ART OF THE PALEOLITHIC

While the Paleolithic era refers to the "old stone age," the entire time period
during which human beings were making tools of stone,  art begins at
approximately 35,000 bce a time at which human beings seem to have circled
the globe.  The time frame for "paleolithic art" can be described from 35,000
bce to aproximately 12,000 bce when people lived in hunter-gatherer nomadic
tribes and prior to the development of agriculture.  The time frame has been
pushed back in recent years to reflect current discoveries that show earlier use
of stone tools.  "Neolithic" refers to the "new stone age," generally reflecting
the use of stone tools with some use of metals and with people settling into
permanent communities, the development of agriculture, and animal
husbandry.

In art, the Paleolithic era is marked by cave paintings and drawings of

animals.  It is thought that the animals were either those needed for food and
that the paintings were some type of ritual related to the hunt, or that the
animals were sacred and were given god-like qualities.  It has also been
suggested that the paintings represent primitive calendars or almanacs,
"coming of age" ceremonies, records of tribal migrations, and mystic
paintings during a shamanistic trance.  While the purpose of paleolithic works
of art is far from being certain, the art can be categorized as being
"invitational," that is, created and viewed on purpose by selected or invited
individuals for specific purposes;  "public," that is, created to be viewed by
anyone in the area or passing by the area, such as a public monument,
territorial marker, or gravestone;  and "personal," that is, small private objects
carried by individuals as ritual items or charms. 

The animal figures are both naturalistic and stylized, often showing fine
details that suggest keen"Big
familiarity withthe
Cats" from theChauvet
animal painted
cave in or drawn. France. 
Ardeche, There
does not appear to be aThe
"ground
cavesline" in the
contain caveimages
many paintings or a sense
of rhinos of depth,
and big cats. 
although people today Dated
tend toatunderstand
30,000 bce...these cave paintings may be thean
overlapping figures as suggesting
illusion of three-dimensional space. inThe
oldest found overlapping
Europe to date. of figures may be due to
the oil lamp or candle lighting which would illuminate small areas at a time; 
such lights have been found inside the caves.

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This cave painting from
Lascaux includes additional
markings which may be
representations of arrows,
indications of counting or
tribal signatures.  The
blending of colors seen here,
such as in the horse's mane
blending into the horse's neck,
may suggest the paint was
blown or 'spit' onto the wall.

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Prehistoric Art - Neolithic
(10,000 - 5,000 BC)

The Neolithic period, also called New Stone Age, began when men first developed agriculture
and settled in permanent villages. It ended with the discovery of bronze. The prime medium of
Neolithic art was pottery. Other important artistic expressions were statuary of the universally
worshiped Mother Goddess and megalithic stone monuments.

   Free standing sculpture had already begun by the Neolithic, the earliest being the
anthropomorphic figurines, often embellished by animals from the very beginning of the
Neolithic discovered in Nevali Cori and Göbekli Tepe near Urfa in eastern Turkey, dating to ca.
10th millennium BC. The mesolithic statues of Lepenski Vir at the Iron Gorge, Serbia and
Montenegro date to the 7th millennium BC and represent either humans or mixtures of humans
and fish.

   In Central Europe, many Neolithic cultures, like Linearbandkeramic, Lengyel and Vinca,
produced female (rarely male) and animal statues that can be called art. Whether the elaborate
pottery decoration of, for example, the Želiesovce and painted Lengyel style are to be classified
as art is a matter of definition.

   Megalithic monuments are found in the Neolithic from Spain to the British Isles and Poland.
They start in the 5th Millennium BC, though some authors speculate on Mesolithic roots.
Because of frequent reuse, this is difficult to prove. While the most well-known of these is
Stonehenge, were the main structures date from the early Bronze age, such monuments have
been found throughout most of Western and Northern Europe, notably at Carnac, France, at
Skara Brae in the Orkney Islands, in Portugal, and in Wiltshire, England, the area of Stonehenge,
the Avebury circle, the tombs at West Kennet, and Woodhenge. One tomb found in New Grange,
Ireland, has its entrance marked with a massive stone carved with a complex design of spirals.
The tomb of Knowth has rock-cut ornaments as well. Many of these monuments were megalithic
tombs, and archaeologists speculate that most have religious significance.

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Turkey > 756 - Neolithic art

Neolithic art forms - 6th

neolithic art

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Mesolitic art

Otherwise known as "Middle Stone Age", the Mesolithic period covered a brief span of around
2,000 years. While it served as an important bridge between the Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic
ages, the art of this period was, well, sort of boring. From this distance, it's not nearly as
fascinating as the discovery of (and innovations in) the art of the preceding era. And the art of
the subsequent Neolithic era is exponentially diverse, besides being more well-preserved and
offering us thousands of examples of itself, instead of a "handful". Still, let's briefly cover the
artistic events of the Mesolithic because, after all, it's a distinct era from any other.

