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ART IN CONTEXT: The Prehistoric and Ancient World to 1200 BCE
ART 121 Lecture 10
Introduction to the
Art History Unit
The History of Art
This unit of the course will focus on how CONTEXT, that is the
original environment, affects the form and content of a given work
of art and vice versa.
Factors an art historian takes into account when trying to “read” a
work include:
Form AND Function of the artwork
Available media and technology
Religious beliefs
Economic situation
Political factors
Unit 3 of ART 121 will present works in chronological order
and trace the major artistic developments to today.
History of Art Quizzes/Exams
You will be expected to know the following information for the Slide ID quizzes/exams
Title
Artist
Culture
Dates on selected works
Media (Painting, relief sculpture, etc.)
Any info discussed in class and on the review sheets
THIS IS A LOT OF INFORMATION. If you haven’t yet developed decent study habits for this course its not too late to start!
Part 1: Art Before History
Paleolithic Era: 35,000 BCE- ca. 8,000 BCE in the Middle East
Neolithic Era: 8,000 ca. – 3500 BCE in the Middle East
Timeline:
Prehistory
•120,000 BCE: Fully modern humans
emerge in Africa
•100,000 BCE: Humans begin to
migrate; oldest evidence of art found
•40,000 BCE: Earliest sculpture
•30,000 BCE: Cave paintings in Europe
•20,000 BCE: Invention of pottery, China
•10,000 BCE: Oldest known religious
structure in Turkey
•8000 BCE: Agriculture invented in the
Middle East
•4,000 BCE: Megaliths in England and France
Humanity needs to be creative…
Stone bowl used to grind ochre into pigment for painting.
Discovered in the Blombos Caves in the Horn of Africa.
Ca. 100,000 to 70,000 BCE.
Timeline:
Prehistory
•120,000 BCE: Fully modern humans
emerge in Africa
•100,000 BCE: Humans begin to
migrate; oldest evidence of art found
•40,000 BCE: Earliest sculpture
•30,000 BCE: Cave paintings in Europe
•20,000 BCE: Invention of pottery, China
•10,000 BCE: Oldest known religious
structure in Turkey
•8000 BCE: Agriculture invented in the
Middle East
•4,000 BCE: Megaliths in England and France
Humanity needs to be creative…
One of over 8000 pieces of yellow ochre recovered from
the Blombos Caves in the Horn of Africa. Ca. 100,000 to
70,000 BCE.
Currently the oldest known drawing in the world!
Timeline:
Prehistory
•120,000 BCE: Fully modern humans emerge
in Africa
•100,000 BCE: Humans begin to migrate;
oldest evidence of art found
•40,000 BCE: Earliest sculpture
•30,000 BCE: Cave paintings in Europe
•20,000 BCE: Invention of pottery, China
•10,000 BCE: Oldest known religious
structure in Turkey
•8000 BCE: Agriculture invented in the
Middle East
•4,000 BCE: Megaliths in England and France
The earliest surviving sculpture found
in modern day Germany. The subject
matter? A female nude….
“Venus” of Hohle Fels, Mammoth ivory, ca. 40,000 –
35,000 BCE. Approx. 2 inches tall. Discovered in 2011.
Currently the oldest (undisputed) Paleolithic sculpture.
Woman of Willendorf, Limestone
with red ochre, ca. 23,000 BCE.
Approx. 4 inches tall.
Timeline:
Prehistory
•120,000 BCE: Fully modern humans emerge
in Africa
•100,000 BCE: Humans begin to migrate;
oldest evidence of art found
•40,000 BCE: Earliest sculpture
•30,000 BCE: Cave paintings in Europe
•20,000 BCE: Invention of pottery, China
•10,000 BCE: Oldest known religious
structure in Turkey
•8000 BCE: Agriculture invented in the
Middle East
•4,000 BCE: Megaliths in England and France
Earliest surviving drawings/paintings found
in 50+ underground caves in modern
France and Spain.
