- Ancient art
Arts of the ancient world refers to the many types of
art that were in theculture s ofancient societies, such as those of ancientChina ,India ,Mesopotamia , Egypt, Greece and RomeArts
See
ancient music , etc.Africa
Morocco
The earliest
figurine theVenus of Tan-Tan discovered to date originated somewhere between500,000 and 300,000 BCE , during the MiddleAcheulean period. Discovered inMorocco , it is about 6 centimeters long. Evidence suggests that this Moroccan piece may have been created by naturalgeological processes with a minimum of humantool -work, but the piece bears evidence of having been painted; "a greasy substance" on the stone's surface has been shown to containiron andmanganese and indicates that it was decorated by someone and used as a figurine, regardless of how it may have been formed. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3047383.stm]Egypt
Faience that was produced in ancient Egyptian antiquity as early as3500 BC was in fact superior to the tin-glazedearthenware of the European15th century ( [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1026/is_n3_v154/ai_21146424] ; also seeFaience ).Ancient Egypt ianfaience was not made ofclay but instead actually of aceramic composed primarily ofquartz . Approximately two hundred of these "masterpieces of faience" are the subject of the on-line article posted at [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1026/is_n3_v154/ai_21146424] .Because of the highly religious nature of Ancient Egyptian civilization, many of the great works of Ancient Egypt depict gods, goddesses, and Pharaohs, who were also considered divine.Ancient Egyptian art is characterized by the idea of order. Clear and simple lines combined with simple shapes and flat areas of color helped to create a sense of order and balance in the art of ancient Egypt. Ancient Egyptian artists used vertical and horizontal reference lines in order to maintain the correct proportions in their work. Political and religious, as well as artistic order, was also maintained in Egyptian art. In order to clearly define the social hierarchy of a situation, figures were drawn to sizes based not on their distance from the painter's point of view but on relative importance. For instance, the Pharaoh would be drawn as the largest figure in a painting no matter where he was situated, and a greater God would be drawn larger than a lesser god. Symbolism also played an important role in establishing a sense of order. Symbolism, ranging from the Pharaoh's regalia (symbolizing his power to maintain order) to the individual symbols of Egyptian gods and goddesses, was omnipresent in Egyptian art . Animals were usually also highly symbolic figures in Egyptian art. Color, as well, had extended meaning— Blue and green represented the Nile and life; yellow stood for the sun god; and red represented power and vitality. The colors in Egyptian artifacts have survived extremely well over the centuries because of Egypt's dry climate.Despite the stilted form caused by a lack of perspective, ancient Egyptian art is often highly realistic. Ancient Egyptian artists often show a sophisticated knowledge of anatomy and a close attention to detail, especially in their renderings of animals.During the 18th Dynasty of Egypt a Pharaoh by the name of Akhenaton took the throne and abolished the traditional polytheism. He formed a monotheistic religion based on the worship of Aten, a sun god. Artistic change followed political upheaval. A new style of art was introduced that was more naturalistic than the stylized frieze favored in Egyptian art for the previous 1700 years. After Akhenaton's death, however, Egyptian artists reverted to their old styles.
