the Mesolithic Age?

  • The invention of the wheel
  • The use of iron for tool making
  • The creation of bronze tools
  • The invention of the bow and arrow (correct)

    • What was the primary use of pottery during the Mesolithic Age?

  • Weapon making
  • Decorative art
  • Religious rituals
  • Food storage (correct)

    • What materials were first used in constructing permanent villages during the Neolithic Age?

    <p>Mud bricks</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which type of art is highly stylized and usually depicts human objects?

    <p>Rock paintings</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What were vessels used for during the Neolithic Age?

    <p>Cooking and food storage</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which god is depicted with female breasts?

    <p>Hapi</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was Imhotep later defied as?

    <p>The god of learning and medicine</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Who is the divine mother and a protector-goddess?

    <p>Isis</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the Law of Frontality?

    <p>Each side must be exactly like the other</p> Signup and view all the answers

    How were commoners typically portrayed in wall decorations?

    <p>Naturally</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does the sphinx symbolize?

    <p>The pharaoh as an incarnation of the sun god Ra</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was a common material used for sculptures in ancient Egypt?

    <p>Red granite</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of Egyptian architecture?

    <p>Excessively thin walls</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which landmark is composed of three large terraces connected by ramps?

    <p>Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following pyramids was the first ever built?

    <p>Stepped Pyramid of Zoser</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which pyramid is also known as Cheops?

    <p>Pyramid of Khufu</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which type of capital symbolizes lower Egypt and can have circular or ribbed shafts?

    <p>Papyrus bundle</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which architectural feature is a human-headed lion and has a paved open temple between its paws?

    <p>The Great Sphinx</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which type of capital has a flower or bell-shaped form, either lotus or papyrus?

    <p>Campaniform</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Who was the first recorded architect in Western history?

    <p>Imhotep</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which construction is characterized by the use of column and lintel?

    <p>Post and lintel</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What type of monument is an obelisk?

    <p>A square shaft with a pyramidal top</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the purpose of a mortuary temple?

    <p>For the dead pharaoh</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which part of an Egyptian temple plan serves as the gateway?

    <p>Pylon</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What type of structures developed from mastabas?

    <p>Stepped pyramids</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Where are rock-hewn tombs typically located?

    <p>On cliffs</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a necropolis?

    <p>A city of mastabas</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary focus of art according to the content?

    <p>An aesthetically pleasing and meaningful arrangement of elements</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does architecture primarily involve?

    <p>Designing and constructing buildings or other structures</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which period is known for the use of pigments for bodily ornamentation?

    <p>Mousterian</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the Venus of Willendorf made of?

    <p>Limestone</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which sub-period is known for cave paintings?

    <p>Aurignacian</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary concern of Paleolithic art?

    <p>Food or fertility</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which approach to historical style analysis explains visual and stylistic differences?

    <p>Aesthetics</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which factor of historical development includes the Spirit of the Age (Zeitgeist)?

    <p>Spirit of the Age (Zeitgeist)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    How many columns is the Law Code of Hammurabi written on?

    <p>51</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of the architectural style mentioned?

    <p>Rituals held in large indoor temples</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a ziggurat?

    <p>Artificial mountains made of tiered rectangular layers</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Who built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon?

    <p>Nebuchadnezzar</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What unique feature did the Assyrians introduce in their palaces?

    <p>Polychrome ornamental brickwork</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is depicted on the Ishtar Gate?

    <p>Rows of bulls and dragons</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What materials were predominantly used in the Bronze Age?

    <p>Copper and tin</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which civilization is known as the cradle of civilizations?

    <p>Mesopotamian</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Who was responsible for building the Ishtar Gate?

    <p>Nebuchadnezzar II</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which Mesopotamian period produced the Epic of Gilgamesh?

    <p>Sumerian</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was a significant architectural contribution during the Persian period?

    <p>Persepolis</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a Monolith?

    <p>A large, single upright standing stone</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What system of writing did the Mesopotamians invent?

    <p>Cuneiform</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Where is a Trullo typically found?

    <p>Italy</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What distinguished Assyrian palaces during their period?

