Prehistoric and Ancient Art

This set of flashcards covers vocabulary related to significant prehistoric and ancient artifacts, their materials, cultural significance, and historical context.

Hall of bulls

Lascaux cave paintings from 15000 BCE in Dordogne, SW France, representing Paleolithic art.

Lion-Human figure

A 40,000-35 BCE artifact from SW Germany made of mammoth ivory, symbolizing shaman/religious significance.

Woman of Willendorf

A limestone figurine from Austria (22,000 BCE), illustrating fertility.

Ancestor Skull

An artifact from Jericho (7000-6000 BCE) made of plaster, human skull, and cowrie shell, related to ancestor worship and rituals.

Ain Ghazal Statues

Statues from Jordan dating back to 6750-6500 BCE associated with ancestor or deity figures.

Elephant relief

Hunter-gatherer art from Messal Settafet, Libya, created with stone tools, dating from 7500-5000 BCE.

Horned Female figure

An archaic style figure from Tassili n’Ajjer, Algeria, made using pigment on rock.

Roped Pot on a Stand

from the Igbo-Ukwu culture in Nigeria made of leaded bronze.

Temple of ANU

A Sumerian temple in Uruk constructed from whitewashed mudbrick.

Uruk VASE

An alabaster vase from the Sumerian period depicting registers of life in Uruk.

Votive Figures from Temple of ABU

Sumerian figures made of gypsum limestone found at Eshnunna, Iraq.

Royal Standard of UR

A Sumerian artifact from Tell el-Muqayyar, made of wood, shell, lapis, red limestone, and bitumen.

Stele of Naram-Sin

An Akkadian period stele from Susa, Iran, made of limestone.

Seated Stature of Gudea

A neo-Sumerian statue made of diorite depicting the ruler of Lagash.

Narmer Palette

An artifact from Dynasty 0 made of graywacke in ancient Egypt.

Djoser’s Funerary Complex

An Egyptian complex from Saqqara in the Old Kingdom made of limestone.

Pyramids on the Giza Plateau

Egyptian pyramids from the Old Kingdom made of limestone.

Khafre as enthroned king

A statue from the Old Kingdom (fourth dynasty) made of anorthosite gneiss.

King Menkaure and Female Figure

An ancient Egyptian sculpture from the Old Kingdom made of graywacke with traces of pigment.

Seated statue of scribe

An Egyptian statue from the Old Kingdom made of painted limestone with rock crystal eyes.

Model of a carpenter workshop

An Egyptian model from the Tomb of Meketre in the Middle Kingdom made of painted wood.

Coffin text in coffin of Gua

Painted wood texts found in Egyptian coffins from the Middle Kingdom.

Colossal statue of Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV)

An Egyptian statue from the New Kingdom made of sandstone.

Stele of Akhenaten, Nefertiti and children

An Egyptian stele made of limestone with painted sunken relief from the New Kingdom.

Last Judgment before Osiris, Book of the Dead

A New Kingdom painted papyrus depicting the judgment of the deceased.

Law Stele of Hammurabi

An Old Babylonian artifact made of black basalt outlining laws.

The Burney Relief (‘queen of the night’)

An Old Babylonian mold-pressed relief made of straw-tempered clay.

Orthostat from throne room of Ashurnasirpal II

A Neo-Assyrian sculptural relief from Kalhu, Iraq.

Colossus winged lion (lamassu)

A Neo-Assyrian sculpture made of gypsum found in Kalhu, Iraq.

Ishtar Gate of Babylon

A Neo-Babylonian entrance gate made of glazed mudbrick.

The Apadana building at Persepolis

A monumental construction of Achaemenid Persia made of stone.

Priest-king bust

A steatite artifact from Pakistan representing a priest-king.

Proto-shiva

A steatite drawing from Pakistan, representing early deities.

Song Da Drum

A bronze drum from Dong Son culture in Northern Vietnam.

Flame Vessels

Terracotta vessels from Japan during the Middle Jomon period.

Cong tube

A jade (nephrite) artifact from the Neolithic period, Liangzhu culture.

Guang

A bronze wine vessel from the Shang dynasty.

The Xing Hai Gui

A bronze vessel from the Early-Middle W Zhou Dynasty inscribed with writings.

The Ambum Stone

A Melanesian artifact made of graywacke depicting an echidna.

Figure of woman

An early Cycladic statue made of marble.

Toreador Fresco

A fresco from the Palace at Knossos in Crete, Greece.

Marine style octopus flask

Ceramic flask from the Neopalatial period.

Fresco detail - Gathering saffron

A fresco from Akrotiri depicting women gathering saffron.

Gold death mask (Agamemnon)

A gold funerary mask associated with Mycenaean culture.

Lion Gate

A limestone relief gateway from the Mycenaean period.

Warrior Vase (krater)

A terracotta krater from the Mycenaean period, depicting warriors.

Geometric Krater

A terracotta krater from the Dipylon cemetery in Athens.

Lanzon sculpture

A stone sculpture from Chavin de Huantar, Peru.