* [http://www.virtual-egyptian-museum.org/About/Story/About.Story-FR.html Senusret Collection] : Well-annotated introduction to the arts of Egypt.Asia
Japan
stanley is a great leader standardAccording to archeological evidence, the Jōmon people in ancient
Japan were amongst the first to developpottery , dating to the11th millennium BC . The Jōmon people were makingpottery figures and vessels decorated with patterns made by impressing the wet clay with braided or unbraided cord and sticks with a growing sophistication.China
Prehistoric artwork such as painted pottery in
Neolithic China can be traced back to theYangshao culture andLongshan culture of the Yellow River valley. During China'sBronze Age , Chinese of the ancientShang Dynasty andZhou Dynasty produced multitudes of artistic bronzeware vessels for practical purposes, but also for religious ritual andgeomancy . The earliest (surviving) Chinese paintings date to theWarring States period, mostly on thelacquer ware items, while the earliest surviving paintings on silk date to theHan Dynasty (example: the intricate silk paintings found at the tombs ofMawangdui ). One of ancient China's most famous artistic relics remains theTerracotta Army , an assembly of 8,099 individual and life-size terracotta figures (such as infantry, horses with chariots and cavalry, archers, and military officers), buried in the tomb ofQin Shi Huang , the First Qin Emperor, in210 BC. Chinese art arguably shows more continuity between ancient and modern periods than that of any other civilization, as even when foreign dynasties took the Imperial throne they did not impose new cultural or religious habits and were relatively quickly assimilated.India
The earliest known Indian paintings are the
petroglyph s such as found inBhimbetka , some of them being older than5500 BC . The production of such works continued for several millennia with later examples, from the7th century being the carved pillars ofEllora ,Maharashtra state. Other examples are the frescoes ofAjanta andEllora Caves .Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia (modern dayIraq ), is often considered the "cradle of civilization." Within its boundaries, some of the most ancient civilizations known to man first developedwriting andagriculture . Many civilizations flourished there, leaving behind a rich legacy of ancient art.umer
Sumer was once considered to be the firstcivilization . Archaeological evidence attests to their existence during the5th millennium BC . The Sumerians decorated theirpottery withcedar oil paint s. The Sumerians also developedjewelry .One of the most remarkable artifact remaining from the Sumerian civilization is known as the "
Standard of Ur ". Dated to approximately 2500 B.C., the Standard is a wooden box inlaid with shells andlapis lazuli . It depictssoldiers presenting their king with prisoners on one side andpeasant s presenting him with gifts on the other - stunning evidence attesting to the vibrancy of art in thisancient culture .Babylon
The conquest of
Sumer andAkkad byBabylon marks a turning point in the artistic as well as political history of the region.The Babylonians took advantage of the abundance of
clay inMesopotamia to createbrick s. The use of brick led to the early development of thepilaster andcolumn , as well as offresco es and enamelled tiles. The walls were brilliantly coloured, and sometimes plated withbronze orgold as well as with tiles. Paintedterra-cotta cones were also embedded in the plaster.The sean were also great
metal -workers, creating functional and beautiful tools withcopper . It is possible that Babylonia was the original home of copper-working, which spread westward with the civilization to which it belonged. In addition, the want of stone in Babylonia made every pebble precious and led to a high perfection in the art of gem-cutting. The arts of Babylon also includedtapestries , and Babylonian civilization was from an early date famous for its embroideries and rugs.Assyria
Like all other kingdoms, the Babylonian kingdom did not last forever. When Babylon fell into decline it was eventually conquered by
Assyria , one of its former colonies, Assyria inherited its arts as well as its empire.At first, Assyrian
architect s and artists copied Babylonian styles and materials, but as time went by, however, the later Assyrians began to shake themselves free of Babylonian influences. The walls of the Assyrian palaces were lined with slabs of stone instead of brick, and were colored instead of painted as inChaldea . In place of thebas relief we have scuplted figures, the earliest examples being the statues fromTelloh which are realistic but somewhat clumsy.No remarkable specimens of metallurgic art from early Assyria have been found, but at a later epoch great excellence was attained in the manufacture of such
jewellery as ear-rings and bracelets ofgold .Copper was also worked with skill.The forms of Assyrian pottery were graceful; the
porcelain , like theglass discovered in the palaces ofNineveh , was derived fromEgypt ian originals. Transparent glass seems to have been first introduced in the reign ofSargon II . Stone as well as clay and glass were employed in the manufacture of vases. Vases of hard stone have been disinterred at Tello similar to those of the early dynastic period of Egypt.Ashurbanipal had promoted art and culture and had a vast library of cuneiform tablets at Nineveh.