    <p>Fortified citadels</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following accurately describes a Dolmen?

    <p>A free-standing chamber with standing stones covered by a capstone</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which king formulated wide-ranging laws during the Babylonian/Chaldean period?

    <p>Hammurabi</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which structure is specifically noted in Lochmaben, Scotland?

    <p>Monolith</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which building type is unique to Jura, Scotland?

    <p>Shielings</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was a key feature of the Apadana or Audience Hall at Persepolis?

    <p>It had 72 columns and two monumental stairways</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which god was associated with women in childbirth and protection against snakes in Ancient Egyptian mythology?

    <p>Bes</p> Signup and view all the answers

    In Ancient Egyptian belief, what was considered essential for the soul or ka to live on in the beyond?

    <p>Preserving the body</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What system of writing did the Ancient Egyptians use that allowed their history to be recorded?

    <p>Hieroglyphics</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following gods was considered the god of Thebes in Ancient Egyptian mythology?

    <p>Amon</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What was the primary purpose of the art rules for portraying the human figure in Ancient Egypt?

    <p>To show the most reflective view of each part of the body</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which civilization is associated with the Legend of Troy?

    <p>Mycenaean</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which architectural feature is characterized by a large rectangular area with a hearth in the center and many columns supporting the roof?

    <p>Megaron</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The Cycladic civilization is known for which type of art?

    <p>Marble sculptures (idols)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which fresco is associated with Minoan art?

    <p>Bull Jumping fresco</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which term is associated with Mycenaean architecture and refers to a fortress on a hill?

    <p>Cyclopean architecture</p> Signup and view all the answers

    The Palace of Knossos is associated with which ancient civilization?

    <p>Minoan</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which term describes the prehistoric throne room featuring a circular hearth?

    <p>Megaron</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which civilization's art includes small-scale sculptures like the snake goddess sculpture?

    <p>Minoan</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    History of Art and Interior Design

    Definition of Art

    • An aesthetically pleasing and meaningful arrangement of elements, such as words, sounds, colors, shapes, etc.
    • A form of human activity whose chief character is determined by such arrangement.

    Definition of Architecture

    • The science or profession of designing and constructing buildings or other structures.

    Definition of Decorative Arts

    • Any of the arts pertaining to or referring to painting, sculpture, glass and glassware, ceramic and pottery, metallurgy, and plants.

    Style Analysis

    • Practical approach: seeks to establish what was built, when, by whom, and for whom
    • Historical approach: explores the whys and its relationship to the social, economic, political, cultural, and religious environment
    • Aesthetics approach: accounts for visual and stylistic differences and explains how styles change and why they do so

    Factors of Historical Development

    • Rational, technological, and constructional factors
    • Social and religious factors
    • Economic, cultural, and political factors
    • Spirit of the age (Zeitgeist)

    Pre-History

    Paleolithic (30,000-10,000 BC)

    • Characteristics:
      • Concerned with food or fertility
      • Attempt to gain control over their environment through magic or ritual
      • Represents a giant leap in human cognition: abstract thinking
    • Types of art:
      • Portable art: small figurines or decorative objects carved or modeled with clay
      • Stationary art: cave paintings, rock paintings, and sculptures

    Mesolithic Age (10,000-8,000 BC)

    • Characteristics:
      • Saw the beginnings of settled communities and farming
      • Invention of the bow and arrow, pottery for food storage, and domestication of small animals
      • Human objects are highly stylized
    • Types of art:
      • Pottery: utilitarian in origin, not for visual pleasure

    Neolithic Age (7,000-3,000 BC)

    • Characteristics:
      • Men developed agriculture and settled in permanent villages
      • Mud bricks were first used
    • Types of art:
      • Pottery: made by kilning and mostly for storage of food
      • Vessels used for storage and cooking

    Prehistoric Architecture

    • Types of architecture:
      • Hut
      • Monolith
      • Shielings
      • Beehive huts
      • Dolmen
      • Stonehenge
      • Cave dwelling

    Mesopotamian Civilization (4300-331 BC)

