Key Terms for the Art of Ancient Greece
- agora (for more information see Agora)
- Alexander the Great
- amphora (for more information see amphora)
- Archaic period (for more information see Archaic period)
- Archaic smile
- Athenian democracy
- black-figure vase painting (for more information see black-figure vase painting)
- Classical period
- contrapposto (for more information see contrapposto)
- Corinthian (for more information see Corinthian order)
- cornice (for more information see cornice)
- cult
- Doric (for more information see Doric order)
- entablature (for more information see entablature)
- façade (for more information see façade)
- frieze (for more information see frieze)
- Geometric period (for more information see Geometric period)
- Greco-Persian Wars
- Hellenistic period (for more information see Hellenistic period)
- idealism
- Ionic (for more information see Ionic order)
- kore (for more information see kore)
- kouros (for more information see kouros)
- krater (for more information see krater)
- Late Classical Period
- Macedonia
- metope (for more information see metope)
- mosaic (for more information see mosaic)
- order (for more information see order)
- Orientalizing period (for more information see Orientalizing period)
- pediment (for more information see pediment)
- Peloponnesian War
- Pergamon
- polis (pl. poleis)
- polytheism
- red-figure vase painting (for more information see red-figure vase painting)
- sanctuary
- sarcophagus (for more information see sarcophagus)
- tholos
- votive (for more information see votive)
- wet drapery
In ancient Greek cities an open central space used as a market and public gathering place.
Alexander III of Macedonia (b. 356 BCE-d. 323 BCE) was the king of Macedonia (r. 336-323 BCE). Known in art history for spreading Greek art and culture far beyond its borders.
See: https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/History/World_History/Western_Civilization_-_A_Concise_History_I_(Brooks)/08%3A_The_Hellenistic_Era/8.02%3A_Alexander_the_Great
(Greek: αμφορέας). A two-handled jar used for storing wine, olive oil, or other liquids. In ancient Greece, pottery amphorae (pl.) were often decorated in the black-figure and red-figure techniques.
In ancient Greek art, the period from 600 to 480 BCE. The Archaic period saw the development of the Doric and Ionic orders in temple architecture, the kouros and kore types in sculpture, and the black-figure and red-figure techniques in vase painting. The Archaic period followed the Orientalizing and preceded the Classical period. The Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BCE marks the end of the Archaic.
subtle upturned smiles on Greek Archaic figures thought to symbolize profound well-being.
This refers to the Athenian system of democratic government (5th to 4th century BCE), in which male citizens (dēmos) had equal political rights, freedom of speech, and the opportunity to participate in the political arena.
See: https://www.worldhistory.org/Athenian_Democracy/
A technique of ancient Greek pottery decoration in which images are painted with slip against a reddish or tan background (the natural color of the clay). The painted areas turn black when the pot is fired in a kiln. Details are incised into the black slip.
A period of Ancient Greek art that began with the Greek victory over the Persians in 480 BCE and lasted until about 323 BCE. The period's art features the ideals of balance, proportion, and idealism.
A way of representing the human body so that the weight appears to be supported on one leg. Contrapposto was discovered by ancient Greek sculptors and rediscovered by Renaissance artists in Europe.
an architectural order that is distinguished by a slender, fluted column, whose capital decorated with acanthus leaves and scrolls.
1. The uppermost section of moldings along the top of a wall or just below a roof. 2. In Greek, Roman, and Neoclassical architecture, the upper portion of the entablature, located above the architrave and the frieze.
Human beings engaged in ritual activity.
an architectural order whose capital is characterized by an abacus (square block) above the echinus (circular block).
In Greek, Roman, and Neoclassical architecture, the horizontal upper section of a building, below the roof and pediment. The entablature rests on the column capitals and consists of the architrave, frieze and cornice.
face of a building, usually the front.
1) Any continuous flat band of relief sculpture or painting.
2) In classical architecture, the middle element of an entablature, between the cornice and the architrave.
