THE STONE AGE
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THE BIRTH OF ART: AFRICA, EUROPE AND NEAR EAST
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Can this image be considered art?
This represents the earliest evidence of human
recognition of abstract images in the natural
environment, if not the first example of what
people generally call “art”.
Discovered in 1925 in a cave at Makapansgat in
South Africa.
This image is nearly 3,000,000 years older than
the first intentionally manufactured sculptures.
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Waterworn pebble resembling a human head
Makapansgat, South Africa ca. 3,000,000 B.C
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The oldest African
paintings were portable
objects, due to the
nomadic culture.
This image is one of
seven fragments of stone
with paint on them found
in the Apollo Cave in
Namibia.
The earliest paintings
depict images of animals
such as this one.
Paleolithic paintings
almost always depicted
animals (Bison,
Mammoth, Ibex, and
Horses)
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Animal facing Left
Apollo 11 Cave, Nambia ca. 23,000 B.C
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The first sculptures of Western Europe are even older than
the painted plaques of Namibia.
This image is an example of one of the earliest sculptures
discovered to date.
This sculpture was carved out of mammoth ivory and stands
nearly a foot tall (truly huge for its era)
The real reason for the existence of this sculpture is still
uncertain. Historians can only speculate as to its purpose
and function.
Historians are certain, however, that a sculpture such as this
would have been of great importance due to the fact that it
would have been very hard to obtain such a large piece of
mammoth ivory. It would most likely have taken several
days of skilled work to create such a sculpture.
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Human with feline head
Hohlenstein-Stadel , Germany ca. 30,000 - 28,000 B.
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This is one of the oldest and most famous of the prehistoric female
figures.
This image is no more than four inches tall, yet it has become an
icon in the history of art.
It is suggested that this image served the purpose of fertility due to
its anatomical exaggeration, but it is still only a speculation.
Small figures such as this were carved from naturally shaped rocks.
The central point in the design, the navel, is a natural crevice in the
rock
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Venus from Willendorf
Willendorf, Austria ca. 28,000 - 25,000 B.C
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This sculpture represents one of the earliest relief
sculptures known
This image was found as a part of a 140 cubic foot stone
block that stood in the open air in front of a Paleolithic rock
shelter. Today it stands on display in a museum divorced
from its original context.
The artist would have chiseled out the female form from the
rock, and would later add the ochre color to the body of the
figure.
The figure’s raised right arm holds a bison horn and the left
arm rests upon the exaggerated mid section. It is
speculated that this sculpture, like the woman from
Willendorf, is some sort of fertility figure.
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Woman holding a bison horn
Laussel, Dordogne France ca. 25,000 - 20,000 B.C
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Two bison relief in a cave
Ariège, France ca. 15,000 - 10,000 B.C
These relief sculptures were found in
the cave at Le Tuc d’Audoubert and
represent relief sculpture carved
from clay rather than stone.
These bison are sculpted in strict
profile, as to give more visual
information to the viewer.
Each of these bison are over two
feet long and are among the largest
Paleolithic sculptures known.
It is assumed that the artist brought
the clay into this cave and modeled
it by hand into the shape of the
bison. Once the clay had dried, it is
thought that the artist engraved the
facial features and manes with a
stone burin.
The cracks in the clay are a result from the drying process and most likely
occurred within a couple of days of the sculpture’s completion.
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Bison with turned head
Dordogne, France ca. 12,000 B.C
When artists chose to use antlers
and horns as their medium for
sculpture, they were forced to work
on a very small scale. This
particular sculpture is only about four
inches in size.
This is considered one of the finest
works from the Paleolithic Era.
This image was carved from a
reindeer antler with a very sharp
tool. Notice the extreme detail for
the era as you look at the eyes,
nostrils, mane, and ears of the
bison. The artist gives us much
more information than any of the
other works discussed to this point.
Especially noteworthy is the twisted and turned head of the bison. It could
be that the artist did this to save space on such a small sculptural area.
Whatever the reason for this twisted perspective, the artist manages to give
us a strict profile view of the animal that contains clarity as to the
characteristics of the bison.
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Images were incised or painted onto rock and often used
the natural projections of the rock to fit the drawing
The bison is lifelike due to shading and roundness.
Painted from ochre and ash from the surroundings- used as
much as 3 colors
These paintings were discovered by the daughter of the
owner of the estate that contained the cave. She was with
her father in the cave when they reached the chamber
containing these images about eighty five feet from the
cave’s entrance.
The authenticity of these images was officially dismissed at
the Lisbon Congress on Prehistoric Archeology in 1880. By
the end of the century the skeptics were convinced that
these images were, in fact, authentic due to the other caves
that had been discovered with mineral deposits that would
have taken thousands of years to accumulate.
These images of the animals, just as those of the plaques
from Namibia, are painted in profile.
The unique thing about the images in this cave is the
perspective that the artist gives. Notice the aerial view.
