History Flashcards
A systematic, often chronological narrative of significant events as relating to a particular people, country, or period, often including an explanation of their causes.
History
An advanced state of human society marked by a relatively high level of cultural, technical and political development.
Civilization
An enduring and cooperating large-scale community of people having common traditions, institutions and identity, whose members have developed collective interests and beliefs through interaction with one another.
Society
The integrated pattern of human knowledge, beliefs, and behaviors built up by a group of human beings and transmitted from one generation to the next.
Culture
A particular or distinctive form of artistic expression characteristic of a person, people or period.
Style
The manner in which meaning, spirit, or character is symbolized or communicated in the execution of an artistic work.
Expression
An ancient region in western Asia between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, comprising the lands of Sumer and Akkad and occupied successively by the Sumerians, Babylonians, Assyrians, and Persians, now part of Iraq.
Mesopotamia
An agricultural region arching from the eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea in the west to Iraq in the east, the location of humankind’s earliest cultures.
Fertile Crescent
A cave in Lascaux, France, containing wall paintings and engravings though to date from 13000 - 8500 BCE.
Lascaux Cave
The architecture developed by the Sumerians, who dominated southern Mesopotamia from the 4th to the end of the 3rd millennium BCE, characterized by monumental temples of sun-dried brick faced with burnt or glazed brick, often built upon the ruins of ther predecessors.
Sumerian Architecture
eg. The ziggurat at Warka (reconstructed by Saddam Hussein):
An ancient region in southern Mesopotamia, where a number of independent cities and city-states were established as early as 5000 BCE. A number of its cities, such as Eridu, Urik and Ur, are major archeological sites.
Sumer
An artificial mound accumulated from the remains of one or more ancient settlements; often used in the Middle East as part of a place name.
Tell (eg. Tell Qarqur)
A Neolithic settlement in Anotolia, dated 6500 - 5000 BCE. One of the world’s earliest cities, it had mud-brick fortifications and houses, frescoed shrines, a fully developed agriculture, and extensive trading in obsidian, the chief material for tool-making.
Catal Huyuk
A vast plateau between the Black, Mediterranean, and Aegean Seas, synonymous with the peninsula of Asia Minor; today comprises most of Turkey.
Anatolia
Of, pertaining to, or existing in the time prior to the recording of human events, knowlidge of which is gained mainly through archaeological discoveries, study, and research.
Prehistoric
Of or relating to the last phase of the Stone Age, characterized by cultivation of grain crops, domestication of animals, settlement of villages, manufacture of pottery and textiles, and use of polished stone implements, though to have begun c. 9000 - 8000 BCE.
Neolithic
A period of human history that began c. 4000 - 3000 BCE, following the Stone Age and preceding the Iron Age, characterized by the use of bronze implements.
Bronze Age
A Bronze Age culture that flourished in the Indus Valley c. 2300 - 1500BCE.
Harappa
A Neolithic culture in China centered around the fertile plains of the Yellow River, characterized by pit dwellings and fine pottery painted in geometric designs.
Yang-shao , Yang Shao
A legendary dynasty in China, 2205 - 1766 BCE.
Xia or Hsia
The Xia dynasty is the legendary, possibly mythical first dynasty in traditional Chinese history. It is described in ancient historical chronicles such as the Bamboo Annals, the Classic of History and the Records of the Grand Historian.
A Chinese dynasty, c. 1600 - 1030BCE, marked by the introduction of writing, the development of an urban civilization, and a mastery of bronze casting.
Shang or Yin
The indigenous architecture of a vast country in eastern Asia whose civilization has continually evolved and survived longer than any other nation in the world. Despite the marked diversity in the architecture of various regions caused by differences in geographic and climatic conditions, a unique sstem of wood frame construction gradually took shape over several millennia of innovation and synthesis and exerted a profound influence over the architecture of Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia.
