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2: The Dawn of Art (40,800 BCE – 5000 BCE)

  • Page ID
    308228
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    How did humans initiate their desire to create art and why? Undoubtably, this query will never be resolved by cultural anthropologists, however, the more archeological sites discovered and excavated the more our discovery of humans and their creativity continues. When an ancient settlement is established, archeologists take great care in removing artifacts, piecing together what the art meant to the culture. If the foundation of a great building is discovered, researchers study the architecture, imagining how the great buildings were designed and built without the aid of today’s technology or heavy equipment. How were the great pyramids constructed? How were the stones moved to build Stonehenge?

    • 2.1: Overview
      Introduction to the dawn of civilization and the art they created with minimal tools.
    • 2.2: Geology of Caves
      Caves are openings in the earth caused by the erosion of the limestone. Limestone is a naturally occurring sedimentary rock and makes up 10% of all the rock on the planet. The limestone usually is composed of marine skeleton fragments from coral reefs and grains of silica, chert, clay, sand, and silt. The composition of limestone is easily eroded by water.
    • 2.3: Cave Art
      Cave artists developed early painting techniques and used natural materials like charcoal and earth pigments, laying the groundwork for modern art. Their methods, including sketching, filling, and inscribing, have influenced artistic practices through history.
    • 2.4: Handheld Art
      Handheld art is known as venus figures, also known as a fertility goddess, received the names from archeologists to describe the pocket-sized female like sculptures.
    • 2.5: Conclusion


    This page titled 2: The Dawn of Art (40,800 BCE – 5000 BCE) is shared under a CC BY 2.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Deborah Gustlin & Zoe Gustlin (ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative) .

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