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Bison with Turned Head, c. 11,000-9,000 BC

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Textured lines, use of big versus small forms to emphasize shape. Low relief demonstrates great understanding of art and tools used to create it for this early of a time period.

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Stonehenge, near Wiltshire, England, c. 2,000 BC

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It is simple and geometric, but the purpose of it is unknown. The fact that it is made out of these large, heavy stones adds to the mystique behind this work of art.

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Bull Headed Lyre of Ur, c. 3500-2332 BCE

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Balanced, some of the characters seem to parallel each other. The descending shape could indicate either a story or class. Good use of contrast. They use composite pose, but the top is almost a mix between composite and frontal.

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Victory Stele of Naram-Sin, c. 2,300-2,200 BC

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This relief work depicts a victory scene of Naram-Sin. We see him leading of group of identical looking soldiers up a steep mountain. They gaze up at two stars, or what possibly look like three, representing divinity and deities. The horned helmet that Naram-Sin wears demonstrates his godlike status and authority. However, the fact that he is looking up at the stars implies that there are still other gods above him.

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This is a depiction of Hammurabi standing in front of what is possibly the sun god Shamash. It wasn't uncommon for divine figures to be seated or "enthroned" in works of art of many eras. It appears that Hammurabi is holding some sort of book or writing materials in his right arm. We see hints of drapery in the relief as well as defined edges to create what appears to be armor or traditional dress. Hammurabi's gaze is locked firmly with that of Shamash.

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Symbolism and immortalizing one's life was the root of Egyptian art. Here we have a statue of the pharaoh Khafre. On his throne, he is seated rigidly with his shoulders squared and his head held high. This shows that he is powerful and has authority. He dawns a straight beard, meaning that he was alive during the creation of this sculpture. Any art made for pharaohs after their death sport a curved beard.

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Temple of Ramses II, Abu Simbel, 1247 BC

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During the New Kingdom, they started using mountainsides for more of their architecture as it offered more protection from thieves. Here, the temple is guarded by four monumental size statues of Ramses II. They are seated in a position of authority, although one is noticeably damaged. Between each statue are smaller statues of a female figure. It may be his wife, Nefertari. There are multiple engravings on the wall to fill the space.

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Folded Arm Figure (Figurine of a Woman), Keros-Syros Group, c. 2500 BC

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Not much is known about these statues, which is reflected in the simple and mysterious design of these figures. It is very abstract and compact. From the way her arms cross to the triangular shape of the pose, it all feels stiff and not lifelike. There are indications of paint, so they may have been painted. There are little to no facial features with the exception of a nose. It could be a representation of a god or goddess due to the lack of knowledge we have about what deities look like. This could've been their best interpretation.

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Sarcophagus from Hagia Triada, c. 1450-1390 BC

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Complementary colors, unique circular shapes create movement. Bodies are created with simple shapes and lines. Equal in weight. A unique aspect of Minoan art is that women were depicted in white colors while males were painted darker. This may have been due to how Minoan society viewed women within their culture.

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Warrior Vase, from Citadel, Tiryns, c. 1200 BC

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Repetitious, non-individual features, shared ground line. A fine example of a krater with a wide mouth, usually used for the diluting of wine. It appears that the soldiers may be walking off to battle, dressed in full armor.

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Guang, Anyang, China, Shang dynasty, 12th or 11th c. BCE

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Unique shapes and style, bronze, used for offerings. While the vessel itself is in the shape of an animal, there are other animal-like features as well. Under the faces appears to be what look like fish fins, and on the back side there appears to be what looks like a beak. There are other relief animals as well such as an elephant.

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Yan Liben, The Thirteen Emperors, Tang Dynasty c. 650

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I didn't realize that this was only one section of what was a very long scroll. The emperor here is depicted in black, and we can see that he is seated. The servants appear to be carrying the royal. There's very delicate line work and a limited color palette. There's also hierarchy of scale as the emperor is much larger than the servants.

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Gu Kaizhi, Lady Feng and the Bear, detail of Admonitions of the Instructress to the Court Ladies, Period of Disunity, late 4th century

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Contrast of color, suggestive pose and angles create movement. There is also continuous narrative going on with the subject of Lady Fang. Because she is protecting the emperor, this conveys the movement of Confucianism.

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Dipylon Krater, from Dipylon cemetery, c. 750-735 BC

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We can see that there's a few registers, and the figures are very elongated and fill the available space. There is also geometric patterning in the top of the vase. Dipylon kraters tended to have a wider mouth to dilute wine, although some were used as grave markers. This scene depicts a funeral with lines of distressed women on both the left and right.

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Corinthian Animal Style Amphora, c. 625-600 BC

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It is divided up into registers, each filling the space with animal motifs and designs. The skinny neck of the amphora made it the perfect vessel for storage. The black and red/purple paint or clay help the pottery of this era stand out from those of previous times.

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The soft archaic smile was popular during this era. There's use of different textures and the colors, whether intentionally put or not, create interesting contrast. The kore is a youthful female, the counterpart of the male kouros.