Chinese Architecture
The architecture of the ancient civilization that flourished along the Nile River in northwest Africa from before 3000 bce to its annexation by Rome in 30BCE, characterized esp by the axial planning of massive masonry tombs and temples, the use of trabeated construction with precise stonework, and the decoration of battered walls with pictographic carvings in relief. A preoccupation with eternity and the afterlife dominated the building of these funerary monuments and temples, which reproduced the features of domestic architecture but on a massive scale using stone for permanence.
Egyptian Architecture
The architecture of the Hittite Empire, which dominated Asia Minor and northern Syria from about 2000 tk 1200BCE, characterized by fortifications of cyclopean stone masonry and gateways with portal sculptures.
Hittite Architecture
The Mesopotamian architecture developed under the Assyrian king-emperors of the 9th to 7th centuries BCE. Within city walls strengthened by towers with crenelated battlements, palaces too precedence over religious buildings. Vaulting played a greater role than in southern Mesopotamia and polychrome glazed brickwork showed the influence of Egyptian decoration.
Assyrian Archtiecture
A Babylonian legal code instituted by Hammurabi in the mid-8th century BCE, based on principles from Sumerial Culture.
Code of Hammuraby
“Adultery
Ex. Law # 129: “If the wife of a man has been caught lying with another man, they shall bind them and throw them into the waters. If the owner of the wife would save his wife then in turn the king could save his servant”
The architecture of the Bronze Age civilization that flourished on Crete from about 3000 to 1100 BCE, named after the legendary King Minos of Knossos and characterized by the elaborate palaces at Knossus and Phaetus.
Minoan Architecture
The architecture of the Aegean civilization that spread its influence from Mycenae in southern Greece to many parts of the Mediterranean region from about 1600 to 1100BCE, characterized by shaft graves, moonumental beehive tombs, and palaces fortified with cyclopean walls.
Mycenean Architecture
The architecture of the civilization that flourished on the Greek peninsula, in Asia Minor, on the north coast of Africa, and in the western Mediterranean until the establishment of Roman dominion in 146CE, characterized by a system of construction based on rules of form and proportion. Temples of post-and-lintel construction were continually refined in a quest for perfection and their design influenced a wide range of secular, civic buildings.
Greek Architecture
A chinese dynasty, c 1030 - 256 BCE, marked by the division of China into separate feudal states, and the emergence of Confucianism and Taoism, which gave thrust to all subsequent Chinese Culture.
Zhou or Chou
The Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BCE) was the longest-lasting of ancient China’s dynasties. It followed the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BCE) and it finished when the army of the state of Qin captured the city of Chengzhou in 256 BCE.
A philosophy that dominated China until the early 20th century, an ethical system based on the teachings of Confucius, emphasizing love for humanity, harmony in though and conduct, devotion to family, and reverence for parents, including the spirits of the one’s ancestors.
Confucianism
A standard unit of space in Chinese architecture, marked by adjacent frame supports. The nature and appropriate scale of a building determine the number of jian to be allotted; the resulting width, depth, and height of the building then determine the number of fen required for the cross section of each structural member. The spatial unit serves as the basis for the modular structure of a Chinese city: a number of jian connected become a building; several buildings arranged along the sides of a lot frame a courtyard; a number of courtyard units side by side become an alley; several alleys line up to create a small street districtl a number of such districts form a rectangular ward; wards surround te palace-city and create a grip of streets.
Jian
In chinese philosophy and religion, the interaction of two opposing and complementary principles - one that is feminine, dark, and negative (yin) and the other is masculing, bright and positive (Yang) - that influences the destines of creatures and things.
Yin-Yang
Bright hall, a ritual structure in Chinese architecture that serves as the symbolic center of imperial power.
Mingtang
Jade ring moat; a ritual structurei Chinese architecture enclosing a space in the shape of the bi, a flat jade ceremonial disk. Originally a separate structure, the biyong later became part of a single ritual complex with the mingtang.
Biyong
Spirit Altar; a raised astronomical observatory in Chinese architecture, usually the central, circular upper story of the mingtang.
