Art History - Chapter 5 - Glossary

Front 1

abacus

Back 1

The uppermost portion of the capital of a column, usually a thin slab.

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acropolis

Back 2

Greek, high city. In ancient Greece, usually the site of the city’s most important temple(s).

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agora

Back 3

An open square or space used for public meetings or business in ancient Greek cities.

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Amazonomachy

Back 4

In Greek mythology, the battle between the Greeks and Amazons.

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amphiprostyle

Back 5

A classical temple plan in which the columns are placed across both the front and back, but not along the sides.

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amphora

Back 6

An ancient Greek two-handled jar used for general storage purposes, usually to hold wine or oil.

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antae

Back 7

The molded projecting ends of the walls forming the pronaos or opisthodomos of an ancient Greek temple.

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apse

Back 8

A recess, usually semicircular, in the wall of a Roman basilica or at the east end of a church.

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Archaic

Back 9

The artistic style of 600–480 BCE in Greece, characterized in part by the use of the composite view for painted and relief figures and of Egyptian stances for statues.

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Archaic smile

Back 10

The smile that appears on all Archaic Greek statues from about 570 to 480 BCE. The smile is the Archaic sculptor’s way of indicating that the person portrayed is alive.

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architrave

Back 11

The lintel or lowest division of the entablature.

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base

Back 12

In ancient Greek architecture, the molded projecting lowest part of Ionic and Corinthian columns. (Doric columns do not have bases.)

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bilingual vases

Back 13

Experimental Greek vases produced for a short time in the late sixth century bce; one side featured black-figure decoration, the other red-figure.

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black-figure painting

Back 14

In early Greek pottery, the silhouetting of dark figures against a light background of natural, reddish clay, with linear details incised through the silhouettes.

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caduceus

Back 15

In ancient Greek mythology, a magical rod entwined with serpents, the attribute of Hermes (Roman, Mercury), the messenger of the gods.

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canon

Back 16

A rule, for example, of proportion. The ancient Greeks considered beauty to be a matter of correct proportion and sought a canon of proportion, for the human figure and for buildings. The fifth-century BCE sculptor Polykleitos wrote the Canon, a treatise incorporating his formula for the perfectly proportioned statue.

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capital

Back 17

The uppermost member of a column, serving as a transition from the shaft to the lintel. In classical architecture, the form of the capital varies with the order.

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caryatid

Back 18

A female figure that functions as a supporting column. See also atlantid.

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cavea

Back 19

Latin, hollow place or cavity. The seating area in ancient Greek and Roman theaters and amphitheaters.

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cella

Back 20

The chamber at the center of an ancient temple; in a classical temple, the room (Greek, naos) in which the cult statue usually stood.

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centaur

Back 21

In ancient Greek mythology, a creature with the front or top half of a human and the back or bottom half of a horse.

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centauromachy

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In ancient Greek mythology, the battle between the Greeks and centaurs.

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chaplet

Back 23

A metal pin used in hollow-casting to connect the investment with the clay core.

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chiton

Back 24

A Greek tunic, the essential (and often only) garment of both men and women, the other being the himation, or mantle.

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cire perdue

Back 25

A bronze-casting method in which a figure is modeled in wax and covered with clay; the whole is fired, melting away the wax and hardening the clay, which then becomes a mold for molten metal.

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Classical

Back 26

The art and culture of ancient Greece between 480 and 323 BCE. Lower case classical refers more generally to Greco-Roman art and culture.

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colonnade

Back 27

A series or row of columns, usually spanned by lintels.

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column

Back 28

A vertical, weight-carrying architectural member, circular in cross-section and consisting of a shaft, capital, and (sometimes) base.

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contrapposto

Back 29

The disposition of the human figure in which one part is turned in opposition to another part (usually hips and legs one way, shoulders and chest another), creating a counterpositioning of the body about its central axis. Sometimes called weight shift because the weight of the body tends to be thrown to one foot, creating tension on one side and relaxation on the other.

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Corinthian capital

Back 30

A more ornate form than Doric or Ionic; it consists of a double row of acanthus leaves from which tendrils and flowers grow, wrapped around a bell-shaped echinus. Although this capital form is often cited as the distinguishing feature of the Corinthian order, there is, strictly speaking, no Corinthian order, but only this style of capital used in the Ionic order.

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cornice

Back 31

The projecting, crowning member of the entablature framing the pediment; also, any crowning projection.

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cult statue

Back 32

The statue of the deity that stood in the cella of an ancient temple.

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cuneus (pl. cunei)

Back 33

In ancient Greek and Roman theaters and amphitheaters, the wedge-shaped section of stone benches separated by stairs.

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Daedalic

Back 34

The Greek Orientalizing sculptural style of the seventh century bce named after the legendary Daedalus.

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demos

Back 35

Greek, the people, from which the word democracy is derived.

