Final Exam REVIEW Dec 2024 PDF

Q: What is Prehistoric art? A: Works of art that were produced more than 5,000 years ago are considered prehistoric. Prehistoric works of art are designated as such because the society that created them did not yet possess written language; however despite the "prehistoric" label, these works are...

Q: What is Prehistoric art? A: Works of art that were produced more than 5,000 years ago are considered prehistoric. Prehistoric works of art are designated as such because the society that created them did not yet possess written language; however despite the "prehistoric" label, these works are dated. Much of the artwork we are looking at is from the Paleolithic period which dates from 30,000 BCE to 10,000 BCE. This period is also referred to as the "Old Stone Age". Q: What role did spirituality play in the life of prehistoric humans? A: Early humans felt that certain events in their lives could have no other explanation than the influence and power of beings greater than themselves. In many early societies, divine beings were considered female. Q: What kind of female divine beings are represented in prehistoric art? A: Female goddesses often represent the Earth Mother and are seen as symbols of plenty in the harvest, the hunt and human reproduction. Q: What is the oldest known sculpture in the world? A: Three small figurines carved from mammoth bone were discovered in the Hohle Fels cave in Southern Germany and date back between 30,000 and 33,000 years. This would make them the oldest examples of human art ever found. These figurines, depicting a lion-man, a water bird and a horse, are so intricate, given their age, that they break the theory about the gradual evolution of art. Q: Why were these early prehistoric sculptures of HohleFelsCave created? A: Similar carvings to those found in Hohle Fels cave were found in 1939 elsewhere in Germany. Ever since the discovery last century, researchers have pondered the reason for their creation. Some believe the figures were merely made out of respect for the natural world. Others believe that these sculptures are evidence of early Shamanism. Shamanism was the practice where early societies in need of help would contact the spirit world through shamans, who had the ability to enter into a 'trance' and solve problems from a supernatural world. Q: What other forms of art did prehistoric humans create? A: Rock carving was another early form artistic expression that prehistoric peoples created. Stone carving often consisted of abstract swirls and symbols. These could be etched into large surfaces such as caves, hillsides, or individual stones. One such primary example is the entrance stone to the tomb complex at Newgrange, Ireland around 3200 BCE Cave Paintings of Altamira Spain Q: Where is the Altamira cave located and when was it discovered? A: The Altamira cave is located in the village of Santillana del Mar, Spain and was accidentally discovered in 1886 by Modesto Cubillas. Although it was not until 1902 that its prehistoric chronology was recognized. Q: What is the most intriguing and significant section of Altamira? A: The Polychromatics room by the cave's entrance shows us one of the most beautiful panels of early prehistoric art. On the ceiling of this room, large scale animal figures, in an apparent mess, turn up. These figures were drawn using different techniques over different periods of time, but mainly date from about 15,000 years ago. The bison, the most represented of these animals, is surrounded by other animals like the hind and the horse. Q: What is the rest of Altamira cave like? A: Besides the Polychromatics room, there are nine other galleries that form the Altamira S-shaped cave filled with engraved or black painted bison, goats, aurochs, horses, deer, and hinds. Q: How do archeologists know when humans lived in the cave? A: Proof of habitation of the Altamira cave was established by the dating of stone material and organic remains using C14-dating. Q: What kinds of imagery are found in Altamira? A: Beside the animal figures, there are also abstract signs, negative hands, and humanoid figures represented in the cave, as well as "macarroni", or series of parallel lines made by Paleolithic artists running their hands through 'clayey' walls. Q: What preserved Altamira until modern day? A: Thanks to a natural collapse at the end of the Upper Paleolithic period the cave was blocked and preserved. Q: What is significant about the artwork of Altamira? A: The paintings and drawings are dynamic and show movement through the thoughtful use of reliefs and uneven surface of the walls. The variety in the texture of the furs and manes of different species painted on the rock surface is another outstanding aspect. The most amazing thing however, is that these pictures were created with a minimum of tools and colors (red, black and ochre) and inside of what one might call a difficult environment (a dark, cold cave). Q: How is Altamira being preserved today? A: The carbon dioxide CO2 breathed out by visitors damages the old paintings, so the number of visitors to the cave is