Persia (Iran)
Iran succeeded to theHittite Empire and initially took much of its artistic styles from them. Huge palaces in rural settings, often worked on by craftsmen drawn from other nations, subject or not, were distinctive features. After the Empire was decisively overthrown byAlexander the Great a newSassanian culture emerged, notable for palaces and metalwork. The capitalsSusa ,Persepolis , Ecbatana and Estakhr have revealed much rich Persian art.teppe Art
Superb samples of
Scythian art - mostly golden jewelry and trappings for horse - are found over a vast expanse of land stretching fromHungary toMongolia . Dating from the period between the 7th and 3rd centuries BC, art objects are usually diminutive, as may be expected from nomadic people always on the move. Art of the steppes is primarily an animal art, i.e., combat scenes involving several animals (real or imaginary) or single animal figures (such as golden stags) predominate. Probably the most famous find of Scythian items was made in 1947, when the Soviet archaeologistSergei Rudenko discovered a royal burial atPazyryk ,Altay Mountains , which featured - among many other important objects - the most ancient extant pilerug .outh America
Olmec art
See [http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hi/hi_cebu.htm] for photographs of an ancient
Olmec "Bird Vessel" and bowl, both ceramic and dating to circa1000 BC . Other ancient artifacts are listed (no photographs) at [http://www.nd.edu/~sniteart/collection/Galleries/MesoGallery.html] . Ceramics are produced inkiln s capable of exceeding approximately 900°C (seepottery ). The only other prehistoric culture known to have achieved such high temperatures is that ofAncient Egypt ( [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1026/is_n3_v154/ai_21146424] ; also seefaience ).Much Olmec art is highly
stylized and uses an iconography reflective of the religious meaning of the artworks. Some Olmec art, however, is surprisingly naturalistic, displaying an accuracy of depiction of human anatomy perhaps equaled in the Pre-Columbian New World only by the best Maya Classic era art. Olmec art-forms emphasize monumental statuary and smalljade carvings. A common theme is to be found in representations of a divinejaguar .Olmec figurine s were also found abundantly through their period.Europe
Greece
The Minoan Civilization
:"See also:
Minoan pottery "The greatest civilization of theBronze Age was that of the Minoans, a mercantilist people who built a trading empire from their homeland ofCrete and from other Aegean islands. Minoan civilization was known for its beautiful ceramics, but also for itsfresco s,landscape s, and stone carvings. In the early Minoan period ceramics were characterized by linear patterns of spirals, triangles, curved lines, crosses, fishbone motives and such. In the middle Minoan period naturalistic designs such fish, squids, birds and lilies were common. In the late Minoan period flowers and animals were still the most characteristic, but variability had increased. The 'palace style' of the region aroundKnossos is characterized by strong geometric simplification of naturalistic shapes andmonochromatic painting. The Palace at Knossos was decorated with frescoes showing aspects of everyday life, including court ritual and entertainment such as bull-leaping andboxing . TheMinoans were also skilledgold smiths, creating beautiful pendants and masks in the precious metal.The Mycenaen Civilization
Mycenae n art is close to the Minoan and includes many splendid finds from the royal graves, most famously theMask of Agamemnon , a gold funeral mask. As may be seen from this item, the Mycenaens specialized in gold-working. Their artworks are known for a plethora of decorative motives employed. At some point in their cultural history, the Myceneans adopted the Minoan goddesses and associated these goddesses with their sky-god; scholars believe that the Greek pantheon of deities does not reflect Mycenean religion except for the goddesses and Zeus. These goddesses, however, are Minoan in origin.Greek art
Ancient Greek art includes much pottery, sculpture as well as architecture. Greek sculpture is known for the
contrapposto standing of the figures. The art of Ancient Greece is usually divided stylistically into three periods: the Archaic, the Classical and the Hellenistic. The history of Ancient Greek pottery is divided stylistically into periods: the Protogeometric, the Geometric, the Late Geometric or Archaic, the Black Figure and the Red Figure. Ancient Greek art has survived most successfully in the forms of sculpture and architecture, as well as in such minor arts as coin design, pottery and gem engraving.The most prestigious form of Ancient Greek painting was
panel painting , now known only from literary descriptions; they perished rapidly after the 4th century AD, when they were no longer actively protected. Today not much survives of Greek painting, except for late mummy paintings and a few paintings on the walls of tombs, mostly in Macedonia and Italy. Painting on pottery, of which a great deal survives, gives some sense of the aesthetics of Greek painting. The techniques involved, however, were very different from those used in large-format painting. It was mainly in black andgold and was painted using different paints than the ones used on walls or wood, because it was a different surface.Rome
It is commonly said that Roman art was derivative from Greek and
Etruscan art . Indeed, the villas of the wealthy Romans unearthed inPompeii andHerculaneum show a strong predilection for all things Greek. Many of the most significant Greek artworks survive by virtue of their Roman interpretation and imitation. Roman artists sought to commemorate great events in the life of their state and to glorify their emperors as well as record the inner life of people, and express ideas of beauty and nobility. Their busts, and especially the images of individuals on gravestones, are very expressive and life-like, finished with skill and panache.References
* Bailey, Douglass. (2005). "Prehistoric Figurines: Representation and Corporeality in the Neolithic." Routledge Publishers. ISBN 0-415-33152-8External links
* [http://www.phoenixancientart.com Phoenix Ancient Art]
* [http://www.seattleartmuseum.org Seattle's Art Museum]
* [http://oi.uchicago.edu/ Oriental Institute]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.