AP ART HISTORY REVIEW STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS 2024
Why is the statue of Hatshepsut Kneeling with Offering Jars such a significant piece of art in Egyptian history? - ANSWER✔✔Queen Hatshepsut herself was significant because she was the only female pharaoh in Egyptian history. She is depicted in the statue similarly to a male pharaoh (false beard, nemes, kilt), but the slender proportions and breasts indicate femininity. In addition, processions up the Mortuary temple (where she resided) passed in front of this particular statue.What is happening in the Last Judgment of Hu-Nefer? Describe the scene. - ANSWER✔✔Anubis, the god of embalming, leads the deceased into a hall, where his soul is being weighted against a feather. If it's lighter, he may proceed, but if not, Ammit will eat the heart (causing the soul to cease to exist.) Thoth (the bird-headed God) writes down what is happening in hieroglyphics (that he invented.)To the right, Osiris, god of the underworld, will subject the deceased to a day of judgment; then the 2 daughters behind Osiris will lead the person into the afterworld.Why does Narmer wear no shoes on the Palette of Narmer? - ANSWER✔✔Narmer does not wear shoes because he is standing on sacred/holy ground as a divine king (and one is not allowed to be wearing sandals if they're standing on holy ground.) Where was the Book of the Dead usually placed? - ANSWER✔✔It was usually placed between the legs of the deceased so that the Ka can easily access it.What was the function of the Book of the Dead? - ANSWER✔✔The Book of the Dead was an illustration of spells and charms that acted as a guide for the deceased to make their way into eternal afterlife.How does the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut relate to the environment around it? - ANSWER✔✔The temple is visually coordinated with the natural setting, where the terraces and colonnades repeat the patterns of the cliff behind it. The dark and light patterns are reflected in the cliffs. The terraces, in addition, were originally planted as gardens with exotic trees.What was the canon of the Archaic style? What did it look like, and which civilization's artwork was it most similar to? - ANSWER✔✔The Archaic artifacts that survived are primarily grave markers (Kouros and Kore figures) and sculptures, usually made out of marble. The hair is usually knotted, figures are not block statues but rather free-standing, had squarish shoulders, had curlicue ears, and most figures smile, indicating that the person was once alive. Sculpture was often painted and had metallic accessories.Sometimes, Archaic Greek works were made using bronze, limestone, wood, gold, iron, or terra cotta, although the Romans melted the bronze for other uses. The background was commonly highlighted in red. Archaic art is most similar to ancient Egypt, evident by how one foot was placed in front of the other (mid-stride) and by how the shins had a crease down the front.Compare the Menkaura and Wife to Anavysous Kouros. - ANSWER✔✔Both figures have their left foot forward, with their arms by their sides in a rigid frontal view. Menkaura is clothed because he is a pharaoh and has to wear traditional king clothes. However, the kouros figure is nude, probably because he is an athlete, and the Greek human figures were designed to look perfect, idealized, and celebrated.Both of them are considered as funerary art; however, Menkaura is a Ka statue, while the Kouros marks a 1 / 2
burial site. The Menkaura figure was made out of greywacke; the kouros figure made out of marble.They both have remnants of paint though. In addition, the Kouros statue is more freestanding compared to King Menkaura and queen, which is a block statue.What did Polykleitos do? What did he sculpt? What did he write? - ANSWER✔✔Polykleitos was a famous sculptor during the Classical Era of Greece. He wrote a famous book on the canon of human proportions, although it no longer exists. His statue "Doryphoros" (Spear bearer) was the illustration of that book, incorporation the concept of Contrapposto for his sculpture. Allegedly, he made 2 statues- one according to his canon and the other according to people's wants to further display how ideal his canon is.What is the difference between a black-figure vase and a red-figure vase? - ANSWER✔✔A black-figure vase emphasized large features drawn in black on the red surface of the clay. Other colors would burn in the high temperature of the kiln, so after the pot had been fired, details were added in, highlighting colors. The bright glazing gave the surface a lustrous shine. This was used mostly during the Archaic period, but the Andokides introduced red-figure techniques. The background was painted in black, and the natural red of the clay detailed the forms. An example of this is the Niobides Krater.How would the Athenians describe themselves after the Persian War? - ANSWER✔✔The Greeks successfully fended off the Persians. While they unified in the war, afterwards inner conflict resurfaced and augmented since both Athens and Sparta declared victory. Despite the rising tensions, the Classical Greek art phase flourishes. Athens was destroyed in the war, so they rebuilt the city-state, sparking a little Golden Age for Athens. However, as Athens increased in power/influences (via the Delian League and Golden Age), others began appearing, eventually sparking the Peloponnesian Wars.What was shown on the Panathenaic Frieze? - ANSWER✔✔The Panathenaic Frieze depicts the people of Athens participating in the Panathenaic procession, which is held every 4 years to honor Athena. The whole frieze depicts the Greek gods sitting while citizens move in the procession towards the scene depicting the folding of the peplos, a central item woven by the virgins dedicated to Athena exclusively for use during the procession. Cavalry dominated the west end, while elders, musicians, and sacrificial animals are towards the eastern end. It was the first time to depict a human event on a temple. There is a theory that the Panathenaic frieze depicts the story of King Erechtheus, who sacrificed one of his daughters to save Athens; the Panathenaic Procession is more widely accepted, however.What type of columns were used in the Parthenon? - ANSWER✔✔The Parthenon contains a mixture of the types of columns. The doric temple has some ionic features in the inside. The columns at the end were made thicker to look the same as the other columns despite being surrounded by light. The rear room and interior also contains ionic capitals, although the exterior contains doric columns.What type of columns were used in the Pergamon? - ANSWER✔✔In the Pergamon, ionic columns frame the monument. In addition, the widely spaced columns surroounding the hall also had platforms with Ionic capitals.What is gigantomachy? What buildings use the story of gigantomachy as a metaphor for their own society? - ANSWER✔✔Gigantomachy is a mythical ancient Greek war between the giants and the Olympian gods. The Altar of Zeus and Athena at Pergamon depicts the gigantomachy around the base of the altar as a metaphor for their own society.
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