Lingtai
Of or pertaining to Mesoamerical culture from 2200 BCE to 100CE
Preclassic
The Mesopotamian architecture that developed after the decline of the Assyrian Empire, deriving much from Assyrian architecture and enchanced by figured designs of heraldic animals in glazed brickwork.
Neo-Babylonian Architecture
eg. Ishtar Gate
A series of irrigated ornamental gardens planted on the terraces of the Citadel, the palace complex in ancient Babylon, regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The architecture developed under the Achaemenid dynasty of kings who ruled ancient Persia from 550 BCE until its conquest by Alexander the Great in 331 BCE, characterized by a synthesis of architectural elements of surrounding countries, such as Assyria, Egypt, and Ionian Greece.
Persian Architecture
eg. Hall of Hundred Columns and Palace of Percepolis
A telamon portrayed in Persian Dress.
Persian
The grand columnar audience hall in a Persian Palace.
Apadana
The architecture developed under Parthian rule in Iran and western Mesopotamia, from the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE, combining classical with indigenous features.
Parthian architecture
Of or pertaining to ancient Greek history, culture, and art, pes. before the time of Alexander the Great.
Hellenic
Of or pertaning to Greek history, culture, and art from the time of Alexander the Great’s death in 323 BCE through the 1st century BCE, during which Greek dynasties were established in Egypt, Syria, and Persia, and Greek culture was modified by foreight elements.
Hellenistic
The architecture of the Etruscan people in west-central Italy from the 8th to 3rd centuries BCE, before the rise of Rome. Its construction methods, esp that of the true stone arch, influenced later Roman Architecture.
Etruscan Architecture
A fortified wall commenced under the Zhou dynasty to protect China against nomads from the north and serve as a means of communication. Various sections were built and connected until, during the Ming dynasty, it extended for 1500 miles (2415km), from southern Kansu province to the coast east of Beijing.
Great Wall of China
A dynasty in China, 221 - 206 BCE, marked by the emergence of a centralized government and the construction of much of the Great Wall of China.
Qin or Ch’in
The architecture of the Indian subcontinent, from the Indus valley culture of the Harappa to the Mauryan era, and later to period of foreign domination and indigenous rule, characterized esp. by Hindu and Buddhist monuments, sometimes sharing the same site, and rhythmic, stratified multiplication of motifs and profuse carved ornamentation, often combining the religious and the sensuous,
Indian Architecture
eg. Akshardam Temple, South delhi
A member of an ancient Indian people who united northern India and established an empire c. 320BCE, architecture from this period shows the cultural influence of Achaemenid Persia and the first use of dressed stone.
Maurya
Chinese philosophy and religion considered next to Confucianism in importance. Base on the teachings of Lao-tzu, it emphasizes a life of simplicity and noninterference with the course of natural events in order to attain a happy existence in harmony with the Tao. As a religion, it dates from 143CE, becoming popular during the decline of the Han dynasty and the introduction of Buddhism to China.
Taoism
The Way; the creative principle that orders the universe.
Tao
A pre-Incan culture that flourished on the northern coast of Peru from c 200BCE to 700 CE, noted for its fine pottery and the colossal Temple of the Sun, a terraced pyramid made entirely of adobe bricks.
Mochica or Moche
The architecture of the Mesoamerican civilization, which flourished c1200 - 500 BCE in the tropical lowlands of the Mexican Gulf Coast, characterized by temple-pyramids and large ceremonial centers.
Olmec Architecture
eg. Chichen Itza Pyramid, Mayan civilization, Mexico
A Peruvian culture lasting from c1000BCE to c200BCE, based on the worship of the jaguar god and characterized by excellent stone sculpture, elaborate gold work, and remarkable ceramics, named after a town in central Peru, where a complex of massive stone buildings with subterranean galleries surround formal courtyards.
Chavin
The architecture of the Chavin Civilization that developed in the northern Andean highlands from 900BCE to 200CE, characterized chiefly by the Chavin de Huantar temple complex.
Chavin Architeture
A column of rock portraying a Chavin mythical being who provided the god’s oracular declamations.