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Bison (detail of painted ceiling)
Altamira Santander, Spain ca. 12,000-11,000 B.C
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Spotted horses and negative handprints
Pech-Merle France ca. 22,000 B.C
It is speculated by art historians that these
“spotted horses” may not have had spots
at all. They claim that those “spots” may
actually represent rocks that were thrown
at the animals in the hunt. (Notice that the
spots appear within as well as around the
animals.)
Is it possible that these images were
created to ensure the success capturing
and killing these animals using rocks as
weapons?
The representation of human hands on
the walls of the cave are very common.
Often those hand prints are “negative”
images that are created by blowing
pigment over the hand while it rests on the
surface of the cave.
Some scholars believe the handprints to
have been the signatures of cult or
communal members.
The natural shape of the rock often dictated the images that would be
created on the walls of the caves. Notice the shape of the rock where
the horses head is located and how seamlessly they fit together.
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Hall of the Bulls (left wall)
Lascaux,, France ca. 15,000-13,000 B.C
The images found on the walls
of the Lascaux caves are some
of the best known Paleolithic
images.
Images are often drawn far
inside the caves, away from
entrances. (Sometimes
hundreds of feet from the
entrances)
Scholars believe that these
images were produced as part
of a magic ritual.
The images were
superimposed- (no separation
between image and reality)
Once the animal has been
killed, the spirit has been killed
and a new animal is drawn on
top
The purpose of the drawings
was to lure animals for the hunt
(they were scarce)
The caves of Lascaux demonstrate the two techniques used in Paleolithic
painting. Some of the walls (like the image above) consisted of outlines only,
whereas some of the other images contained a degree of modeling through the
use of colored silhouettes. These differences in style and technique suggest that
the images were painted in different times.
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Aurochs, horses, and rhinocerouses
Chauvet Cave,, Vallon Pont d’Arc,, Andèch France ca. 30,000-28,000 or 15,000- 13,000
B.C
The images on the walls of this
cave represent the world’s
earliest dated paintings.
These images were not
discovered until December of
1994 and were promptly named
after the leader of the exploration
team, Jean-Marie Chauvet.
Radio-carbon Dating, which
measures the degeneration of
carbon 14 in organic material,
determined that these images
were more than 15,000 years
older than those found in
Altamira.
These images caused scholars
to re-evaluate the scheme of
“stylistic development” from
simple to more complex forms
that had been nearly universally
accepted for decades.
Until 1994 it was believed that Paleolithic art “evolved” from a primitive form to a
more sophisticated one. Is it possible that years from now, new discoveries will
disprove other theories that art historians have accepted about the art of the
Paleolithic era?
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This great stone tower stands almost 28 feet high.
The tower is approximately thirty three feet in diameter at its
base and contains an inner stairway leading to its summit.
It is still unknown whether or not this was one of several
large towers used as a defense system or a solitary
structure.
This remains one of the earliest monumental architectural
structures known today. It is also known as the oldest
fortified city excavated so far.
The Neolithic age brought with it many innovations such as
metalworking and weaving.
The Neolithic city of Jericho is probably most famous for the
human skulls with reconstructed facial features that were
found there. These skulls contained painted hair and inlaid
shells to represent the eyes, One of the skulls found even
contained a painted mustache.
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Great Stone tower built into the wall
Jericho, ca. 8,000- 7,000 B.C
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Schematic Reconstruction of Level IV
Çatal Höyük Turkey ca. 6,000- 5,900 B.C
This Neolithic culture thrived between
7000 and 5000 bc.
They lived in houses of mud and brick
centered around courtyards. What is
unusual about this city is that it contains
no streets or doors (people entered
through the roof)
A large number of shrines have been
found at this location. Almost one per
every three houses These shrines can be
distinguished from other houses by the
rich decoration of the interior walls as
well as the collection of bucrania (bovine
skulls). The paintings found on these
walls are the first known artwork on manmade surfaces.
actual hunts- everything is ritual- in honor
of male and female deities
This site is currently being excavated and
explored. This excavation is thought to
uncover many unanswered questions
about Neolithic life.
Çatal Huyuk’s major source of wealth was its trade of obsidian, a
volcanic stone that is very similar to glass. The stone was used to
in the creation of weapons and various other sharp tools.
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The images found in these caves
represent the first landscape
paintings.
Paintings prior to the ones found
in Çatal Hüyük did not contain
background elements.
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Deer Hunt, detail of wall painting from Level III
Çatal Höyük Turkey ca 5,750 B.C
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Stonehenge
Sailsbury Plain, Wiltshire, England ca 2,550-1,600 B.C
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Trilithon- refers to
the entire threestone structure.
Made up of Dolmens- tombs with upright
stones, slab roof
Cromlechs -other stones that form a
setting
Outer circle and 2 inner circles with a
center altar
Oriented towards the point at which the
sun rises on the Summer Solstice
Large stone structures such as this one
are known as megaliths.
Heel-stone- marks the point where the sun rose at the midsummer solstice.
Stonehenge is now considered a remarkably accurate solar calendar.