AHI 1A Final Terminology

Contrapposto

A sculptural pose where the weight of the body shifts onto one leg, creating a sense of movement and naturalism, as seen in Greek sculpture.

Verism

A Roman artistic style that emphasizes hyper-realistic and unidealized depictions of individuals, often highlighting age and experience to convey wisdom and virtue.

Chryselephantine

A luxurious sculptural technique combining gold (chrysos) and ivory (elephantine), typically used for large cult statues in ancient Greece.

Krater

A large ancient Greek vessel used for mixing wine and water, often elaborately decorated and used in symposia.

Kouros

An Archaic Greek statue of a young male, typically nude, standing in a rigid and frontal pose, symbolizing youth and vitality.

Kore

The female counterpart to the kouros, depicting a young woman, often clothed and representing ideals of femininity and piety.

Daedalic Style

An early Greek sculptural style characterized by geometric forms, triangular faces, and stylized hair, reflecting a transition to more naturalistic forms.

Treasury

A small, temple-like structure in sanctuaries, built by city-states to house votive offerings and display wealth and piety.

Cella or Naos

The central chamber of a Greek or Roman temple, where the cult statue of the deity was located.

Peristyle

A surrounding colonnade in a Greek or Roman building, often enclosing a courtyard or garden, emphasizing harmony and order.

Doric Order

The simplest of the classical architectural orders, characterized by sturdy columns without bases, plain capitals, and a frieze with triglyphs and metopes.

Ionic Order

An architectural order with slender, fluted columns, distinctive scrolled capitals (volutes), and a more decorative frieze.

Corinthian Capital

The most ornate of the classical capitals, decorated with acanthus leaves and small scrolls, exemplifying elegance and complexity.

Metope

A rectangular panel, often decorated with relief sculpture, located between triglyphs in a Doric frieze.

Caryatid

A sculpted female figure used as an architectural support in place of a column.

Barrel Vault

A continuous, semi-cylindrical vault resembling a tunnel, commonly used in Roman architecture.

Atrium

The central, open-air courtyard in Roman houses, often serving as a social and light-gathering space.

Forum

The civic, religious, and commercial heart of a Roman city, serving as a public gathering space.

Damnatio Memoriae

A Roman practice of erasing a person's memory and legacy, often through the destruction of images and inscriptions.

Spolia

Reused building materials or sculptures from older monuments, often incorporated into new constructions.

Geometric Period

900-700 BCE

• repeated bands of patterns

• many figures had triangular heads or bodies

• geometric vases & porttery w/ shapes

• many geometric shapes in art and motifs, characterized by stylized human and animal forms.

7th Century BCE

700-600 BCE

• mythical creatures

• Near Eastern influence

• mesopotamia etc.

• Daedalic style and artistic developments in Greece, marked by increasing naturalism and the representation of human figures.

Archaic Period

600-480 BCE

• Black-figure & red-figure techniques

• Doric Order & Ionic Order

• ornate long hair & Archaic smiles in statues

• slight emotion added to statues

• front rigid pose & sharp lines in statues

Classical Period

480-323 BCE

• head looks to the side

• corinthian order

• limbs move freely

• more emotion shown in statue

• softer lines in statue

• contrapposto stance

• wet drapery look

Late Classical Period

400-323 BCE

• humanizing heros & gods/godesses

• 1st nude goddess statue OMG

Hellenistic Period

323-32 BCE

• statues interact w/ the world around them

• very realistic statues

• statues carry props sometimes

• or captured doing activities

• movement in body of statues resemble normal human

Classical Period

Frieze

A frieze is a horizontal decorative band, often found in classical architecture, that is part of the entablature—the structure resting on top of columns. It is typically located between the architrave (the lowest horizontal band) and the cornice (the uppermost projecting section).
Doric: the frieze consists of alternating triglyphs (three vertical grooves) and metopes (plain or sculpted panels).
Ionic: the frieze is often a continuous band and may feature elaborate relief sculptures, such as scenes from mythology, history, or daily life.

Etruscan art

Art from the Etruscan civilization (9th–1st century BCE in central Italy), known for terracotta sculptures, vibrant tomb frescoes, elaborate metalwork, and distinct temple architecture. It focused on funerary themes, everyday life, and mythology, blending Italic traditions with Greek and Near Eastern influences. Influenced Roman art and culture.

High of the Empire