Most of the glacial ice in the Northern Hemisphere had retreated, leaving behind geography and
climates familiar to us in the present day. Along with the glaciers, certain foods disappeared (the
wooly mammoth comes to mind) and the migration patterns of others (reindeer) changed as well.
People gradually adapted, assisted by the facts that more temperate weather and diverse edible
plants were there to aid in survival.

Since humans didn't have to live in caves or follow herds any longer, this era saw the beginnings
of both settled communities and farming. Apparently people also had a few spare minutes on
their hands, because the Mesolithic period saw the invention of the bow and arrow, pottery for
food storage and the domestication of a few animals - either for food or, in the case of dogs, for
help in the hunting of food.

There was pottery, though it was mostly utilitarian in design. In other words, a pot just needed to
hold water or grain, not necessarily exist as a feast for the eyes. The artistic designs were mainly
left up to later peoples to create.

The portable statuary of the Upper Paleolithic was largely absent during the Mesolithic era. This
is likely a result of people settling down and no longer requiring art that could travel. Since the
invention of the arrow had occurred, much of this period's "carving" time seems to have been
spent knapping flint, obsidian and other minerals which lent themselves to sharp, pointy tips.

The most interesting Mesolithic art that we know of consists of rock paintings. Similar in nature
to the Paleolithic cave paintings, these moved out of doors to vertical cliffs or "walls" of natural
rock, often semi-protected by outcroppings or overhangs. Though these rock paintings have been
found in locations ranging from the far north in Europe to southern Africa, as well as elsewhere
around the globe, the largest concentration of them exists in eastern Spain's Levant.

While no one can say with certainty, the theory exists that the paintings' locations weren't chosen
at random. The spots may have held sacred, magical or religious significance. Very often, a rock
painting exists within close proximity to a different, more suitable spot upon which to paint.

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Between Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic eras, the biggest shift in painting occurred in subject
matter. Where cave paintings overwhelmingly depicted animals, rock paintings were usually of
human groupings. The painted humans typically seem to be engaged in either hunting or rituals
whose purposes have been lost to time.

Far from being realistic, the humans shown in rock painting are highly stylized, rather like
glorified stick-figures. These humans look more like pictographs than pictures, and some
historians feel they represent the primitive beginnings of writing (i.e.: hieroglyphs). Very often
the groupings of figures are painted in repetitive patterns, which results in a nice sense of
rhythm (even if we're not sure what they're meant to be doing, exactly).

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Image

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Metal age art

The history of metal art extends almost as far back as archeologists can dig. Metal art has crude
beginnings in the form of hammering daily metal objects. Design slowly emerged on cups,
bowls, vases, masks and jewelry. Metal statues of people and activities are also popular even in
ancient times. From funeral masks to jewelry to fantastic statues, metal art represents the heart
and soul of mankind through the desire to create.

Facts

1.

Gold cup from Athens, dated 1500 B.C. - Images retrieved from Wikimedia Commons

Metal art can be defined as any work of art that is crafted from ores of the earth, including
bronze, gold, tin, lead, silver and iron. Metal art can be decorative or useful. For example, in
the Early Bronze Age, cups and bowls were hammered for a decorative effect. Over time,
metalwork became more decorative and metal sculptures demonstrate this most clearly.

History

2. The history of metal art can be traced as far back as 7000 B.C. The Early Bronze Age
reveals crude artistic endeavors primarily through hammering metal. Artifacts found at Troy
include copper, bronze, iron, silver, gold and lead. Knives, cups, bowls, vases and jewelry
sculpted with decorative figures and patterns are present from some of the earliest
civilizations. The Bronze Age demonstrates artwork that dates back as far as 2000 B. C.
Tracing metal art distinguishes the artistic development of mankind.

Geography

3. Some of the earliest metal art According to Richard Tansey, author of Gardner's Art
Through the Ages, researchers have dated metal art back to the Neolithic Age. Mesopotamia
was "ahead of Egypt" (Tansey 35) in many areas, including metalwork. Other early
geographical findings place crude metalwork in Mesopotamia, Mycenae and the Aegean age.
Egypt is perhaps one of the most popular areas noted for metal art with its elaborate masks,

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 jewelry, pottery and ornaments. Greece, Africa and European metal art developed and spread
as man developed a sense of art and a desire to create.

Significance

4.

Head from statue discovered in Nineveh, dated 2200 B.C.

The significance of metalwork is vital to understanding human history. Mankind is born with
a desire to design and create things not only for practical uses, but also for aesthetic value.
Ancient cups and bowls reveal an interest in design, and allow us to see the many stages of
art. History also allows us to appreciate art when we see how it has developed.

Types of Metal Art

5.

The Statue of Liberty, dated 1800 A.D.

Early metal art included objects of daily life. As man and his appreciation for art has evolved,
metal art became more decorative. Sculpture and jewelry are perhaps the most popular and
recognizable form of metal art today. Bronze, gold and copper statues are as popular as they
are beautiful. Perhaps one of the most impressive pieces of metal art is the Statue of Liberty,
located in New York Harbor. This statue is created from copper and wrought iron. Metal art
is one of the most versatile of the arts because there are various types of metals and even
more ways to be creative with them.