Key terms #1 Flashcards
A gift of gratitude to a deity
Votive
The crossed, or diagonal, arches that form the skeletal framework of a Gothic rib vault. In sculpture, the framework for a clay form
Armature
Figures projecting from a background of which they are part
Relief
Greek “city of the dead” A large burial area or cemetary
Necropolis
An artistic convention in which greater size indicates greater importance
Hierarchy of scale
A composition that is symmetrical on either side of a central figure
Heraldic composition
“Burial mound”, Latin
Tumulus (pl. tumuli)
Greek “great stone”. A large, roughly hewn stone used in the construction of monumental prehistoric structures
Megalithic
An arch formed by the piling of stone blocks in horizontal courses, cantilevered inward until the two walls meet at an arch
Corbeled arch
Assyrian guardian in the form of a man-headed winged bull
Lamassu
A carved stone slab used to mark graves or to commemorate historical events
Stele
In ancient Mesopotamian architecture, a monumental platform for a temple
Ziggurat
Alternating solid merlons and open crenels in the notched tops of walls, as in battlements
Crenellation
Arabic “bench” An ancient Egyptian rectangular brick or stone structure with sloping sides erected over a subterranean tomb chamber connected with the outside by a shaft
Mastaba
A small concealed chamber in an Egyptian mastaba for the statue of the deceased
Serdab
In ancient Egypt, the immoral human life force
Ka
A low-fired opaque glasslike silicate
Faience
Linen headdress worn by the pharaoh, with the uraeus cobra of kingship on the front
Nemes
An Egyptian cobra, one of the emblems of pharaonic kingship
Uraeus
A hall with a root supported by columns
Hypostyle
The wide entrance gateway of an Egyptian temple, characterized by its sloping walls
Pylon
The fenestrated part of a building that rises above the roofs of the other parts
Clerestory
Greek “high city” In ancient Greece, usually site of city’s most important temples
Acropolis
In ancient Greek two-handled jar used for general storage purposes, usually to hold wine or oil
Amphora
A pouring vessel
Rhyton
Fashioned of gold and ivory
Chryselephantine
Carefully cut and regularly shaped blocks of stone used in construction, fitted together without mortar
Ashlar
Formed in relief by beating a metal plate from the back, leaving the impression on the face. The metal sheet is hammered into a hollow mold of wood or some other pliable material and finished with graver
Repoussé
A temple with a circular plan
Tholos
