Mesopotamia & Persia
The ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia are the source of the earliest surviving art; these civilizations were situated between the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers. Dating back to 3500 B.C.E., Mesopotamian art was intended to serve as a way to glorify powerful rulers and their connection to divinity. Art was made from natural resources such as stone, shells, alabaster and marble, and was often created as didactic pieces. No artist signatures can be found on most of the work, because the pieces were meant to embody the subject matter, rather than the creator. Popular items that typify this time period include cylindrical seals, steles, narrative relief sculptures, and lavishly decorated tombs.
The major civilizations that flourished during the Mesopotamian time were the
Sumerians (3500-2300 BC)
Akkadians (2180-2340 BC)
Babylonians (1792-1750 BC)
Hitties (1600-1200 BC)
Assyrains (1000-612 BC)
Persians (559-331 BC).
Learning Objectives
Chapter 2 - Mesopotamia and Persia
The major civilizations that flourished during the Mesopotamian time were the
Sumerians (3500-2300 BC)
Akkadians (2180-2340 BC)
Babylonians (1792-1750 BC)
Hitties (1600-1200 BC)
Assyrains (1000-612 BC)
Persians (559-331 BC).
Learning Objectives
Chapter 2 - Mesopotamia and Persia
- Explain the importance of registers in two-dimensional narratives.
- Be aware that Akkadian artists may have been the first to cast hollow life-size bronze sculptures.
- Compare and contrast Mesopotamian and Persian palace architecture.
- Compare and contrast Mesopotamian and Persian relief carving.
- Explain the relationship of art, architecture, and religion in ancient Mesopotamian and Persian.
- Describe early writing systems and their impact on Mesopotamian cultures.
- Discuss the function of religious and secular art and architecture in both Mesopotamian and Persian cultures.
- Identify instances of intercultural exchange between ancient Mesopotamian and Persian civilizations and other parts of the ancient world.
- Describe the form and function of the Mesopotamian ziggurat
Power Point Lecture
Need to know:
Key Vocabulary
ziggurat profile vs. frontal mosaic twisted perspective lapis lazuli bas relief cuneiform polytheism Epic of Gilgamesh votive alluvial conical register city-state cylinder seal heraldic composition hierarchy of scale registers or friezes ground line conceptual vs. optical representational art bent-axis plan cella stele arcuated apadana iwan vault blind arcade façade lamassu griffin protome |
Key Places
“Fertile Crescent,” Mesopotamia Ur Uruk Eshnunna Girsu Nineveh Neo-Sumeria/Third Dynasty of Ur Lagash Babylon Elam Assyria Neo-Babylonia Persepolis Persia |
Key Figures:
Sargon of Akkad Narum-Sin Gudea Hammurabi Napir-Asu Enheduanna Ashurnasirpal II Ashurbanipal Nebuchadnezzer II Cyrus Darius I Xerxes Alexander the Great Shapur I Sasanian Empir |
Key Pieces
Sumerian Votive Offerings Standard of Ur (War and Peace) Ziggurat of Ur (Neo Sumerian) Victory Stele of Naram-Sin Stele of Hammurabi Lamassu (Citadel of Sargon II) Ishtar Gate (restored) Persepolis Gudea seated Gudea standing Statue of Wueen Napir-Asu Ashurbanipal hunting lion |
Key Ideas
Mudbricks are the main building block from soil deposits left by the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers Conventions of hierarchal New gods or guardian figures (Composite creatures) Assyrian lion reliefs are some of the first narratives in art history Invention of cuneiform- first wedge-shaped writing Nudity is a sign of debasement |
Need to know CHARACTERISTICS:
Characteristics of Paintings
Characteristics of Sculpture
Characteristics of Architecture
- S: Human figures are actively portraying narratives
Characteristics of Sculpture
- S: Size of sculpture increases- shows permanence of cities
- S: Large scale reliefs within palaces
- S: Stelai commemorating the achievements of rulers
- AK: Deification of rulers
- B: Stele of Hammurabi- new set of laws
- AS: Rulers are portrayed as stoic
- AS: Cuneiform takes a leap
Characteristics of Architecture
- S: Architecture was created for religious purposes
- B: World Wonder: Hanging Gardens
- H: Used stone blocks rather than baked mudbricks
- P: Persepolis