Ancient Mesopotamian Flashcards
How did the building blocks of society develop?
The wheel and plow were invented, and canals were used
How does trade affect culture development?
Culture was able to develop because exchanges were being made between different societies and cultures. Ideas and inventions were exchanged, so culture was able to progress
How do rulers affect art, and how do they display their power through art and architecture?
Rulers affect what kind of art is being made. They display their power through propagandistic art and architecture, often portraying themselves as powerful, all knowing beings, fully capable of leading a society
What were some forms of religious art and architecture?
Sumerians built grandiose temples in order to worship their gods; mortal figurines were made as well to demonstrate the the worshipping that went on in the temples. These figurines often had oversized eyes and tiny hands to symbolize the eternal wakefulness necessary to fulfill their duty
What is the Warka Vase?
- vase that honors goddess Eana
- horizontal lines
- hierarchy of scale; emphasis on the goddess; depicts festival to honor her
What is the Stele of Hammurabi?
- depicts Babylon’s king Hammurabi approaching, with his mouth covered, the sun god Shamash; Hammurabi standing while Shamash is sitting
- the law code is inscribed in akkadian form
- made of black basalt
- early example of foreshortening (in how the deity is sitting)
What is the definition of zoomorphic?
representing animal forms or gods of animal form
What is the definition of ziggurat?
It is a tiered Mesopotamian temple platform
What is the definition of abstract?
art that does not attempt to represent external reality, but seeks to achieve its effect using shapes, forms, colors, and textures
What is a stele?
a stone or wooden slab, generally taller than it is wide, erected as a monument
What is the definition of cuneiform?
denoting or relating to the wedge-shaped characters used in the ancient writing systems of Mesopotamia, Persia, and Ugarit, surviving mainly impressed on clay tablets
What is hierarchy of scale?
in which the artist uses unnatural proportion or scale to depict the relative importance of the figures in the artwork
What is foreshortening?
The illusion that one part of the body is farther away than another, even though they are all on the same plane
What is a patron/patronage?
A person who gives support to a group of people (possibly gods or goddesses they believed were their patron)
What is the Fertile Crescent?
crescent-shaped region containing the comparatively moist and fertile land of otherwise arid and semi-arid Western Asia, the Nile Valley and Nile Delta
