RCC Midterm Vocab II

Slip

a mixture of fine clay and water used in ceramic decoration

Incision

To cut into a surface with a sharp instrument, especially to decorate metal and pottery

Tumulus

burial mound; in Etruscan architecture cover one or more subterranean multichambered tombs cot out of the local tufa (limestone)

Polis

An independent city-state in ancient Greece.

Emporion

trading post / post of trade

Poliadic Temple

a temple that worships multiple deities

Optical Refinements

subtle adjustments that the artist made on a piece to make it look more perfect

Entasis

The convex profile (an apparent swelling) in the shaft of a column

Pedimental Sculpture

a sculpture found in the pediment (the triangular space formed by the slanted ceilings of a building)

Adyton

a small space at the far end of the cella, away from the entrance reserved for priests

Black Figure

In early Greek pottery, the silhouetting of dark figures against a light background of natural, reddish clay, with linear details incised through the silhouettes.

Krater

An ancient Greek wide-mouthed bowl for mixing wine and water

Amphora

An ancient Greek two-handled jar used for general storage purposes, usually to hold wine or oil

Bilingual Vase

Experimental Greek vases produced for a short time in the late 6th century BCE; one side featured black-figure decoration, the other red-figure.

Red Figure

In later Greek pottery, the silhouetting of red figures against a black background, with painted linear details; the reverse of black-figure painting.

Verism

True to natural appearance; super-realistic.

Hellenistic Idealism

The term given to the art and culture of the roughly three centuries between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE and the death of Queen Cleopatra in 30 BCE, when Egypt became a Roman province.

Contrapposto

The disposition of the human figure in which one part is turned in opposition to another part, creating a counter positioning of the body about its central axis. Creates tension on one side of body and relaxation on the other.

Pax Augusta

Augustan Peace

Classicizing

imitating forms and ideals of the Classical world, principally Greece and Rome.

Inhumation

the burial of human remains

Kline

couch or funerary bed; type of sarcophagus with a reclining portrait of the deceased on its lid

Sacrophagus

stone coffin

Annular Vault

A barrel vault curved in plan to form a circular passage

Radial Vault

a structure made of radially joined stones that can create a star-shaped top view. The star shape can have four, six, or eight arms, and can be linked or have a net of small rib

Arch

A curved structural member that spans an opening and is generally composed of wedge-shaped blocks (voussoirs) that transmit the downward pressure laterally.

Groin Vault

a vault formed at the point at which 2 barrel vaults intersect at right angles

Aggregate

a binder, something that strengthen matrix of chemical binding; component of concrete

Philosopher Portrait

a painting or other artwork that depicts a philosophe

Soldier Emperors

Roman emperors who gained power through the military, typically with the support of their troops

Tetrachy

Rule by four; a type of Roman government established in the late 3rd century by Diocletian splitting the, with two senior and two junior emperors, in an attempt to foster order by sharing power with potential rivals.

Similitudo

discusses the role of realism and likeness in different media and time periods