lecture 4 The Beginnings of Art: Magdalenian Culture and Sacred Caves

Question 1

Magdaelenien

Answer 1

• (16,000 – 8000 BCE)
• Loved caves and used them for their rituals (cave people)
• were descendants of Gravettians
• they are a social group who are forest hunters
• one of the most imp caves is chauvet caves, lascaux, france

Question 2

Shamanism:

Answer 2

• Not a religion (don’t follow set practices) but is a set of religious beliefs about human relationship between other humans and nature
• it might have started with the gravettians
• conversation with ancestors was really important to first societies

Question 3

what are the most important caves (Magdaelenien)?

Answer 3

chauvet caves, lascaux, in france

Question 4

when did cave art start?

Answer 4

cave art started in (20,000 BCE)

Question 5

cave art:

Answer 5

• thousands of drawings made by several generations
• paint was made by binding vegetable and animal oil to the paint
• both realistic and abstract because they are trying to convey something in the real life
• trong contours
• variety of lines
• the animals are big and small
• representational: striving to convey objects or figures
• abstract: conveying an essence of the animals in the world
• the magdalenians were not just interested in realism or representation they are interested in the animation of images; basically the movement

Question 6

where did the magdalenians find paint?

Answer 6

they found paint: 160 mineral fragments in archaeological digs

Question 7

what was the conjectures of the caves? like the “purpose”

Answer 7

Caves were of limited access to ritual specialists (hallucinations and dreams) and witness events

Question 8

why were ceremonies held in caves?

Answer 8

• communicate with ancestors
• summon the animals for a hunt
• prepare men and their equipment for the hunt promote fertility