Art History Paintings

• Narmer Palette

• Sacred enclosure of Horus, Hierakonpolis, Egypt

• End of Dynasty 0, 3000 BCE

• Graywacke

• Top head represented the Goddess Bat. Had Narmer’s name written with symbols of a catfish and chisel within a palace

• had area for grinding make-up

• Quite literally described his whole life, the pot had a lot of story within it

1. Law Steele of Hammurabi

2. artist or architect : N/A

3. culture/region: Babylon (originally); excavated in Iran

4. time period: Ancient Mesopotamia

• Made of Black Basal

• Signifies the importance of justice in Mesopotamian society

• One of the oldest surviving legal records

• Depicts face to face encounter between Hammurabi and the sun god Shamash (god of justice)

  • Shamash 🡪 sitting figure; presenting rod and ring (insignia of royal power)

• Presumably publicly displayed

  • Outlining rules, law, order

  • Marker of credibility for the ruler

• Stele of Akhenaten and Nefertiti

• Akhetaten (Tell el-Amarna, Egypt)

• 18th dynasty, 1352-1336 BCE new kingdom

• Limestone with painted sunken relief

• Seated Statue of Gudea

• Tello, Iraq

• Lagash Dynasty

• Diorite

• Dedicated to the god Ningishzida

• Gudea was the ruler during the Lagash Dynasty

  Hands are forever folded together 🡪 gesture of prayer and greeting

  Eternally devoted

  Perfect example of piety

  Lower part of robe is covered in Sumerian cuneiform text

  Single exposed arm to showcase musculature

  Made from diorite, not native to the region

  Showcase of power over materials

• Terracota Army

• Lintong, Shaanxi province, China

• Qin Dynasty

• Tomb Complex of the First Emperor of Qin

• Example of military power

  • Warriors intended to protect Emperor in afterlife

• Warriors were found buried with Emperor in his tomb

• Master control of clay sculpting and kiln usage

• Evidence of being originally painted

• Each soldier has its artist’s name engraved on them

  • Not for artistic recognition, but accountability (evidence they did their job)

• Bust of Nefertiti

• artist or architect: N/A

• culture/region: Ancient Egypt

• time period (roughly, i.e., Shang, Olmec): 18^th Dynasty new kingdom

• Snake Goddess (from palace at Knossos)

• artist or architect: N/A

• culture/region: Greece

• time period: Minoan Civilization

 Faience figurine

• About 1 foot tall

  • Elaborate floor length flounced skirt

• Woman holding a snake in each hand

  • Presumably a seated cat on top of her head

• True meaning/use is unknown

  • Theorized the figure is a goddess or priestess

1. Peplos Kore

2. artist or architect: N/A

3. culture/region: Greece

4. time period: Archaic Period

 Initially thought to be wearing a peplos (body length garment

• Analysis of preserved paint on kore 🡪 wore several different garments 

• Carved from marble

• Thought to be Artemis; goddess of the Hunt

• Hole in right hand may have held arrows

  • Missing arm holding bow

• Smooth symmetrical face ”perfected” female attributes

  • Kore means “young woman” or “girl” in Ancient Greek

• Artist: Exekias

• Amphora with Ajax and Achilles

• Athens, Greece

• 550-540 BCE

• Blackfigure ceramic

• The Parthenon

• artist or architect: Iktinos and Kallikrates

• culture/region: Greece

• time period: Height of Greek Empire (5^th Century)

• Dedicated to Goddess Athena

  • Predominately Doric features, some ionic

    • Frieze (ionic) that runs around the exterior and interior

• Towering pillars of marble

• Located at hilltop 🡪 Acropolis

  • Temple

1. Doryphorus (Spear Bearer)

2. artist or architect: Polykleitos

3. culture/region: Greece

4. time period: Classical Period

 Roman Marble copy of a Greek bronze

• Depicts a male warrior; perhaps Achilles

• Muscular

• Quite relaxed in posture

• Stump used for support that bronze would not require

• Generic, youthful figure

  • Idealized male form; feels otherworldly

1. Nike Adjusting Her Sandal

2. artist or architect: Either Alkamenes or Agoràkratos

3. culture/region: Greece

4. time period: Hellenistic Period

5. Heavy wings counterbalance to teetering body

   Eroticized finely carved figure:

   Wet-looking drapery emphasizes her form

   Implication of sandal being removed:

   Allusion to last action before the loss of a bride’s virginity

   Sexual violence

   Is about to walk on sacred ground

   Or simply having a god perform a human action

   Humanization of the Gods