AP Art History Units 1 and 2 Terms

Profile

A view of an object or
person from the side - Apollo 11 Stones

Twisted Perspective

A convention of representation in
which part of a figure is shown in profile
and another part of the same figure is
shown frontally; also a composite view - Great Hall of the Bulls

Representational / Figurative

Clearly derived from real objects or sources

Positive vs. Negative

Positive (area of artworks where there
is mass and subject); Negative (area that is void of mass)

Animism

belief that gods/spirits are embedded in nature, and that they control nature

Apadana

audience hall in Persian palace

Apotropaic

believed to have the power to ward off danger, evil, or bad luck

Bent-axis

a pathway through or up a building that is not straight or direct, but takes a bent or angled path instead

Buttress

a support of stone or brick built against a wall

Citadel

fortress protecting a town

Cuneiform

wedge-shaped system of writing created by Sumerians

Facade

front of building

Floor plan / Ground plan

bird’s eye map of building

Hierarchy of scale/Hierarchical Perspective

a person’s importance related to his size relative to others in an artwork

Hybrid

two or more different things joined together (usually animal forms)

Hypostyle hall

a hall with a roof supported by multiple columns

Lamassu

Assyrian winged human-headed bull; guardians

Register

a horizontal level of artwork that is delineated from other levels

Votive offering

a gift of gratitude to a deity

Ziggurat

pyramid-like building whose stories indent as building progresses upward

Axial plan

a building with an elongated floor plan

Canon of proportion

a system of measurement by which artists can regulate size, scale, and proportions

Capital

top of a column

Clerestory

a roof that rises above lower roofs and thus has window space beneath that lets in light

Colonnade

a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature

Continuous narrative

an image that illustrates multiple scenes in a single frame; therefore, some figures repeat (Last Judgement of Hu-Nefer)

Corridor axis

a long hallway or path enclosed by large stone masonry, possibly symbolized the Nile

Enamel

melted and fused glass powder mixed with pigment to create color; very smooth once cooled

Ka

soul imbedded in fleshly body, but upon death could live of; for the ka to live securely, the dead body had to remain as intact as possible

Mastaba

simple tomb with four sloping sides which covers an underground burial chamber

Portico

a shallow columned porch

Pylon

the simple and massive gateway, with sloping walls, of an Egyptian temple

Agora

An open square or space used for public meetings or business in ancient Greece

Amphiprostyle

having four columns both in the front and rear of a temple

Black-figure

silhouetting of dark figures against a light background of natural, reddish clay, with linear details incised through the silhouettes

Cella

the main shrine room of a temple where a cult statue is housed

Encaustic

paint made of pigment mixed with wax

Entablature

lintel above the columns; contains the architrave and the frieze

Entasis

slight bulging or curve in the shaft of a column to correct the visual illusion of concavity

Fluted shaft

shallow vertical grooves running along the long, narrow cylinder that comprises the majority of the column

Frieze

a broad horizontal band of decoration and/or sculpture on architecture

Gigantomachy

battle between gods and giants in Greek mythology

Isocephalism

tradition of depicting head of figures on the same level; implies a single ground line

Kourus (M) / Kore (f)

an archaic Greek sculpture of an idealized standing youth

Krater

a large ancient Greek bowl used for mixing water and wine

Lost-Wax Casting

sculpture is carved out of clay and dipped into wax; the sculpture is put into a clay casing and heated, so that the wax will drip out of a hole at the bottom; as a result, space is left between the clay casing and clay interior; molten metal is then poured into this space; after cooling, the case is cracked so that the now-metal sculpture can be released

Metopes

space between two triglyphs in a Doric frieze; often decorated with low relief carving

Order

a style represented by a characteristic design of the columns and entablature

Parapet

low protective wall or barrier

Parthenos

virgin; often used to refer to Athena as Athena Parthenos

Pediment

the triangular top of a classical building; typically on top of an entablature and a portico

Peplos

a garment worn by women in ancient Greece, usually full length and tied at the waist

Peristyle

colonnade around the perimeter of the building

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.

Stoa

covered walkway attached to a building; used as a framing device for the structure

Stylobate

the floor of a temple

Triglyph

part of a Doric entablature frieze; has three vertical grooves

Wet drapery

deeply incised drapery that is clingy and tight, so that it reveals the shape of the body

Atrium

an open-air courtyard in a Roman house or forum

Engaged column

a column that is still attached to a wall

Forum

a public square with market place in a Roman city

Impluvium

a rectangular basin in a Roman house that is placed in the open-air atrium in order to collect rainwater

Keystone

the center stone of an arch that holds the others in place

Lunette

a crescent-shaped space, sometimes over a doorway, that contains sculpture or painting

Mosaic

a decoration using pieces of stone, marble, or colored glass, called tesserae, that are cemented to a wall or floor

Oculus

a round opening at the top of a dome

Orant figure

a figure with its hands raised in prayer

Peristyle

an atrium surrounded by columns in a Roman house

Spandrel

a triangular space enclosed by the curves of arches`

Spolia

the reuse of architectural or sculptural pieces in buildings generally different from their original contexts

Taberna

single-room shops covered by a wide doorway

Tesserae

small pieces of colored stone or marble; used to create a mosaic

Vault

a ceiling constructed with arches

Barrel vault

an arch extended into space horizontally that is curved at the top

Groin vault

two intersecting barrel vaults

Veristic

sculptures from the Roman Republic characterized by extreme realism (and even exaggeration) of facial features (Head of a Roman Patrician)

Acroterion

sculptures in the round placed on the roof

Tufa

a type of limestone

Tumulus

burial mounds in Etruscan architecture, tumuli covered one or more subterranean multi-
chambered tombs cut out of the local tufa (Tomb of the Triclinium)

Triclinium

dining table in ancient Italy that has a couch on three sides for reclining at meals (Sarcophagus of the Spouses)

Tuscan

an order of ancient architecture featuring slender, smooth wooden columns that sit on simple bases; no carvings on frieze or capitals (Temple of Minerva)