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This is where we start to see a shift to more realistic and ideal proportions of youthful, athletic figures. The curved shape of the pose creates active movement. From the way he bends his left leg, we can see the weight that he is putting on his right leg. We also start to see more muscle definition.

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This is an amazing sculpture of the goddess Nike. I absolutely love the movement created by the pose and the way the wing opens up, how the sheer drapery shows the body in some places. Definitely created with ideal and natural proportions. The more rugged edges of the drapery actually create of sense of raw power and victory.

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This wasn't originally filled in, so it does trick the eye a little bit. It is one of two surviving Etruscan gates. It is symmetrical, has a rounded arch, and includes columns. There is a crosshatch pattern behind the columns, giving an illusion of depth. In between the columns are statues of both half bodies and faces.

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Patrician carrying two portrait heads, 1st century AD

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Even though the heads aren't equally lifted, the offset creates realistic balance to it. Asymmetry. Textured lines indicate draping of clothing. The support beam to the left gives a sense like there's more to the environment without us seeing the whole picture. This sculpture captured the generational aspect of patricians.

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Augustus from Primaporta, c. AD 20 (original c. 15 BC)

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This sculpture is both stylistic and historical as a divine scene is engraved on his breastplate. There's contrast in size, with the angles helping it appear more lifelike. I love how the gaze follows the direction of the finger while the smaller figure looks the opposite way. Use of contrapposto, a powerful stance, and wearing armor all demonstrate his military prowess.

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As we can tell, the four subjects are similar in size, symbolizing equality among the rulers. It's compact and rigid. They used non-individualized features and the proportions aren't ideal or naturalistic, something that may indicate the growing anxiety behind the falling empire.

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Enclosed where the figures fill the available space. The right side is very busy given all the people carved where the left side is empty, kind of offsetting the balance. The lack of facial features in the middle figure adds a bit of mystery as to who they are.

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Apse Mosaic, Sant'Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna, c. 549

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There's plenty of repetition and even symmetry going on. Iconographically, the gold background symbolizes "holiness" and the twelve sheep are meant to represent the twelve apostles. Christ is represented by the cross in the middle.

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Mina’i dish with story of Bahram Gur and Azadeh, c. 1200

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Repetitive subjects. There's movement in the outer circle as the animals look like they're running, but then the figures in the middle are more at rest. Use of patterns to create framing.

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Purse Cover, Sutton Hoo Ship Burial, 625-33

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This was made with gold and other precious materials. The white negative space helps everything else stand out. There's symmetry as well as animal interlace. It is intricately detailed.

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Westwork, abbey church, with later additions. Corvey, Germany. Late 9th century

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This church is pretty tall, or at least appears tall due to the small windows and lack of layering. The two towers make it symmetrical. I believe it used to be smaller before renovations were made to accommodate more people as well as adding more windows to let in more light. The windows were small because they didn't want to push the structural integrity of the building to its limit.

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Otto III, Gospel Book of Otto III, 997-1000

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Complementary colors, hints of symmetry, hierarchy of scale. The colors are symbolic of status and royalty. The figures are slightly elongated.

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Lintel of west portal, church of Saint-Genis-des-Fontaines, France. 1020-21

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Balanced with hints of symmetry. The proportions are neither naturalistic or ideal. It reminds me of Russian nesting dolls. There appears to be interlacing in the border. I also like the columns between the figures. There's a lot of small details in this relief.

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Negative space, great contrast from the black on white color, patterns, reflective. It may be associated with burial practices as it was found placed over someone's head in a burial if I'm not mistaken. Overall, it's very balanced.

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Symmetrical and reflective, although the use of wider and circular shapes give it a unique feel, almost as if it's a portal. Repetitive.

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It is very busy on the outside, lots of geometric shapes competing with each other. This may be due to the fact that they got carried away with the design and it collapsed. They increased the number of flying buttresses to accommodate. On the inside, it's more spacious and refined with gold detailing. Truly a fascinating piece of work.

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Master Honoré, Scenes of David, Breviary of Philippe le Bel, 1296

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This one is interesting. We can see hints of rule of thirds. The feet overlapping the frame also gives a sense of three-dimensionality. There's almost this reverse hierarchy of scale in the top scene that represents the anointing of David. We also see a black and yellow checkered pattern in the background.

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Robert and William Vertue, Chapel of Henry VII, Westminster Abbey, London, 1503-1519

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The detailing of the arches and ceiling are intricate and repetitious. The arches in combination with the stacked windows create this sense of elongation. It appears that the arches come to a point, a subtle but beautiful detail.

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Symmetrical, reflective. Slightly pointed, elongated arches and spires make it simple yet sophisticated. It's also stacked, or at least appears to be layered.

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Mary and Christ are centered on the page, reenforced by all of the other subjects looking at them. It's symmetrical and has intricate detailing. Also, the halos and use of gold all contribute to the holiness of this artwork.