Ancient Near-East

Question 1

cuneiforms

Answer 1

earliest form of writing created by the Sumerians

Question 2

ziggurat

Answer 2

high platform that lifts the temple, probably so it is high like the gods are in the mountains, also offers visibility of the temple to the rest of the city

• political symbol
• mud bricks
• had to go all around the structure to enter it
• god statues inside that people would worship

Question 3

cella

Answer 3

central hall of the temple - was the divinity’s room and housed a stepped alter - main statues of the gods and important/private gatherings took place

Question 4

composite sculpture

Answer 4

made of different types of materials

Question 5

votive offering

Answer 5

gifts of gratitude to a deity usually made in fulfillment of a vow

• a vase like Warka Vase
• statuettes like those from the “Square Temple”

Question 6

Ziggurat at Ur

Answer 6

first monumental work of this area

- political symbol

Question 7

cult statue

Answer 7

statues of gods that are worshipped

- certain statues that are special and worshipped at because the god was believed to reside inside

Question 8

Warka Vase

Answer 8

had an organized visual feel

• antinatualistic
• stylistic choice to communicate information, not presence

Question 9

Head of Akkadian ruler

Answer 9

• cast copper
• communicate presence
• life like combined with stylized beard and patterns
• intentional iconoclasm after fall of the empire

Question 10

Stele of Naran-Sin

Answer 10

• imported pink sandstone
• first depiction of a historical event
• battle between two civilizations
• commemorate political victory
• tension between perceptual and abstract styles

Question 11

Formal Approach

Answer 11

What you see

- size, materials, treatment of human figure, gesture/pose, colors, scale, organization

Question 12

Iconographical approach

Answer 12

symbolism

• story/narrative
• have to compare system of symbols

Question 13

Social Historical Approach

Answer 13

History of the period

• social role of king
• what do we know about the battle
• role of army and kind with army
• broader historical and social relations

Question 14

Anthropological Approach

Answer 14

How it was used

• function
• connection to commemoration
• ritual
• importance of the OBJECT

Question 15

Feminist/Gender Approach

Answer 15

creating, reflecting, reinforcing ideas about gender roles

• portrayal of the bodies
• made by men or women?

Question 16

Historiography

Answer 16

History of how the work was studied by scholars

• Why did the work become so famous?
• Because it shows male heroism?

Question 17

Formal Approach to the Stele of Naran-Sin

Answer 17

• King exaggerated
• shows power and nonshalance
• heroic action
• orderly depiction of what would have been messy and unorganized
• climatic moment
• symbolism of gods support