Download Recap: Wednesday we talked about PREHISTORIC art (Neolithic

Recap: Wednesday we talked about
PREHISTORIC art (Neolithic, Paleolithic).
The most important pieces to remember
were
1) Venus of Willendorf (Paleolithic)
2) Lascaux cave paintings (Paleolithic)
3) Stonehenge (Neolithic)
Today: We are talking about art of the Near
East. This is generally referring to art from
Mesopotamia.
*Mesopotamia:
-Greek word that means, “Land between
the rivers” (the two rivers were the Tigris
and Euphrates)
-Also called “Fertile Crescent”
http://mesopotamia.lib.uchicago.edu/
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To remember the cultures of the Ancient Near
East, just remember one word: SABAN
Sumerian
Akkadian
Babylonian
Assyrian
Neo-Babylonian
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Sumerians:
-First known farmers
-invented cuneiform (writing system)
-lived in city-states
-worshiped many gods
Important Sumerian Art:
-Ziggurats
-Votive statues
-Standard of Ur
Sumerian
Ziggurat of Ur
ca. 2100 BCE
Ziggurats:
-Served as temples and city centers
-First example of religious architecture
Sumerian Votive
Statues:
-Votive= something
offered in a vow
-hands in prayer
-Large, cartoonish
eyes (made with
inlaid stone)
*Question for the
class: Why do you
think these statues
were so small?
Sumerian
Votive figures
2700 to 2500 B.C.
Sumerian
Standard of Ur:
Standard of Ur
2700 to 2500 B.C.
-Found at Sumerian burial site
-Decorated with inlaid stone, shells
-One side depicts images of war, one peace
The Standard of Ur was an
Ancient Sumerian box that
contained a “Peace” side (left)
and a “War” side (below)
Loyal Solders (the WAR side)
Lyre Player (the PEACE side)
What happened to this sculpture??
Akkadian
Head of Akkadian ruler
Ca.2250-2200 BCE
Head of Akkadian Ruler:
-Remains of a statue that was toppled during war
-Balance of naturalism and abstract patterning
AKKADIAN
Victory Stele of NaramSin
2254-2218 BCE
Looking at this image,
who is the most
important figure here?
How do you know?
-Stele: monument made of
single column/slab, erected
to commemorate important
event or person
-This stele made for
Akkadian ruler, Naram-Sin,
who defeated Lullubi people
(present day Iran)
Stele of NaramSin, AKKADIAN
2300-2200 BCE
This illustrates the victory over the
Lullabis, mountain people of
western lran by Naram-Sin, who
claimed to be the universal
monarch. Naram-Sin had himself
depicted climbing the mountain at
the head of his troops. His helmet
bears the horns, a sign of divine
power. Although it is the ideal
human conqueror, a convention
imposed on artists by the
monarchy. worn, his face is
expressive of The king tramples
on the bodies of his enemies at
the foot of a peak; above it the
solar disk figures several times,
and the king pays homage to it for
his victory.
Another Stele…
-Babylonian ruler
known for his many
laws and conquests
-Hammurabi
pictured with
Shamash (sun god)
-Below listed 282
laws
BABYLONIAN
Stele of Hammurabi
ca. 1780 BCE
Assyrian
Lamassu (Human-headed
Winged Bull)
Reign of Sargon II, 721-705 BCE
-Guarded doors to citadel
of Sargon II
-Five legs pictured:
2 from front
4 from side
WHY???
Where else have we seen
this kind of inaccurate
representation of animals?
Detail from Hall
of Bulls,
Lascaux,
France, ca.
15,000- 13,000
BCE
Hall of Bulls, Lascaux:
-Use of “twisted perspective”- head drawn
from side, body at an angle
NeoBabylonian
Ishtar Gate
575 BCE
-Built by
Nebuchadnezzar II to
honor Ishtar, goddess of
Love/ War.
A reconstruction of the Ishtar gate and Processional Way was built at the
Pergamon Museum in Berlin out of material excavated and finished in the 1930s.
It includes the inscription plaque. It stands 47 feet high and 32 feet wide (14
meters by 10 meters).
Attention: You will have a quiz on Monday
on all flash card images!!
You must know:
1)!Culture or Time period (e.g. Paleolithic,
Babylonian, Sumerian, etc.)
2)!Title
3) Date (approximate!)