Key Terms for the Art of the Ancient Near East
- apadana (or see apadana)
- aurochs
- composite creature or Therianthrope
- cuneiform (for more information see cuneiform )
- cylinder seal (for more information see cylinder seal)
- glazed
- ground line (for more information see ground line)
- apadana
- hierarchy of scale
- iconography (for more information see iconography)
- lamassu (for more information see lamassu)
- register (for more information see register)
- relief sculpture (for more information see relief sculpture )
- stele (for more information see stele)
- votive sculpture (for more information see votive sculpture)
- ziggurat (for more information see ziggurat)
The great audience hall in ancient Persian palaces.
An extinct European mammal, Bos primigenius, the ancestor of domestic cattle.
a supernatural creature that is part animal and part human
See: https://smarthistory.org/required-works-for-ap/global-prehistory-overview-guide/glossary-for-ap-content-area-1-global-prehistory/
An ancient Mesopotamian writing system using wedge-shaped characters. Cuneiform characters were normally impressed on clay tablets using a pointed tool called a stylus.
In the ancient Mesopotamian and Indus Valley cultures, a small, cylindrical stone incised with a figural scene, design, and/or inscription. When the seal was rolled across wax or wet clay, the resulting raised image served as a mark of ownership or an authenticating signature.
Having a vitreous coating whose primary purposes are decoration or protection.
In two-dimensional art and relief sculpture, a line representing the ground level on which figures appear to stand.
The use of differences in size to show relative importance: the larger the figure, the greater his or her importance.
The study of the significance and interpretation of the subject matter of art.
An Assyrian protective deity in the form of a winged, human-headed bull or lion. Colossal sculpted stone lamassu (pl.) were often placed as guardians flanking city gates and the doorways of Assyrian palaces. When so placed, lamassu sculptures usually have five legs, so they appear to stand when seen from the front and walk when seen from the side.
A horizontal band containing decorative or narrative imagery. The term is normally used when a work of art is organized in multiple horizontal bands.
Sculpture in which the images have been carved or modeled on a surface so as to stand out from the background. Because it cannot be viewed from all sides, relief sculpture is distinct from sculpture in the round. Relief sculpture can be described as high relief or low relief, depending on how far it projects from its background.
An upright stone slab decorated with inscriptions or relief sculpture. Stelae (pl.) were used as commemorative monuments or tomb markers.
A term describing objects offered to a god or goddess at a sacred place, such as a temple. Common types of votive offerings include statues, figurines, vessels, weapons, crowns, animals, foodstuffs and candles.
In ancient Mesopotamia, a stepped tower of earthen materials, often supporting a temple or shrine.
