Western Art & Architecture 1St Midterm Terms

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iconography

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the visual images and symbols used in a work of art or the study or interpretation of these

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twisted perspective

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A convention of representation in which part of a figure is shown in profile and another part of the same figure is shown frontally

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Ziggurat

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In ancient Mesopotamian architecture, a monumental platform for a temple.

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protome

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A decorative element, on ancient artefacts, based on the head of an animal or bust of a person

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mastaba

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Arabic for "bench", rectangular brick with sloping sides

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hypostyle hall

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has a roof which is supported by columns

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megaron

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It was a rectangular hall, fronted by an open, two-columned porch, and a more or less central, open hearth vented though an oculus in the roof above it and surrounded by four columns

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relieving triangle

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Approximate triangle above a lintel where masonry courses in a wall are corbelled over each other so avoiding any loading on the lintel

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Paleolithic

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of, relating to, or denoting the early phase of the Stone Age, lasting about 2.5 million years, when primitive stone implements were used

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composite view

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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 called twisted perspective

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apadana

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a large hypostyle hall, the best known examples being the great audience hall

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cuneiform

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wedge-shaped characters used in the ancient writing systems of Mesopotamia

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ka

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type of ancient Egyptian statue intended to provide a resting place for the ka, or spirit, of the person after death

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frieze

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a broad horizontal band of sculpted or painted decoration, especially on a wall near the ceiling

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corbelled vault

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arch-like construction method that uses the architectural technique of corbeling to span a space or void in a structure

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beehive tomb

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is a burial structure characterized by its false dome created by the superposition of successively smaller rings of mudbricks or, more often, stones

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Mesolithic

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is the culture between paleolithic and neolithic

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narrative

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a spoken or written account of connected events; a story

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lamassu

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is an Assyrian protective deity, often depicted as having a human's head, a body of an ox or a lion, and bird's wings

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hierarchical scale

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technique in which the artist uses unnatural proportion or scale to depict the relative importance of the figures in the artwork

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canonical

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a rule, for example, of proportion

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fresco

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is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly-laid, or wet lime plaster

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tholos

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circular building

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Neolithic

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later part of the Stone Age, when ground or polished stone weapons and implements prevailed

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relief

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give the impression that the sculpted material has been raised above the background plane

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stele

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a stone or wooden slab, generally taller than it is wide, erected as a monument, very often for funerary or commemorative purposes

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hieroglyph

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a character of the ancient Egyptian writing system

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pylon

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a monumental gateway of an Egyptian temple