Chapter 3

How do we understand/measure time in regards to ancient art history?What divides Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic Periods?

Identify the following sites on the map of Western Europe: Stonehenge, Neanderthal, Carnac, Lascaux, Chauvet.

Distinguish between Paleolithic and Neolithic cultural organization.

Review different theories about the meaning of the Venus of Willendorf.

Describe the style of the Lascaux paintings and compare them with Australian rock paintings. Consider style and content.

Describe the development of Stonehenge from c. 3000 BC to c. 1800 BC 

Discuss some of the theories about its significance, describe its system of elevation and the nature of its site.

Explain why the discoveries at Chauvet are important.

Prehistoric - before the existence of written language

Paleolithic-  1,500,000 bc to 8,000 bc

Mesolithic - 8000 bc- 6000bc  in southeast Europe and 8,000 to 4000 bc rest of Europe

Neolithic 6,000/4,000 to 2,000 bc and continued another thousand years in northwest Europe

3.1 Venus of Willendorf, from Willendorf, Austria,

c. 25,000 - 21,000 B.C.

3.2 Venus of Laussel, from Laussel, Dordogne, France, c. 25,000 - 23,000 B.C.

 3.3 Hall of Running Bulls, Lascaux, Dordogne, France, c. 15,000 - 13,000 B.C.

3.5 "Chinese Horse," Lascaux, Dordogne, France, c. 15,000 - 13,000 B. C.

Interactive Lascaux http://www.lascaux.culture.fr/#/en/00.xml

3.6 "Lion Panel," Chauvet cave, Ardèche Valley, France, c. 25,000 – 17,000 B.C.

Visit Chauvet Cavehttp://www.culture.gouv.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/index.html

3.7 Men and women hunting kangaroos, Unbalanya Hill, Northern Territory, Australia

3:8  Carnac   Brittany 4000 bc   Menhirs

3.9 Dolmen, Crucuno, north of Carnac, Brittany, France, c. 4,000 B.C.

3.10 Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain, England, c. 2,800 – 1,500 B.C.

Facts on Stonehenge

Stonehenge was built between 3100 – 1100 BCE. but these dates vary greatly

The circle was aligned with the midsummer sunrise, the midwinter sunset, and the most southerly rising and northerly setting of the moon.

The ground plan and structural engineering of Stonehenge incorporate sophisticated mathematical and geometrical understandings on the part of its builders.

There were two types of stones used in its construction: the ‘bluestones’ (weighing as much as four tons and brought from 240 miles away) and the Sarsen stones (averaging eighteen feet in height and twenty-five tons in weight).

It has been estimated that the construction of Stonehenge required more than thirty million hours of labor.

More than nine hundred stone rings exist in the British Isles. Of these, Stonehenge is the most well known.

The megalithic monuments of Britain and Europe predate those of the eastern Mediterranean, Egyptian, Mycenaean and Greek cultures.

The Druids had nothing to do with the construction of the stone rings. Druids are known to have conducted their ritual activities mostly in sacred forest groves.

Prior to the 1950’s most archaeologists believed that Stonehenge’s use had been limited to the ritual activities of different Neolithic chiefdoms. However, it is now

known that Stonehenge had another equally important function, which was its use as an astronomical observatory.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the Oxford University engineer Professor Alexander Thom and the astronomer Gerald Hawkins pioneered the new field of archaeoastronomy - the study of the astronomies of ancient civilizations.

Conducting surveys at Stonehenge and other megalithic structures, Thom and Hawkins discovered many significant astronomical alignments among the stones. This evidence indicates that Stonehenge and other stone rings were used as astronomical observatories.

Stonehenge was simultaneously used for both astronomical observation and ritual function. By gathering data regarding the movement of celestial bodies, the Stonehenge observations were used to indicate appropriate periods in the annual ritual cycle. During those periods, among them being the solstices, equinoxes and different lunar days, festivals and ceremonies were held.

5000BC  Skara Brae-  Scotlandhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aobXkXyPwuk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pXtHqAGN6E