limited to 160 per week. An artificial copy of the cave exists as part of a nearby complex that includes a museum of prehistoric art, a research institute and a restoration laboratory. The Cave of Lascaux Q: What and where is the Cave of Lascaux? A: Lascaux is located along the northern slopes of the Pyrenees in Southern France. It contains nine "galleries" or chambers that reach 250 meters into the ground, with a drop in level of about 30 meters. The entrance is halfway up the side of the hill and was hidden over time by sediment as a result of erosion. Q: How was Lascaux discovered? A: In 1940, four teenagers accidentally discovered Lascaux cave. They had discovered a hole (the entrance) which had opened up after the fall of a big pine tree several years before. Q: What sections of Lascaux are the most impressive? A: The Great Hall of the Bulls and the Painted Gallery are the most impressive of the nine galleries. The Great Hall of the Bulls extends on both sides of the vaulted walls, covering some 20 meters and is composed of three groups of animals; horses, bulls and stags. These animals are a theme that is depicted throughout the rest of the cave. Q: What kind of images are in the Great Hall? A: The composition in the Great Hall is introduced by a strange figure, the unicorn which seems to be chasing a herd of horseslinked with a large, partially drawn bulltowards the back of the Hall. In the opposite direction, a similar illustration made up of three more large aurochs balances this composition. The meeting point of these two groupings is agroup of small stagspainted in ochre. Q: Discuss Lascaux's Painted Gallery. A: The Painted Gallery is sometimes referred to as the 'pinnacle' of Paleolithic art. Several of the more impressive images in the Painted Gallery include a large black cowwhose distinguishing feature is an unusual movement evocative of a fall,the Great Black Bull, and another important series of work, the Chinese horses. Q: What is another significant area in Lascaux? A: Another important chamber is known as the Shaft of the Dead Man. In this small shaft lies an intriguing scene whose originality lies in its narrative possibilities. This scene portrays a humanoid representation in what appears to be a confrontation with a bison to the right and a separate, fleeing rhinoceros on the left. A stick crowned with a bird's profile that strangely resembles a human silhouette, is also present towards the bottom of the image. Q: Where were these ancient drawings and paintings located? A: Much of the imagery at Lascaux was done on surfaces well above what a human could easily reach. In the Painted Gallery there is a line of natural holes along both sides of the walls. They are evenly distributed and from this we may deduce that a temporary wooden structure or scaffold could have been inserted and used to reach these higher panels. Q: Why are the drawings and paintings of Lascaux important? A: Like Altamira, the artwork of Lascaux is vivid and lifelike. These Paleolithic animal images are highly detailed and illustrate early man's incredible sense of naturalism, attention to detail, and pictorial memory. The drawings and paintings also illustrate a comprehension and use of movement, perspective and anatomical detailing. Q: Why did ancient artists create these paintings and drawings? A: The most common belief is that these cave paintings, and drawings, were created both as a way to honor the spirits of great beasts after they had been slain, and as a way to remember the glories of the hunt. Another theory is that they were painted prior to the hunt in order to ensure good luck and success. They may also have been created as a way to "bring life" to future animals of which their own lives were so dependent. Q: Today's movie rides, virtual realities, and electronic images have which of the following in common with ancient cave paintings? A: They both are extensions of humans' instinct to form picture narratives in dreams. They both are an expression of our desire to escape into a landscape of our imagination. They both demonstrate a need to create imitations of our own world. Q: What is a monolith? A: A tall block of solid stone standing by itself, whether a natural rock feature or a stone column shaped and erected by people, for example as a monument. Q: What is a megalith? A: Megaliths are large monuments created from huge stone slabs; one of the most famous megalithic sites is Stonehenge, located on the Salisbury plain in Southern England. Q: Describe what Stonehenge is and its building stages. A: Stonehenge was created in 3 different phases over 1400 years, starting around 3000 BCE. What we see today are the remains of the final stage of Stonehenge. Stonehenge is a prehistoric temple possibly used as a place of worship and burial, or as an astrological calendar. In its first stage Stonehenge was simply a large earthwork---a "henge"---a bank and ditch enclosing a circle of 56 holes known as Aubrey holes that held wooden posts in place. The second phase consisted of the wooden poles being dismantled from the Aubrey holes and filled with cremation