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dipteral

Back 36

In classical architecture, a colonnade all around the cella and its porch(es). A peripteral colonnade consists of a single row of columns on all sides; a dipteral colonnade has a double row all around.

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Doric

Back 37

One of the two systems (or orders) invented in ancient Greece for articulating the three units of the elevation of a classical buildingthe platform, the colonnade, and the superstructure (entablature). The Doric order is characterized by, among other features, capitals with funnel-shaped echinuses, columns without bases, and a frieze of triglyphs and metopes. See also Ionic.

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drum

Back 38

One of the stacked cylindrical stones that form the shaft of a column. Also, the cylindrical wall that supports a dome.

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echinus

Back 39

The convex element of a capital directly below the abacus.

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emblema

Back 40

The central framed figural panel of a mosaic floor.

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encaustic

Back 41

A painting technique in which pigment is mixed with wax and applied to the surface while hot.

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entablature

Back 42

The part of a building above the columns and below the roof. The entablature has three parts: architrave, frieze, and pediment.

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entasis

Back 43

The convex profile (an apparent swelling) in the shaft of a column.

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flute or fluting

Back 44

Vertical channeling, roughly semicircular in cross-section and used principally on columns and pilasters.

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foreshortening

Back 45

The use of perspective to represent in art the apparent visual contraction of an object that extends back in space at an angle to the perpendicular plane of sight.

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frieze

Back 46

The part of the entablature between the architrave and the cornice; also, any sculptured or painted band. See register.

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Geometric

Back 47

The style of Greek art during the ninth and eighth centuries BCE, characterized by abstract geometric ornament and schematic figures.

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gigantomachy

Back 48

In ancient Greek mythology, the battle between gods and giants.

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glaze

Back 49

A vitreous coating applied to pottery to seal and decorate the surface. It may be colored, transparent, or opaque, and glossy or matte. In oil painting, a thin, transparent, or semitransparent layer put over a color to alter it slightly.

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gorgon

Back 50

In ancient Greek mythology, a hideous female demon with snake hair. Medusa, the most famous gorgon, was capable of turning anyone who gazed at her into stone.

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Hellenes (adj. Hellenic)

Back 51

The name the ancient Greeks called themselves as the people of Hellas.

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Hellenistic

Back 52

The term given to the art and culture of the roughly three centuries between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 bce and the death of Queen Cleopatra in 30 bce, when Egypt became a Roman province.

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herm

Back 53

A bust on a quadrangular pillar.

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himation

Back 54

An ancient Greek mantle worn by men and women over the chiton and draped in various ways.

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Hippodamian plan

Back 55

A city plan devised by Hippodamos of Miletos ca. 466 bce, in which a strict grid was imposed on a site, regardless of the terrain, so that all streets would meet at right angles.

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hydria

Back 56

An ancient Greek three-handled water pitcher.

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hypaethral

Back 57

A building having no pediment or roof, open to the sky.

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in antis

Back 58

In ancient Greek architecture, between the antae.

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interaxial or intercolumniation

Back 59

The distance between the center of the lowest drum of a column and the center of the next.

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intercolumniation

Back 60

The distance between the center of the lowest drum of a column and the center of the next.

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investment

Back 61

In hollow-casting, the final clay mold applied to the exterior of the wax model,

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Ionic

Back 62

One of the two systems (or orders) invented in ancient Greece for articulating the three units of the elevation of a classical building: the platform, the colonnade, and the superstructure (entablature). The Ionic order is characterized by, among other features, volutes, capitals, columns with bases, and an uninterrupted frieze.

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kore (pl. korai)

Back 63

Greek, young woman. An Archaic Greek statue of a young woman.

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kouros (pl. kouroi)

Back 64

Greek, young man. An Archaic Greek statue of a young man.

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lekythos (pl. lekythoi)

Back 65

A flask containing perfumed oil; lekythoi were often placed in Greek graves as offerings to the deceased.

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lost-wax (cire perdue) process

Back 66

A bronze-casting method in which a figure is modeled in wax and covered with clay; the whole is fired, melting away the wax (French, cire perdue) and hardening the clay, which then becomes a mold for molten metal.

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meander

Back 67

An ornament, usually in bands but also covering broad surfaces, consisting of interlocking geometric motifs. An ornamental pattern of contiguous straight lines joined usually at right angles.

Front 68

metope

Back 68

The panel between the triglyphs in a Doric frieze, often sculpted in relief.

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minaret

Back 69

the tower of a mosque, from which the Islamic faithful are called to worship.

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monolith (adj. monolithic)

Back 70

A column shaft that is all in one piece (not composed of drums); a large, single block or piece of stone used in megalithic structures.

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mosaic

Back 71

Patterns or pictures made by embedding small pieces (tesserae) of stone or glass in cement on surfaces such as walls and floors; also, the technique of making such works.

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naos

Back 72

The chamber at the center of an ancient temple; in a classical temple, the room (Greek, naos) in which the cult statue usually stood.