Lanzon
The architecture of ancient Greece and Rome, on which the Italian renaissance and subsequent styles, such as the Baroque and the Classic Revival, based their development.
Classical archtiecture
eg. Temple of Apollo, Corinth, Greece
The main north-south route in an ancient Roman town or military camp.
Cardo
The main east-west route in an ancient Roman town or military camp.
Decumanus
An ancient Roman military camp having streets laid out in a grid pattern.
Castrum
The architecture of the ancient Roman people, characterized by massive brick and concrete construction employing such fatures as the semicircular arch, the barrel and groin vaults, and the dome, a simplicity and grandeur of massing often combined with elaborate detailing, the elaboration of the Green orders as purely decorative motifs for the adornment of facades and interiors, and the use of marble linings, mosaics and molded stucco in interiors.
Roman architecture
A city in the central part of Italy, which, according to tradition, was founded by Romulus and Remus in 758 BCE, ancient capital of the Roman Empire and site of Vatican City, the seat of authority of the Roman Catholic Church.
Rome
An elaborate public bathing establishment of the ancient Greeks and Romans, consisting of hot, warm, cool plunges, sweat rooms, and athletic and other facilities.
Thermae
The room in an ancient Roman tthermae containing hot water for batching.
Caldarium
A room containing a bath of moderately warm water in an ancient Roman thermae, located between the frigidarium and the caldarium.
Tepidarium
The room in an ancient Roman thermae containing a bath of unheated water.
Frigidarium
A system of flues in the floor or walls of ancient Roman buildings, especially baths, the provided central heating by receiving and distributing the heat from a furnace.
Hypocaust
An underground cemetery consisting of linked galleries and chambers with recesses for coffings and tombs. The term most commonly refers to the subterranean complex of layered corridors with burial vaults, chambers and niches, covered with inscribed tablets and often decorated wit hfrescoes, built by the early Christians in and near Rome.
catacombs
The dynasty of the Mauryan empire in northern India, 320 - 540CE, whose court was the center of classical Indian art and literature, the earliest substantial architectural remains are from this period.
Gupta
A Hindu state established in southern India c350CE; contributed to the expansion of Indian culture into Southeast Asia.
Pallava
A style of Indian architecture in the Pallava period, named after the language spoken in southern India.
Dravidian
eg. Brihadeeswarar Temple
Of or pertaining to Mesoarmerican culture from 100 - 900CE.
Classic
The area extending rom central Mexico and the Yucatan Peninsula to Honduras and Nicaragua in which pre-Columbian civilizations flourished. These cultures shared temple-pyramids and a pantheon of deities including sun, wind and rain gods. While they excelled in astronomy and the measurement of time, they are not known to had the use of the whenn, iron implements or an understanding of the true arch,
Mesoamerica
Of or pertaining to the Americas before the voyages of Columbus.
Pre-Columbian
The architecture of the Mesoamerican civilization of the Yucatan Peninsula, Guatemala, and part of Honduras, from the 1st century CE to its peak in the 9th century, characterized by magnificent ceremonial centers with temple-pyramids, ritual ball courts, spacious plazas and palaces with sculptured facades.
Mayan Arhictecture
eg. Temple I, Guatamela
Mayan word for the deep water-filled sinkholes that the Itza associated with the underworld.
Cenote
The final phase of Roman architecture, following the adoption of Christianity as the state religion by Constantine in 313 CE and lasting until the coronation of Charlemagne in 800 CE as emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, characterized by churches planned for congregational worship, esp. the basilica; coincident with and related to the rise of Byzantine architecture.
Early Christian Architecture
Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome (c432AD)
The architecture of the European Middle Ages, comprising the architecture of the Byzantin, pre-Romanesque, Romanesque, and Gothic periods.
Medieval Architecture
eg Rouen Cathedral
The time in European history between classical antiquity and the Renaissance, often dated from 476 CE, when Renaissance, often dated from 476CE, when Romulus Augustulus, the last Roman emperor of the Western Roman Empire, was deposed, to about 1500.
Middle Ages