ART IN EARLY CIVILIZATIONS

STONE AGE
- A term used to describe a period of history when
stones were used to make tools for survival.
- The term “conjures of image of men and women
dressed in skins, huddling before a fire in a cave”.
(Fitchner-Rathus, 2013)
THREE PERIODS OF STONE AGE
14,000 – 2,000 BCE
•1. Paleolithic (The late years of
the Old Stone Age)
•2. Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age)
•3. Neolithic (New Stone Age)
Paleolithic Age
EXAMPLES OF NEOLITHIC ARTS
EXAMPLES OF PALEOLITHIC ART
EXAMPLES OF EGYPTIAN ART
 PRE-HISTORIC ART
• The Stone Age has witnessed how humans were able
to lead more stable lives and eventually come up
with permanent shelters and tools for survival.
• Central to the representation of early civilizations
would be the establishing of possible linkages among
art, religion and life.
• Paleolithic Art is a product of climate change.
• Caves became protective havens for the early
humans and these caves paved the way for their first
attempts to create art.
 HALL OF BULLS
•One cave with beautiful paintings – Lascaux,
France painted during Paleolithic Period
•Two boys chased after their dog into a hole
where their ball got stuck in.
• It was believed that people lived during the
time:
• Used Advanced art techniques
• Own version of spray-painting techniques by
using ground pigments blown through hollowed-
out bones
• Used foreshortening and contrasting of lights and
shadows
• Such techniques created illusions of three-
dimensional forms, seemingly real
representations of animals.
•Caves with paintings were used
then as their kind of sanctuary.
•As a safe haven – religious rituals
•Linkage between what was
drawn and what could happen
in real life. Ex: drawing capture of
animals
•Beliefs with life and fertility
 VENUS OF WILLENDORF
• Sculpture of a highly abstracted woman from highlighted
body parts associated with fertility.
• -oversized breasts, enlarged hips, and round abdomen
• The representation shows the importance of taking care
of these body parts for procreation and consequently the
survival of species.
•Neolithic art has developed when life for
the early humans has become more
stable.
•They have learned to cultivate the land
and domesticate animals.
•By 4000 BCE, there were several
monumental and architectural structures
erected. One of them is the Stonehenge
located in Southern England.
 STONEHENGE
• Some regard it as a temple.
• Complex calendar that tracked the movement of the sun and
moon
• Magical element associating with Merlin, the Magician from King
Arthur’s story.
• Remains a mystery until today and is one of the architectural
wonders of the world
Most early civilizations flourished in
river valleys:
• Nile in Egypt
• Indus in India
• Tigris and Euphrates in Mesopotamia
• Huang Ho River in China
 EGYPTIAN ART
• The Fertile Ribbon starts from the banks of the Nile
River, which flows north to Africa and ventures into
the Mediterranean. It is in this very ribbon where early
Egyptians recognized the integral role of the Nile
River to their daily lives.
• With this came the notion that art was something that can be
ascribed and associated with religion. The Egyptian
civilization can be divided into three periods: Old, Middle,
and New Kingdom.
• Old Kingdom – religion was bound to afterlife.
-erection of tombs of pharaohs
-tombs served as shelter for the afterlife
• One of the cosmetic palettes found in Egypt was called the Narmer
Palette. It was utilized and applied dark colors around King Narmer’s
eyes. The Narmer Palette is one of the artifacts that emphasizes the
king’s supreme and absolute authority. In most cases, the king is not
just an authority figure but is also revered as a god.
• Permanence was important because such sculptures
would serve as the house of the ka or soul once the
remains of the mummy breaks up.
• One impressive feature of most of the sculptures is that
regardless of the age of death, the ka figures highlight the
prime life of the deceased.
• One of the architectural wonders was also constructed
during the Old Kingdom – The pyramids in Giza which
served as tombs since their main purpose was to provide
a resting place for the pharaohs.
• These pyramids are gigantic in size and were constructed
using roughly more than two million limestone blocks.
• The shift in the political hierarchy is one of the key
features of the Middle Kingdom.
• During the Middle Kingdom, art had references from
the Old Kingdom.
• Egypt was not resistant from foreign invaders and
eventually fell into the hands of the Hyksos. This Asiatic
Tribe introduced Bronze Age weapons and horses to
the Egyptians. When these foreign invaders were
overthrown, the Egyptians formed the New Kingdom. It
was a time of expansionism through territorial
acquisition. With the expansion came an increase in
wealth leading not only to economic but also political
stability.
• After the New Kingdom, Egypt witnessed the Amarna
Revolution led by King Akhenaton and Queen Nefertiti. He
moved the capital to Tel El-Amarna, thus the name
Amarna. During his reign King Amenhotep wanted to
revolutionize the arts and religion. He later on changed his
name to Akhenaton, which came from Aton – the sun god.
This shifting of names signified shift in religion wherein the
only god to be revered was Aton. Egypt became
monotheistic and Akhenaton ordered all to destroy all
monuments of other gods and ordered the erection of
monuments in reverence to Aton. Most sculptures during
this period had curving lines and full-bodied forms. There is
emphasis to life-like features of the face like an elongated
jaw and thick-lidded eyes. Naturalism was also used for the
members of the royal family.
King Akhenaton and Nefertiti
•One of the greatest discoveries from the
Egyptian civilization was probably the
tomb of Tutankhamen. He became king
at a very young age and died at the age
of eighteen. Howard Carter discovered
his tomb in 1922. They were astonished to
find gold artworks and that the coffin was
made out of solid gold. The body of the
young king was covered in linen and a
gold mask covered his face.
King Tutankhamen
GRADED ACTIVITY 1 ONLINE & MODULAR:
SEARCH FOR THE FOLLOWING EITHER IN MS WORD, THROUGH
WRITING OR MESSENGER. AFTER WHICH, SCREENSHOT YOUR
ANSWERS AND SEND IT VIA MESSENGER.
10 TRIVIAS ABOUT THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS
10 TRIVIAS ABOUT GREEKS
10 TRIVIAS ABOUT ROMANS
• To be submitted during our time/schedule NEXT
WEEK.
 GRADED ACTIVITY 2
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING EITHER IN MS WORD,
THROUGH WRITING OR MESSENGER. AFTER WHICH,
SCREENSHOT YOUR ANSWERS AND SEND IT VIA
MESSENGER.
COMPARE THE WAY OF LIVING OF THE STONE AGE TO
THE PRESENT ERA. (EXAMPLE: FASHION, TECHNOLOGY,
FOOD, ETC.)