Notes for A.P Euro: Chapter 1

Prehistoric Art In Europe o Prehistory includes everything before the time of writing. o And people way before this were painting things on walls and

caves. o Thanks to these remains we know how things were before and

how people lived. (Not exactly but we have an idea)o In the Chauvet Cave located in gorge in the Ardeche region south

of France, images of horses, deer, mammoths, aurochs, and other animals that were alive at this time were painted in the walls.

o Pre historic art is one of the most speculative areas of art history. The Stone Age

o The Homo sapiens seem to be 200,000 to 100,000 years old. o Scientist modern that humans spread from Africa to Asia into

Europe and finally Australia and the Americas. o Today archaeologists divide periods into Stone Age, Paleolithic

and Neolithic periods.

The Paleolithic Period o Neanderthals were around for a long time, and they were very

astute in how they build their equipment and their tools. o They used tools way before they made art. o Cro- Magnon must have been a social organization, rituals, and

beliefs that led them to create art.o In the Upper Paleolithic time humans used to build shelters that

were far from simple. o Circular of Oval hutso They would use bones of the woolly mammoth.o Most activities were inside of the huts, were they would have a

fire pit; this is where they would cook.

The Lion- Human

o Was found in Germanyo Seems to have the figure of a male and a feline head. o Nearly a foot longo Found with broken pieces of ivoryo The carver instead of doing something he found in nature he did

something nobody has ever seen in nature, which shows the creative imagination of the carver.

Women From Willendorf

o It’s from Austria dates like 22,000-21,000o Carved from limestone and colored with red ocher.o It’s about 4 and 3/8 inch in height. o The woman is carved with pendulous breast, a big belly, wide

hips, dimpled knees, and buttocks.o This can show how she was wealthy and in good shape back in

her time. She also could have the ability to make strong children.

Woman From Ostrava Petrkovice

o Found in Czech Republic.o Defines the total different conception f the female form.o Less than 2 inches tall.o The tools the carver used are visible.

Women from Brassempouy

o The carver captured essence of a head or psychologists call it the “Memory image”- those generalized elements that reside in out standard memory of a human head.

o Ivory

Cave Painting

o Caves were painted in central and southern of France and Northern of Spain.

o Nobody knew about these paintings until 1879 when a girl with her father exploring in Altamira and published the findings.

o Since the findings of the Altamira, there have been a lot of theories of why they painted these paintings.

o They believe it might be products of totemistic rites to strengthen clan bonds and increase ceremonies.

o Other theory is something for worship o They also painted with their hands, either it be negative or

positive images.o They put the pigment in their mouth and blew to make a painting.

o The best-known cave paintings are found in Lascaux, France.o Painted cows, bulls, horses, and deer. o Horns, eyes, and hooves are shown as seen from the front, yet

heads and bodies rendered in profile is known as twisted perspective.

o Model shaping- shaping the damp clay of the cave’s floor.

Neolithic Period

o Advances in technology, transportation, and electronic communication change the humane experience.

People and Animals

o The paintings have women, children, animals and even insects, which show the daily activities.

o Flying gallop- to indicate speed in running animals from prehistory to present.

Dwelling and Villageso Northern European villages of this period had a 3 to 4 timber

building up to 150 feet, the structures were rectangular and with a row of posts down the center supporting a ridgepole-a long horizontal against whish the slanting roof poles were braced.

o The walls were knows as wattle and daub and roofed with thatch. o They have been preserved at Skara Brae in the Orkney Islands. o They found beds, shelves, stone cooking pots, basins, stone

mortars, and grinding and pottery. o The village consists of dwellings and covered passageways.

Ceremonial and Tomb Architectureo In northern Europe people used huge stones to erect ceremonial

structures and tombs.o The monument architecture –monuments thus.o The simplest type of megalithic tomb was the dolmen.

Stongehenge

o Located in Southern Europe .o The henge is a circle of stone or posts. o The circle is about 330 feet in diameter. o The stones were brought from 23 miles and weighted up to 35

tons.o There are many theories of why the Stonehenge was build, it has

gone from King Arthur legend, and Celtics Druids.

Sculptures and Ceramics

o Their ceramics were made of baked clay, disused clay.o They had to combine existing substances such as stone, wood,

and bone.

Figures of Woman and a man

o The artist who made them shaped their bodies into cylinders of clay but managed to pose them in ways that make them seem very true in life.

o Found in Romania

The Bronze Age

o The following introduction of metalwork is the Bronze Age.o Alloy- mixture of tin and copper is stronger and harder substance

with a wide variety of use.

Horse and Sun Chariot

o Found in Denmark

o Rock engravings in northern Europe show the sun being drawn through the sky by either an animal or bird possibly and indication of a widespread sun cult.

o The showings of the sun passing across of sky.