    • Characteristics:
      • Domestication of animals, trade, and coinage
      • Legal government, potter's wheel, wagon wheel, alphabet, architecture, mathematics, and astronomy
      • Monotheism and monogamy
    • Historical periods:
      • Sumerian (6000-4000 BC)
      • Akkadian
      • Neo-Sumerian
      • Babylonian/Chaldean (4000-700 BC)
      • Assyrian (700-500 BC)
      • Persian (539-331 BC)

    Mesopotamian Art

    • Characteristics:
      • Cuneiform writing
      • Sculptures characterized by large circular eyes and curly hair and beard
      • Image of a lamassu (a creature with a human head, wings, and a bull's body)

    Mesopotamian Architecture

    • Characteristics:
      • Arches and corbel forms for roofs
      • Inlay and glazed tiles for decoration
      • Crenellation (battlement)
      • No temples, rituals held outdoors
      • Introduced use of columns with bull capital
      • Low relief decorations
    • Types of architecture:
      • Ziggurat: artificial mountains made of tiered rectangular layers
      • Tower of Babel: a seven-tiered ziggurat
      • Hanging Gardens of Babylon: a great palace built by Nebuchadnezzar for his wife, Amytis

    Palaces

    • Characteristics:
      • Polychrome ornamental brickwork
      • High plinths or dadoes made of great stone slabs placed on edges, usually carved with low relief sculpture
    • Examples:
      • Ishtar Gate: entrance gate to the Palace of Sargon
      • Palace complex at Persepolis

    Ancient Egyptian Period (3500-1000 BC)

    • Characteristics:
      • Focus on permanence, stability, eternity, and life after death
      • Formalized art: rules for the portrayal of the human figure
      • Theocracy: Pharaoh thought to be a god
      • Hieroglyphics: a system of writing with picture-symbols

    Egyptian Gods

    • List of gods:
      • Amon
      • Anubis
      • Aten
      • Bes
      • Hapi
      • Hathor
      • Horus
      • Imhotep
      • Isis
      • Mast
      • Mut
      • Osiris
      • Ptah
      • Ra(e)
      • Seth

    Egyptian Art

    • Characteristics:
      • Brilliant color
      • Groove chiseled around each figure
      • Law of Frontality: face must look straight ahead, and each side must be exactly like the other
      • Scale: royalty portrayed large and formally, commoners portrayed naturally, slaves and enemies in smallest scale
      • Men colored reddish brown, females in yellow

    Egyptian Architecture

    • Characteristics:
      • Rectangular forms in straight lines
      • Massive and solid
      • Excessively thick walls
      • Simple forms and few moldings
      • Proportions and support were heavy and sturdy
      • Trabested construction
      • A system of column and lintel

    Egyptian Architectural Landmarks

    • Examples:
      • Mastabas
      • Bent and straight pyramids
      • Obelisks
      • Temples: post and lintel construction, characterized as a forest of columns
      • Mortuary temples
      • Cult temples
      • Rock-hewn tombs/temples
      • Pylon
      • Peristyle - Open Court
      • Hypostyle Hall
      • Sanctuary
      • Necropolis
      • Pyramids: massive funerary structures of stone or brick with a square base and four sloping triangular sides meeting at the apex

    Aegean Period (3000-1200 BC)

    • Characteristics:
      • Art of the civilization that flourished on the Greek peninsula, in Asia Minor, on the north coast of Africa, and in the western Mediterranean
      • System of construction based on rules of form and proportion

    Historical Background

    • Greek ancient civilization rose from the Dorians who overwhelmed the Mycenaeans

    Ages of Aegean Art

    • Cycladic (3200-1200 BC)
    • Minoan (3000-1500 BC)
    • Mycenaean (1600-1300 BC)

    Aegean Art

    • Characteristics:
      • Cycladic art: marble sculptures (idols), most found lying down in gravel
      • Minoan art: fresco, building of great palaces on the island, vase paintings flourished with sea motifs as popular subjects
      • Mycenaean art: funerary mask, cyclopean architecture, large rectangular area with hearth in the center, and many columns supporting the roofs

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