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nymphs

Back 73

In classical mythology, female divinities of springs, caves, and woods.

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opisthodomos

Back 74

In ancient Greek architecture, a porch at the rear of a temple, set against the blank back wall of the cella.

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orchestra

Back 75

Greek, dancing place. In ancient Greek theaters, the circular piece of earth with a hard and level surface on which the performance took place.

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order

Back 76

In classical architecture, a style represented by a characteristic design of the columns and entablature. See also superimposed orders.

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Orientalizing

Back 77

The early phase of Archaic Greek art (seventh century BCE), so named because of the adoption of forms and motifs from the ancient Near East and Egypt.

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orthogonal plan

Back 78

The imposition of a strict grid plan on a site, regardless of the terrain, so that all streets meet at right angles. See also Hippodamian plan.

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palaestra

Back 79

An ancient Greek and Roman exercise area, usually framed by a colonnade. In Greece, the palaestra was an independent building; in Rome, palaestras were also frequently incorporated into a bathing complex.

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parapet

Back 80

A low, protective wall along the edge of a balcony, roof, or bastion.

Front 81

pebble mosaic

Back 81

A mosaic made of irregularly shaped stones of various colors.

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pediment

Back 82

In classical architecture, the triangular space (gable) at the end of a building, formed by the ends of the sloping roof above the colonnade; also, an ornamental feature having this shape.

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peplos

Back 83

A simple long woolen belted garment worn by ancient Greek women.

Front 84

peripteral

Back 84

In classical architecture, a colonnade all around the cella and its porch(es). A peripteral colonnade consists of a single row of columns on all sides; a dipteral colonnade has a double row all around.

Front 85

peristyle

Back 85

In classical architecture, a colonnade all around the cella and its porch(es). A peripteral colonnade consists of a single row of columns on all sides; a dipteral colonnade has a double row all around.

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pinakotheke

Back 86

Greek, picture gallery. An ancient building for the display of paintings on wood panels.

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polis (pl. poleis)

Back 87

An independent city-state in ancient Greece.

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portico

Back 88

A roofed colonnade; also an entrance porch.

Front 89

post-and-lintel system

Back 89

A system of construction in which two posts support a lintel.

Front 90

pronaos

Back 90

The space, or porch, in front of the cella, or naos, of an ancient Greek temple.

Front 91

prostyle

Back 91

A classical temple plan in which the columns are only in front of the cella and not on the sides or back.

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raking cornice

Back 92

The cornice on the sloping sides of a pediment.

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red-figure painting

Back 93

In later Greek pottery, the silhouetting of red figures against a black background, with painted linear details; the reverse of black-figure painting.

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ridgepole

Back 94

The beam running the length of a building below the peak of the gabled roof.

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satyr

Back 95

In ancient Greek mythology, a creature that was part man and part goat, usually with a man’s head and body, and a goat’s ears, horns, and legs.

Front 96

shaft

Back 96

The tall, cylindrical part of a column between the capital and the base.

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siren

Back 97

In ancient Greek mythology, a creature that was part bird and part woman.

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skene

Back 98

Greek, “stage.” The stage of a classical theater.

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skiagraphia

Back 99

Greek, shadow painting. The Greek term for shading, said to have been invented by Apollodoros, an Athenian painter of the fifth century bce.

Front 100

slip

Back 100

A mixture of fine clay and water used in ceramic decoration.

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stoa

Back 101

In ancient Greek architecture, an open building with a roof supported by a row of columns parallel to the back wall. A covered colonnade or portico.

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stylobate

Back 102

The uppermost course of the platform of a classical temple, which supports the columns.

Front 103

symmetria

Back 103

Greek, commensurability of parts. Polykleitos’s treatise on his canon of proportions incorporated the principle of symmetria.

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symposium

Back 104

An ancient Greek banquet attended solely by men (and female servants and prostitutes).

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tessera (pl. tesserae)

Back 105

Greek, cube. A tiny stone or piece of glass cut to the desired shape and size for use in forming a mosaic.

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theatron

Back 106

Greek, place for seeing. In ancient Greek theaters, the slope overlooking the orchestra on which the spectators sat.

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treasury

Back 107

In ancient Greece, a small building set up for the safe storage of votive offerings.

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trident

Back 108

The three-pronged pitchfork associated with the ancient Greek sea god Poseidon (Roman, Neptune).

Front 109

triglyph

Back 109

A triple projecting, grooved member of a Doric frieze that alternates with metopes.

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tripod

Back 110

An ancient Greek deep bowl on a tall three-legged stand.

Front 111

volute

Back 111

A spiral, scroll-like form characteristic of the ancient Greek Ionic and the Roman Composite capital.

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white-ground painting

Back 112

An ancient Greek vase-painting technique in which the pot was first covered with a slip of very fine white clay, over which black glaze was used to outline figures, and diluted brown, purple, red, and white were used to color them.