Oldest cave art:
Chauvet Cave, France,
ca. 30,000 BCE.
The Hall of the Bulls, Lascaux Caves, France. Ca. 15,000 – 13,000 BCE.
Timeline:
Prehistory
•120,000 BCE: Fully modern humans emerge in
Africa
•100,000 BCE: Humans begin to migrate; oldest
evidence of art found
•40,000 BCE: Earliest sculpture
•30,000 BCE: Cave paintings in Europe
•20,000 BCE: Invention of pottery, China
•10,000 BCE: Oldest known religious structure in
Turkey
•8000 BCE: Agriculture invented in the Middle
East
•4,000 BCE: Megaliths in England and France
Ceramics were invented in ancient
China…as rice growing practices were
perfected, so was rice storage!
Remains of the earliest Paleolithic pottery.
Basin, Majiayoa culture, China,
ca. 3000-2700 BCE.
Timeline:
Prehistory
•120,000 BCE: Fully modern humans emerge
in Africa
•100,000 BCE: Humans begin to migrate;
oldest evidence of art found
•40,000 BCE: Earliest sculpture
•30,000 BCE: Cave paintings in Europe
•20,000 BCE: Invention of pottery, China
•10,000 BCE: Oldest known religious
structure in Turkey
•8000 BCE: Agriculture invented in the
Middle East
•4,000 BCE: Megaliths in England and France
The earliest evidence of “architecture”
comes from Göbekli Tepe in modern
Turkey, ca. 10,000 BCE.
Timeline:
Prehistory
•120,000 BCE: Fully modern humans emerge
in Africa
•100,000 BCE: Humans begin to migrate;
oldest evidence of art found
•40,000 BCE: Earliest sculpture
•30,000 BCE: Cave paintings in Europe
•20,000 BCE: Invention of pottery, China
•10,000 BCE: Oldest known religious
structure in Turkey
•8000 BCE: Agriculture invented in the
Middle East
•4,000 BCE: Megaliths in England and
France
The last vestiges of the Neolithic in
Europe: England’s Stonehenge.
View of the Sarsen Stones at Stonehenge, the last
building phase of the site.
Stonehenge Vocab: Megalith: Large stones. Structures
built w/o mortar.
Post and lintel construction. Posts: vertical members
Lintels: horizontal beams
Held together with notches
Sarsens: type of local granite; used for large horseshoe shape and posts and lintels.
Bluestones: uprights only; imported from Wales.
Recent discovery: This is only half of the site. To learn more…
Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain, England,
ca. 2750-2000 BCE.
Video: Secrets of Stonehenge
Please be sure to complete the worksheet that accompanies this video.
Part 2: Ancient Civilizations Across
the Globe to the 1200 BCE
Mesopotamia: Sumer
Africa: Egypt
India: Harappa
China: Shang Dynasty
Aegean: Minoan
Timeline:
Ancient Worlds
4,000: Irrigation invented in
Middle East
3,500: Writing Invented!!!
Also first cities.
3,000: Egypt united
2750: Stonehenge
2,500: Pyramid Age of Egypt;
Golden Age of Harappa in India
2,000: Shang Dynasty in China
1500: Height of Minoan
Civilization.
1200: Dark Age descends on
Middle East and Europe
MESOPOTAMIA: Civilization as we
recognize it appears in the cites of
Sumer around 3,500 BCE.
Statuettes from Abu Temple,
Sumerian (modern Iraq), stone/bitumen/shell, ca. 2900-2600 BCE.
Timeline:
Ancient Worlds
4,000: Irrigation invented in Middle
East
3,500: Writing Invented!!! Also first
cities.
3,000: Egypt united
2750: Stonehenge
2,500: Pyramid Age of Egypt;
Golden Age of Harappa in India
2,000: Shang Dynasty in China
1500: Height of Minoan Civilization.