deposits. Post holes indicate timber settings in the center and north-eastern entrance. The third and final phase involved several complicated sub-phases, and is when the recognizable circle of sarsen stones and the Trilithon Horseshoe, was put into place. The large sarsen stones were arranged in a circle about 108 feet wide, with continuous lintels. Inside of this circle was the Trilithon Horseshoe, ten upright stones arranged as free-standing pairs. In between both of these structures smaller bluestones were placed in a circle and in an oval formation inside of the horseshoe. Later individual stones that were added included: the Slaughter Stone, Heel Stone (over which the sun rises on the summer solstice), Station Stones, and Alter Stone. Q: How was Stonehenge built? A: The construction methods of these prehistoric builders are impressive. Deer antlers were used to dig the holes for the stones, while the stones themselves were shaped by Sarsen hammer-stones that ranged in size from a small ball to a football. The Trilithon horseshoe and Sarsen Circle were built using post and lintel construction. The top lintels were held in place using mortice and tenon joints. The continuous lintels in the Sarsen Circle were held together using tongue and groove joints. Mesopotamia and Sumerian Art and Architecture Q: What and where is Mesopotamia? A: About 7,000 to 8,000 years ago in an area known today as the Fertile Crescent, some of the earliest civilizations of our planet began to develop. Mesopotamia, "the land between the rivers" was the ancient Greek name for the Fertile Crescent, an area between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers that stretched northward from a point just north of modern Baghdad to the mountains of Armenia, encompassing most of what is now Iraq. Today the term 'Mesopotamia" refers to a broader geographic area of the ancient world that covers the lands of Sumer, Assyria, and Babylonia. Q: What drew ancient peoples to this area? A: One of the primary reasons civilizations originated here was the abundance of water. Water, particularly in the form of rivers, provided early humans with many of the basic elements that they needed for survival. Q: Who settled in Mesopotamia? A: One of the earliest groups to settle this region was the Sumerians, who developed dams and canals to irrigate the land and drain marshes. They settled in southern Mesopotamia in a region that would be called Sumer and were well established by 3100 BCE. Q: What were the Sumerians' contributions? A: Sumerians are the people who not only developed dams and canals, but also the wheel for transportation and the pottery wheel, a government system, a legal system, economic organization, an enduring writing system (Cuneiform), and religious literature. Q: Who were the Amorites? A: The Sumerian culture would later merge with the culture of the Amorites, a Semitic group who moved to the region in 2000 BCE. The Amorites unified the entire fertile valley by establishing the Old Babylonian Kingdom. The Amorites were numerous enough to make their language the prevailing speech in Babylonia, and merge their culture with the Sumerians to create new literature, a different political organization, advances in sculpture and a reorganization of commercial procedures. Q: What is a ziggurat? A: Sumerians are among the earliest peoples to use the pyramid shape for religious structures. The particular pyramid shape they employed was the ziggurat, or step pyramid. Because of its availability, clay was the most common building element in these temples. Materials such as wood, metal, and stone were hard to come by and to be imported. Q: What is Sumerian art like? A: Most of Sumerian art takes the form of sculpture or painting. Portraiture was particularly common. A great deal of Sumerian art was created as propaganda, depicting Sumerian rulers and the great deeds they had performed. Because writing was a very new invention, and by no means available to the masses, spreading the word about the strength of an army or the might of a king was done in pictorial form. Most of Sumerian artwork, however, was created for religious purposes. Q: Who is Gudea of Lagash and why do we see so many portraits of him? A: Sumerians produced one of the most renowned of ancient rulers, Gudea of Lagash. Gudea was known for his devotion to education, religion, and good works. He spent twenty years leading his city-state of Sumer in what is now south-eastern Iraq. During this time, he built many temples, promoted learning throughout his kingdom, and urged mercy and tolerance for the weak and helpless. He brought peace and prosperity to his people. It was also during his reign that Sumerian art was in full bloom. Many fine works of art were created under his rule. Most of the statuary at this time was used to decorate temples and other religious structures. Some of the best portraits of the time were those of Gudea. He is often depicted wearing the Persian lamb fur cap of Ensi. (Ensi meaning governor) The following 6 answers inside of quotes are taken from the article Crystal, Ellie. "Sumerian Art and Architecture." Crystalinks. 