Important APAH Vocab

Actual vocab by teacher

Anthropomorphic

having characteristics of the human form, although the form itself is not human

Archaeology

 

the scientific study of ancient people and cultures principally revealed through excavation

Cong

 

a tubular object with a circular hole cut into a square-like cross section

Henge

 

a Neolithic monument, characterized by a circular ground plan; used for rituals and making astronomical events

Lintel

 

a horizontal beam over an opening

Megalith

a squared stone of great size, used in the construction of a prehistoric structure

Menhir

a large uncut stone erected as a monument in the prehistoric era; a standing stone

Mortise and Tenon

a groove cut into stone or wood, called a mortise that is shaped to receive a tenon, or a projection of the same dimensions

Post and Lintel

 

a method of construction in which two posts support a horizontal beam called a lintel

Shamanism

a religion in which good and evil are brought about by spirits which can be influenced by shamans, who have a access to these spirits

Stele

an upright stone slab used to mark a grave or site

Stylized

a schematic, non-realistic manner of representing the visible world and its contents abstracted from the way that they appear in nature

Apandana

An audience hall in a Persian palace

Apotropaic

Having the power to ward of evil or bad luck

Bent-axis

An architectural plan in which an approach to a building requires an angular change of direction as opposed to a direct and straight entry

Capital

The top element of a column

Cella

The main room of a temple where a god/image of a god is housed

Cuneiform

A system of writing in which the strokes are formed in a wedge or arrowhead shape; ancient Sumeria

Ground Line

A baseline upon which figures stand

Hierarchy of Scale

A system of representation that expresses a person’s importance by the size of his/her representation in a work of art

Lamassu

A colossal five legged, winged, human-headed bull in Assyrian art

Lapis Lazuli

a blue semi-precious stone

Register

A horizontal band, often on top of another that tells a narrative story

Relief Sculpture

Sculpture that projects from a flat background; bas-relief vs. high relief

Votive

Offering in fulfillment of a vow or pledge

Ziggurat

A pyramid-like building made of several stories that indent as the building gets taller; thus ziggurats have terraces at each level

‘Ahu’ula

Feather cloak worn by male Hawaiian nobles; literally translates to “red garments”

Malagan

A large, traditional ceremony from Papua New Guinea, as well as the masks and costumes used in that ceremony

Mana

A supernatural force believed to dwell in a person, or a sacred object

Moai

Large stone sculptures found on Easter Island

Tapa

Bark cloth; A cloth made from bark that is shocked and beaten into a fabric that is decorated with patterns. Used in a variety of ways: clothing or to wrap sacred objects.

Wapepe

Navigation charts from the Marshall Islands

Amarna Style

Art created during the reign of Akhenaton, which features a more related figure style than in Old and Middle Kingdom art

Ankh

An Egyptian symbol of life

Axial Plan

A building with an elongated ground plan

Clerestory

A roof that rises above lower roofs and thus has window space beneath

Engaged Column

A column that is not freestanding but attached to a wall

Hypostyle

A hall that has a roof supported by a dense thicket of columns

Ka

The soul, or spiritual essence of a human that either ascends to heaven or can be live in an Egyptian statue of itself

Mastaba

Arabic for “bench,” a low flat-roofed Egyptian tomb with sides sloping down to the ground

Necropolis

A “city of the dead”/ a large burial area

Papyrus

A tall aquatic plant whose fiber is used a writing surface in ancient egypt

Peristyle

A colonnade surrounding a building or enclosing a courtyard

Pharaoh

A king of ancient Egypt

Pylon

A monumental gateway to an Egyptian temple marked by two flat, sloping walls between which is a smaller entrance

Reserve Column

A column that is cut away from rock but has no support function

Sarcophagus

A stone coffin