1200: Dark Age descends on Middle
East and Europe
AFRICA: Egypt unified ca. 3,000 BCE
and it culture remains almost
unchanged until Roman rule in 31 BCE.
The Palette of Narmer, Predynastic Egypt, Slate, 25 inches, ca. 3100 BCE.
Great Pyramids, Giza, Old Kingdom Egypt, Limestone.
Khufu
2551-2528 BCE
Khafre
2520-2494 BCE
Menkaure
2490-2472 BCE
The Pyramid of Khufu:
Wonder of the Ancient World
Measures 775 ft per side
450 feet high
Limestone blocks weigh 2.5 tons each
2.3 million of them
Timeline:
Ancient Worlds
4,000: Irrigation invented in Middle
East
3,500: Writing Invented!!! Also first
cities.
3,000: Egypt united
2750: Stonehenge
2,500: Pyramid Age of Egypt;
Golden Age of Harappa in India
2,000: Shang Dynasty in China
1500: Height of Minoan Civilization.
1200: Dark Age descends on Middle
East and Europe
INDIA: Harappan civilization born on
the Indus River. Known for amazing
brick cities and small scale works.
Torso of a priest king, from Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan, ca. 2600–1900 BCE.
Timeline:
Ancient Worlds
4,000: Irrigation invented in Middle
East
3,500: Writing Invented!!! Also first
cities.
3,000: Egypt united
2750: Stonehenge
2,500: Pyramid Age of Egypt; Golden
Age of Harappa in India
1600: Shang Dynasty in China
1500: Height of Minoan Civilization.
1200: Dark Age descends on Middle
East and Europe
CHINA: Shang, the first Chinese
Empire on the Yellow River. Power of
kings seen in objects of jade, lacquer,
and bronze.
Shang Dynasty Ding with Taotie carvings,
10th or 11th Century BCE. Bronze.
Bronze Ritual Vessels:
Bronze: alloy of copper and tin. Very strong. Piece mold cast.
Vessels used in ceremonies of ancestor worship.
Vessels used by the the rich. Many of the patterns and symbols represent royal strength.
The Taotie Mask: ogre or glutton face? A god or monster? Perhaps protected
people or the food within the vessel from evil spirits.
Timeline:
Ancient Worlds
4,000: Irrigation invented in Middle
East
3,500: Writing Invented!!! Also first
cities.
3,000: Egypt united
2750: Stonehenge
2,500: Pyramid Age of Egypt; Golden
Age of Harappa in India
1600: Shang Dynasty in China
1500: Height of Minoan Civilization.
1200: Dark Age descends on Middle
East and Europe
AEGEAN: Home to Cycladic, Minoan,
and Mycenaean civilizations. Seeds of
Greek civilization found here. Minoan
art celebrates life, bulls, and the sea.
Bull-leaping, from the palace at Knossos (Crete), Greece, ca. 1450–1400 BCE. Fresco, 2’ 8” high,
including border. Archaeological Museum, Herakleion.
1200: The Dark Age Begins For over a century
archaeologists have noted that in sites all over Asia, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean show evidence of decline.
What happened? Invaders? Disease? Volcanoes?
In 2013 a new hypothesis was put forward: Climate Change.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/08/14/the-bronze-age-collapse-was-caused-by-climate-change-study/
Did Troy fall because of the Trojan
horse? Or did the city simply run out of
food and water?
Tying it Together:
A Review of the Ancient Civilizations
Questions to discuss in small groups: 1. What types of media did we focus on today? What types of media
were not studied…why?
2. Which society had the most abstract art? Which had the most mimetic art?
3. Which image do you think was the most overtly political? How were those politics the same as today? How were they different?
4. Which work was the most religious? When you first saw it, did you think it was a religious piece? What details about the religion did you learn from looking at the art and thinking about its function?
5. Based on what you learned about these cultures through their artwork, who would you go back in time to visit, and why?