1995-2006. 9 Oct. 2006. Q: What are the Sumerian statues from Tell Asmar? A: "The famous votive stone/marble sculptures from Tell Asmar represent tall, bearded figures with huge, staring eyes and long, pleated skirts. The tallest figure is 30 inches in height and represents the god of vegetation. The next tallest represents a mother-goddess- mother goddesses were common in many ancient cultures. They were worshipped in the hope that they would bring fertility to women and to crops. The next largest figures are priests. The smallest figures are worshippers-definite hierarchy of size\...(Their) bodies are cylindrical and scarcely differentiated by gender, with their uplifted heads and hands clasped. This is a pose of supplication-wanting or waiting for something." Q: Describe the Warka Vase? A: "The Warka Vase (Iraq Museum) is the oldest ritual vase in carved stone discovered in ancient Sumer and can be dated back to 3000 BCE. It shows men entering the presence of gods, specifically a cult goddess Innin (Inanna), represented by two bundles of reeds placed side by side symbolizing the entrance to a temple." Q: Describe the Innana head. A: The Innana-Female Head from Uruk represents, Inanna, who was considered by the Sumerians an Earth, and later a (horned) moon goddess. "It is the limestone face of a life-size statue (Iraq Museum), the remainder of which must have been composed of other materials; the method of attachment is visible on the surviving face." Q: The Innana-Female Head from Uruk was most likely attached to a life-size statue made out of wood and other materials. Was this use of mixing materials typical and why? A: Many sculptures of the ancient Sumerians were made of various materials. "Devices of this sort were brought to perfection by craftsmen..., the finest examples of whose work are to be seen among the treasures from the royal tombs at Ur: a bull's head decorating a harp, composed of wood or bitumen covered with gold and wearing a lapis lazuli beard (British Museum);" This mixing of materials was due to the scarcity of those materials, as well as allowing the artists more freedom in construction and manipulation. Q: What was one way wood was used in the creation of Sumerian art works? A: "The inlay and enrichment of wooden objects reaches its peak in this period(Sumerian civilization), as may be seen in the so-called standard or double-sided panel from Ur (British Museum), on which elaborate scenes of peace and war are depicted in a delicate inlay of shell and semi-precious stones." Q: What is a cylinder-seal? A: "In a somewhat different category are the cylinder seals so widely utilized at this time. Used for the same purposes as the more familiar stamp..., the cylinder-shaped seal was rolled over wet clay on which it left an impression in relief. Delicately carved with miniature designs on a variety of stones or shell, cylinder seals rank as one of the higher forms of Sumerian art." Q: What was the most common form of Sumerian relief sculptures? A: Relief carving in stone was a medium of expression popular with the Sumerians...The most common form of relief sculpture was that of stone plaques, 1 foot or more square, pierced in the center for attachment to the walls of a temple, with scenes depicted in several registers (horizontal rows). Q: Who is Hammurabi? A: The birth of Babylonia is often considered to have begun with the reign of Hammurabi. Hammurabi is principally known for his Codification of Babylonian Laws, which may not have been his own creation, but a continuation of older law systems. Upon his death, the region plunged in a period of turmoil while various city-states battled each other for supremacy. Around 900 BCE, a new power, the Assyrians, sprang up in the north. Q: For what is he well known? A: The Law Code of Hammurabi is a symbol of the Mesopotamian civilization. This tall basalt stele raised by the king of Babylon in the 18th century BCE is an important icon of art, history and literature. It is also as the most complete legal collection from Antiquity, dating earlier than the Biblical laws. Q: What is the most common form of Assyrian art? A: The ancient Assyrians are most famous for their use of relief sculpture in the decoration of public buildings and palaces. Scenes of hunting and warfare were among the most common themes. Figures tend to be stylized and unrepresentative of individual people. Q: What was the capitol of the Assyrian Empire? A: One of the chief cities of the Assyrian empire was the ancient city of Kalhu, now known as Nimrud. It was chosen as the capitol by Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883-859 B.C.) and has yielded in its excavations a large assortment of Assyrian works of art, particularly from the Northwest Palace. Q: What is the significance of the Northwest Palace in Nimrud? A: "The state apartments were decorated in a fashion not found in earlier Mesopotamian royal buildings. Huge stone slabs, carved with scenes of figures in relief and inscribed with the record of important events in the king's reign, lined with sun-dried mud-brick walls. Wooden furniture adorned with carved ivory panels was used throughout the palace." Answer taken from "Ancient Near Eastern Art: King Ashurnasirpal and the Northwest Palace at Nimrud." 