The Geometric period in ancient Greek art lasted from ca. 900 to ca. 700 BCE. It is named for the geometric patterns and motifs that were prevalent on pottery at this time. Painted vases were covered with lozenges, zigzags, checkerboards, meanders, and other abstract decorative motifs. Toward the end of the period simplified human and animal figures were introduced. Scholars subdivide the Geometric period into three parts: Early Geometric (ca. 900-850), Middle Geometric (ca. 850-760), and Late Geometric (ca. 760-700).
A series of conflicts between Persia (Achaemenid Empire) and the Greek city-states (499-449 BCE).
In Greek art and architecture, the period that immediately follows the Classical. Scholars do not all agree about which historical events mark the beginning and the end of the Hellenistic period. However, by convention, most accept the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE as the starting point and 31 BCE, the date of the Battle of Actium, as the end point. During the Hellenistic era Greek cultural influence reached its peak in the Mediterranean and beyond. The period saw a proliferation of new styles and subjects in the arts.
Idealism is presented through ideals in proportions, restraint, order, and balance of the human body in the art of Ancient Greece.
an order whose capital is characterized by volutes on the capital.
An Archaic Greek statue of a young woman.
An Archaic Greek statue of a nude standing male figure.
(Greek: Κρατήρας). In ancient Greece, a large, wide-mouthed vessel used for mixing wine and water in the context of the symposium. Pottery kraters were often decorated in the black-figure and red-figure techniques.
c. 400-323 BCE
In the fourth century, the ideal proportions of the human body were adjusted in art. Figures featured longer torsos and limbs with smaller heads.
Refer to: https://www.britannica.com/place/Macedonia-ancient-kingdom-Europe
Macedonia, ancient kingdom centred on the plain in the northeastern corner of the Greek peninsula, at the head of the Gulf of Thérmai. In the 4th century BCE it achieved hegemony over Greece and conquered lands as far east as the Indus River, establishing a short-lived empire that introduced the Hellenistic Age of ancient Greek civilization.
In ancient Greek architecture, the space between two triglyphs in a Doric frieze. Metopes were often decorated with relief sculpture or painted decoration.
A medium in which small, roughly cubic pieces of colored material (usually stone or glass) are embedded in mortar to create patterns or images. The small pieces are called tesserae.
In Greek, Roman and Neoclassical architecture, a stylistic system that governs every aspect of a building’s plan, elevation and decoration. Specific orders, such as the Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, Tuscan and Composite, can be recognized by the proportions of columns and the decorative details of capitals and entablatures.
In ancient Greek art, the period from the late 8th to the end of the 7th century BCE, which followed the Geometric and preceded the Archaic. It is so named because during this time the Greeks were influenced by eastern cultures, especially the Phoenicians, Assyrians and Egyptians, as evidenced by new, eastern motifs assimilated into Greek vase-painting and sculpture.
In classical and Neoclassical architecture, a wide, low-pitched gable at the top of the façade of a building. The pediment is formed by the sloping roof and the horizontal cornice.
See: https://www.worldhistory.org/Peloponnesian_War/
The Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta and their respective allies came in two stages: from c. 460 to 446 and from 431 to 404 BCE. With battles at home and abroad, the long and complex conflict was damaging to both sides. Sparta, with financial help from Persia, finally won the conflict by destroying the Athenian fleet at Aegospotami in 405 BCE.
An ancient city which now lies on the west coast of modern-day Turkey. It was ruled by the Attalid dynasty from 282-133 BCE.
See: https://smarthistory.org/the-pergamon-altar/
a city state in ancient Greece, especially as considered in its ideal form for philosophical purposes.
The worship of, or belief in, multiple deities, usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses, each with their own specific religions and rituals.
A technique of ancient Greek pot-painting in which the black background is painted with slip and figures are left the natural reddish color of the clay. Details are added with fine lines of slip before firing in a kiln.
Greek religious sites which were the homes of the gods. They were usually located at places considered to be associated with the sense of divine presence.
They featured cult images, temples, treasuries, and other items related to the gods.
A coffin, usually of stone, often decorated with relief sculpture.
a circular, vaulted structure, often a tomb or a temple.
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.
A style of sculpture in Greek art where the clothing appears transparent and clings to the body, in the manner of wet cloth, in order to keep a figure (usually a woman) clothed and modest while allowing the shape and details of her body to show through the clothing.
