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Aligns with the material found in chapter 1 of Stokstad's Art History survey.
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Chapter 1
Prehistoric Art in Europe
Dating Conventions and Abbreviations
• B.C.=before ChristB.C.E.=before the Common Era
• A.D.=Anno Domini (in the year of our Lord)C.E.=Common Era
• c. or ca.= circa
• C.=century
Outline of Prehistoric Period
• Paleolithic– Lower– Middle – Upper
• Neolithic
Paleolithic Age• “Old Stone Age” - 2,500,000 – 10,000 BC
– Technological advancement from spear to bow/arrow = better hunting
• Appearance of Homo sapiens sapiens (-120,000)• Cro-Magnon Man
– Europe– Stone Ax = chop down trees & make boats– Hunting large animals required 4-5 “bands” of people
working together• Chief status for leader
– Cave Paintings
Homo Sapiens Sapiens
Shelter or Architecture?
Mammoth bone dwelling
from Ukraine
ca. 16,000-10,000 B.C.E.
Architecture of Mammoth-Bone Houses
Artifacts or Works of Art?
Lion-Human
from Hohlenstein-Stadel, Germany
ca. 30,000-26,000 B.C.E.mammoth ivory11 3/8 in. high
Sculpture• Oldest surviving art objects• Made from bone, ivory,
stone, or antlers• Either engraved (by incising
an outlined figure with a sharp tool), carved in deep relief or fully rounded three-dimension
• Lion-Human is half man, half beast
Female Figurines
Venus of Willendorffrom Willendorf, Austria
ca. 28,000-25,000 B.C.E.limestone4 1/4 in. high
“Venus” of WillendorfMost of the Upper
Paleolithic figures are female
Originally colored red
Exaggerated features - enormous breasts,
protruding belly & stylized round head
Probably a fertility symbol, symbolizing abundance
Woman of Lespugue
from cave of Les Rideaux, France
ca. 20,000 B.C.E.mammoth ivory5 3/4 in. high
Other Female Beauties
Various European “Venus” figures
Modern Exaggeration
The Meaning of Cave Paintings
• The first “paintings” were probably made 15,000 years ago
• Pictures of bison, deer, horses, cattle, mammoths & boars are in the most remote recesses of the caves, from the entrance
• Scholars proposed the social function of art lead to totemistic rites and increase ceremonies used to enhance fertility
The Meaning of Cave Paintings
• Archeologists speculate the animal images were meant to guarantee a successful hunt– Drawing a picture of it gave you power over it?– Sympathetic magic
• Artwork has been depicted with realistic features that enables scholars to identify animals
Chauvet Cave paintings
Vallon-Pont-d’Arc, Ardèche, France
ca. 30,000-28,000 B.C.E.pigment on stone
Pech-Merle Cave paintings
Lot, France
ca. 22,000 B.C.E.pigment on stone
Not intended for long-term use?Used for rituals?
Lascaux Cave paintings
Lascaux, Dordogne, France
ca. 15,000-13,000 B.C.E.pigment on stone
Twisted Perspective – horns, eyes & hooves are shown as seen from the front, yet heads & bodies are rendered in profile
Prehistoric Art Tools
•Cave artists used charcoal to outline the walls; sometimes they incised the wall with sharp stones or charcoal sticks•The “paints” used were ground minerals like red & yellow ochre•The minerals were applied directly on the damp limestone walls
Altamira Cave paintings
Santander, Spain
ca. 12,000-11,000 B.C.E.pigment on stone
Bison Ceiling
Artists used the irregularities of the cave to create sculptural effects by painting over them
Neolithic Revolution
• End of Ice Age (100,000 – 8000 BCE) brought ability to search for new food
• Systemic Agriculture – Making the conscious decision to plant & grow food
• Domestication – Raising goats, sheep, pigs & cattle
• Development of permanent, year-round settlements (and eventually, civilization)
Skara Brae Architecture
• Neolithic settlement in northern Scotland
• 3100 and 2600 BCE• Corbeling – layers of
stones are piled on top of each other to form walls without mortar
Megalithic Architecture• “Large stone” (mega + lithos)• Powerful religious or political figures and beliefs was the
impetus for these massive building projects• 2 types:
– Dolmen – large, vertical stones with a covering slab like a giant table (mounded over with dirt to form a cairn)
– Menhir – single stone set on its end• Positioned:
– Henge – circular arrangement of stones– Alignment – in rows
Stonehenge
Salisury Plain, Wiltshire, England
ca. 2,550-1,600 B.C.E.sarsen and bluestone
Stonehenge: England’s First Rock Group
• Series of concentric circles & circular shapes
• Outer circle of 13 foot high gray sandstones, called sarsen stones, topped by a continuous lintel– They weigh up to 26 tons each!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=DewEKz9TzmM
Built it and They Will Come?
How Did They Do That?!
• Lacked bronze or iron tools and, possibly, the wheel• Transported the stones by barge or sled
– Heel stone standing upright, weighs 35 tons and was brought in from 23 miles away
• Raising of the stones was done in stages by prying the ends up and inserting timber beneath– Added layer after layer and then removed the
elevated scaffolding
Banksy
Stonehenge Port-A-Potties
Glastonbury, England
2008metal and plastic
Jim Reinders
Carhenge
Alliance, Nebraska
1987metal
Could Coral Castle Provide an Answer?
Menhir alignments at Ménec,
Carnac, France
ca. 4,250-3,750 B.C.E.
various Menhirs
Ireland, Scotland, England, France
Dolmens
Ireland, Scotland, England, France
Essential Questions
• What is prehistory? • What are the problems and challenges of
making meaning of prehistoric art?• How is prehistoric art useful in
understanding the human condition?