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Prehistoric Sculpture
Prehistoric Sculpture
SCUL PU RE
Ba
WH AT IS A
SCULP·TURE /ˈSKƏLPCHƏR/ SCU LPT URE ?
the art of making two- or
three-dimensional
representative or abstract
forms, especially by carving
stone or wood or by casting
metal or plaster.
INTRODUCTION
T Y P E S O F
PRE H I S TO R I C Sculpted during the Lower Paleolithic era, these primitive effigies
- considered by some archeologists to be the result of natural
CARVINGS OF ANIMAL
FIGURES (FROM 33,000 BCE
ONWARDS)
The strangest, most exotic and most varied
of all types of prehistoric sculpture, these
carvings frequently have mythological or
religious significance.
ANTHROPOMORPHIC FIGURES
Like the Venus figurines, these prehistoric
CHARACT ER IS TI CS
anthropomorphic statuettes were carved in a wide
variety of materials. Most were relatively small in OF PR EH IS TO RI C
size and so may have been designed for personal
SCU LP TU RE
use. Although interpretations vary considerably,
many of these human or semi-human sculptures
have ritualistic or totemic significance, reflecting
the mythology and/or religious beliefs of their
tribes and societies.
VENUS FIGURINES
ver 100 Upper Paleolithic Venus figurines have been excavated; nearly all between 2-10 inches tall. Most share
several attributes in common, as follows: all depict a female figure; its shape is almost always grotesquely obese,
with tapering points at the top (head) and bottom (legs); there is an exaggerated focus on the breasts, abdomen,
vulva, hips and thighs; this contrasts with a correspondingly scant interest in other features of the body; the head,
for instance, is usually small with little detail.
ULTRA-PRIMITIVE RELIEFS
HUMANOID OBJECTS The only type of stone
ANIMAL FIGURES
Discovered in 1981, the Venus
carving to be classified as
of Berekhat Ram was such a Probably the most common subject in
crude representation of a Stone Age sculpture, animals were
"cave art", in that it forms
human figure that some depicted in a variety of styles, reflecting part of the fabric of the
archeologists refused to rock shelter, relief
their importance in the diet and lifestyle
recognize it as a work of art,
of prehistoric hunter-gatherers, as well as sculpture is generally seen
believing instead that its shape
had been caused by natural
their symbolic or totemic status in the only when the cave walls
erosion. religious beliefs of the time. consist of relatively soft
stone, like limestone.
Meditation Hacks
DECLUTTER THE
GO FOR A DRIVE
MIND BY WRITING
Presentations are communication tools that can be
Presentations are communication tools that can be
used as lectures, speeches, reports, and more.
used as lectures, speeches, reports, and more.
FAMOUS (230-700,000 BCE)
PRE HI ST OR IC VENUS OF BEREKHAT RAM
SCU LP TU RE S