2000-2006. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 9 Oct. 2006. Q: Discuss Assyrian ivory sculptures and reliefs. A: Click on the link below to view reliefs from the Assyrian Royal Court. Mouse icon Assyrians Q: Who was Nebuchadnezzar and what did he have to do with Babylon? A: Babylon broke away from Assyria under the leadership of the Chaldean Nabopolassar, the first king of "Neo-Babylonia." After his death, leadership passed to his more famous son, Nebuchadnezzar. Although Nabopolassar undertook the rebuilding of Babylonia, it was his son, Nebuchadnezzar who brought Babylon to her full glory. It was the largest and most beautiful city in the Middle East; with its renowned Hanging Gardens and massive city walls, the city was considered to have been one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Q: Why are there so few structures from this time period and culture left? A: Unfortunately, all of the structures built during this time period were made from clay bricks. Natural erosion caused by wind and rain has worn away most of the smaller buildings and left very few of the larger ones. Regrettably, the ruins of Babylon have also long served as a quarry for building materials. Q: Is there anything that still exists of Babylon? A: The most famous surviving architectural feature within the ancient city of Babylon is the Ishtar gate. This beautiful gate was once the portal through which thousands of merchants, travelers, and soldiers passed on their daily journey into and out of the city. Originally, the gate was covered with brilliant blue enameled tiles and glazed brick bas-relief dragons, lions, and young bulls. The faces of the bricks were covered in faience, a form of ceramic glazing that is applied to the bricks using heat to seal them together. Q: Where could I see the Ishtar Gate? A: The actual Ishtar gate can be seen in its reconstructed state in the Pergamom Museum, in Berlin, Germany. Ancient Persian Art and Architecture Q: Who were the Persians? A: When the Babylonian empire began to crumble, a new group of people appeared on the eastern borders of the civilized world. These people were the Persians. They conquered Babylon in 539 BCE and remained in power until their defeat by Alexander the Great in 331 BCE. While it was in power, the Persian Empire ruled many other empires, including those of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Syria, and some parts of Asia Minor and India. Q: What and where is Persepolis? A: The Persians are best known for the large and elaborate palaces, and the most famous example is at Persepolis. Around 520 BCE, Darius I took over the throne of Persia. He did many great things for the Persian Empire, including making Persepolis the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenian Empire. It contained many great palaces, monuments, and temples and would have been a showcase of the Persian Empire. Q: What was Darius' Palace at Persepolis like? A: Darius' Palace at Persepolis was built on a man-made terrace of stone. The solid wood ceilings were supported by massive stone columns. Elaborate carvings decorated the tops of the columns and the surfaces of many buildings. Unfortunately, the only pieces in Persepolis to survive the invasion of Alexander the Great were the columns, stairways, and doorjambs of this great palace. Q: Besides grand structures, what else did the Persians contribute to art history? A: The most distinctive contribution of the Persians is their hand-painted pottery. Pottery is one of Persia's earliest art forms, and it was most probably used for ornamental purposes. This pottery was painted with simple geometric, floral, and animal motifs, which still characterize the Persian style. The lotus bloom is a common feature on Persian pottery; known as the niloofar in the Farsi language, it symbolizes life in many Middle Eastern cultures. Q: Who were the Phoenicians? A: While the majority of the Fertile Crescent cultures and civilizations seem to have been centered in the area surrounding the Tigris and Euphrates river valleys, it is important to note that there were several other cultures in the region at the time. One of the most successful of these civilizations was that of the Phoenicians, a seafaring people located along the modern coast of Lebanon. The Phoenicians were famous sailors, and many archeologists credit them with sailing around the entire coast of Africa and possibly navigating one of their primitive ships to the shores of the North American continent as well. Q: What were the Phoenician's artistic contributions? A: Phoenicians were renowned artisans. Phoenician art, particularly glassware, was among the most sought after in the ancient world. The Phoenicians fabricated glass jars using lost-wax, core-forming, and mouth-blowing techniques. The craftsmanship and attention to detail is evident in the two examples from the British Museum that the text directs you to.