1.3: Art in the Stone Age Flashcards
- What is the difference between recognition and representation?
In order for the label “artwork” to apply, the work must be modified by human intervention beyond merely being noticed as reflecting human characteristics. During the Paleolithic period, humankind went beyond recognition to representation, which involves the presenting again of something observed.
- What feature of the human with feline (lion?) head sculpture suggests that it was important?
It represented something important because the process of manufacturing an ivory figure was a complicated task.
- What might explain the prevalence of female figures in Paleolithic art?
It has been suggested that these figures represent the female form whose childbearing capabilities insured the survival of the species rather than specific individuals.
- Why did prehistoric man consistently represent animals in prehistoric art in the profile view?
Only the profile view is completely informative of the animals’ shapes.
- What two approaches to picture making are on display at Lascaux?
Side by side the two basic approaches to painting and drawing are found.
- What assumption about style has the radio carbon date of the Chauvet Cave challenged?
The assumption challenged is that Paleolithic art “evolved” from simple to more sophisticated representations.
- What set of criteria distinguish the Neolithic period from preceding eras?
Humans began to settle in fixed abodes and began to domesticate plants and animals.
- Which region provided the necessary preconditions for the development of agriculture?
The grassy foothills of Antilebanon, Taurus, and Zagros provided the necessary preconditions for the development of agriculture.
- What was significant about the new Neolithic settlement at Jericho?
It was the first fortified town with a stone tower and wide rock-cut ditch and surrounding wall.
- What technique was used to create the statuettes from Ain Ghazal, and what moment in the development of sculpture do they mark?
They are plaster over a core of reeds and twine with bitumen pupils delineating the cowrie shell eyes. The figures also had orange and black hair, clothing, and sometimes, body paint and tattooing. They mark the beginning of monumental sculpture in the Ancient Near East.
- What new features appeared in the mural painting found at Çatal Höyük.
What is strikingly new is the appearance of the human figure, not only singly but also in large coherent groups in a variety of poses.
- What do scholars believe was the purpose of Stonehenge, and what does it reveal about the state of civilization at the point?
It was developed as a kind of astronomical observatory and was a remarkably accurate solar calendar. It attests to the rapidly developing intellectual powers of Neolithic humans.
