Art of the Ancient World

Vocabulary

Paleolithic/Old Stone Age› The first stage in human culture

Neolithic/New Stone Age› The second stage in human culture

Cuneiform› A writing style made up of wedge shaped

markings that were pressed into damp clay Civilization

› Advanced state of human development; contain social, political, and cultural complexity

Vocabulary

Pantheon› A large group of gods; all the gods of a certain

culture/civilization Hierarchy

› A system of persons or things ranked one above another

Hieroglyphic› Writing style made up of pictures and symbols

Polytheistic› Having multiple gods

Paleolithic, Old Stone Age

Goes back to over 1,000,000,000 BCE

Humans…› Were nomadic (moved from

place to place)› Hunted and Gathered› Discovered fire, clothing,

and simple social organization

Neolithic, New Stone Age

Between 8,000 and 3,000 BCE Also known as Agricultural Period Humans…

› Began to settle down› Raised crops› Saw improvements in stone tools, pottery

and textiles› Learned to live together in small villages

Neolithic, New Stone Age

Mesopotamia

Wide area of land in the “Fertile Crescent”› Between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers› Located in modern day Iraq

Considered to be the birthplace of civilization

Sumerians› First civilization to emerge in the ancient

world

Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia

Hammurabi› First great ruler to emerge in Mesopotamia

Babylon› The capitol city Hammurabi chose for himself and

his people› Hence, his people were known as Babylonians

The Code of Hammurabi› A wide-ranged legal system› Made up of 282 articles› Meant to answer all of the legal questions of the

time› “Eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”

Literacy

Sumerians wrote using Cuneiform› Writing style made up of wedge shaped

markings Benefits of a Written Language

› Document the past› Increased communication› Keeping Records (taxes, irrigation patterns,

storage details, etc.)› Strengthens government

Literacy indicated class and therefore power

Cuneiform

Religion

Sumerians were Polytheistic Life was the focus of their religion

› Gods were often given attributes of humans and animals

› Individual gods served specific purposes› Gods were placed in a hierarchy

Some cities placed different gods at the top of their hierarchy

› Kings answered to the gods alone Social classes were tied into religion as well

Ancient Egypt

Egyptian civilization developed around the same time as the Sumerians

Settlements located along the Nile River in modern day Egypt

Egyptians depended on the annual flooding of the Nile to plant crops

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt

Literacy› Used Hieroglyphics (picture writing)› Each picture represents a syllable, not actual

words or objects

Ancient Egypt

Religion› Egyptians were Polytheistic› Identified the pharaoh (king) with the sun

god› Pharaoh was also physical manifestation of

the sky god› Death opened the path to the afterlife› The body had to be preserved in some way

for the soul to live on Mummification, embalming, etc.

Ancient Egypt

Egyptian art and architecture focused on Death or the Afterlife.

Art and Architecture functioned as an eternal dwelling place for the dead

Egyptian mortuaries (funeral homes) were highly decorated› Mortuaries also contain funeral imagery

and narratives for those who dwelled there

Ancient Egypt

Pharaohs were considered the link to the afterlife› Common citizens worked to secure the

pharaoh’s existence in the afterworld Offerings, sacrifices, etc.

Painting

Cave Paintings› The Cave of Lascaux

Discovered in 1940 by a group of children Cave was sealed off in 1963 to protect it

from atmospheric damage An exact replica exists in a quarry 600 ft.

away› Contains paintings of various bulls, horses,

and deer

Cave of Lascaux

Painting

The Tombs of Thebes› Burial sites located in the ancient city of

Thebes› Provides most of what we know about

Egyptian painting› Comprised of funerary art (art made for

rituals of death)

Painting

The Tombs of Thebes cont.› First discovered representations of the

gods› Portrayed everyday life as well› Utilized four hues(colors) that never

changed in value› Showed people in profile (viewed from the

side) No attempt at lifelikeness was made

Tombs of Thebes

Sculpture

Sumerian› Focused on kings

Usually performing devotional (religious) acts

› Sumerian court (royalty) generated sculptures out of gold

› Emphasized the importance of religion in Sumerian culture

Sculpture

Egyptian› Major art form of the Egyptians› Avoided lifelike sculptures for two reasons

1.) A close likeness could capture the soul 2.) Lifelikeness was too technically

challenging› Egyptians were very detailed with

sculptures of the human body› Surfaces were painted for decoration

Egyptian Sculpture

Sculpture

› The Great Sphinx Carved out of the

natural rock Portrays the head

of the pharaoh on the body of a lion

Reinforces the relationship between the pharaoh and the gods

Egyptian cont.

The Great Sphinx

Sculpture

Egyptian cont.› The Funerary Mask of Tutankhamun (King

Tut) Made of solid gold Inlaid with semiprecious stone and colored

glass Meant to record his likeness and cover his

mummified head Reveals the royal nemes (headdress) and

two symbolic creatures that protect Egypt

Funerary Mask of King Tut

Architecture Egyptian

Pyramids› Oldest existing

buildings in the world

› Filled with secret passageways and rooms

› Meant to protect the bodies of the pharaohs

Architecture

Egyptian Pyramids cont.› Usually constructed with a

nearby temple› The pyramids at Giza have

a carefully planned layout Each pyramid’s faces point

directly north, south, east, and west

The size and position of the pyramids may be symbolizing the stars in Orion’s belt

Music

Sumerian› Mostly used as a source of entertainment› Mostly used stringed instruments› Some vocal music with instrumental

accompaniment existed Egyptian

› Instruments consisted of Harps, lyres, pipes, flutes, cymbals, and bells

› Harps were the basic instrument

Music

Egyptian cont.› Tamboura

Similar to modern violins or guitars

Cat gut was used to make strings for instruments

Dance

Egyptian› Stride Dances

Formal style of dancing Typically consists of forward motions based

on rhythmic themes Were part of larger ceremonial dances for

funerals and fertility

Literature

Sumerian› The Epic of Gilgamesh

Oldest known story in the world Contains a story of a great flood much like

the story of Noah in the Bible A story about the physical and spiritual trials

of Gilgamesh

Literature Egyptian

› The Book of the Dead Collection of mortuary texts Contained spells, magic formulas to protect

and serve the dead in the afterlife