# data[].attributes.body
I found paleolithic caves interesting because of the thought behind the artwork. The people from ancient days sculpted paintings and artwork into the walls of the caves. These artworks are interesting to me also because they didn't just sculpt anything. What they sculpted were either symbols and or religious signs that could mean something. They made it into art which is something truly beautiful.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Widely acknowledged to be the earliest evidence of art in South Asia, the Bhimbetka cave paintings are Prehistoric paintings found on the Bhimbetka rock shelters in the Raisen district of present-day Madhya Pradesh. Bhimbetka comprises over 750 rock shelters, of which over a hundred have paintings depicting animal and human figures in shades of green, red, white, brown and black.

The earliest of these illustrate scenes from the lives of hunter-gatherers of the Upper Paleolithicand Mesolithic periods-a time when many animals were yet to be domesticated, humans were nomadic, and collective civilizations were not yet in existence.

Evidence suggests that the most densely painted caves allowed in more sunlight and were typically uninhabited. This also supports the widely accepted belief that these paintings were not meant to beautify or decorate humans' living spaces. The fact that many of these cave paintings overlap-implying that the rocks were painted on repeatedly and across successive historical time periods-has allowed archaeologists to assess their historicity.

Nine phases of painting

The Bhimbetka paintings have been classified into nine phases under three broad cultural periods: Phases I-V in the Mesolithic period, Phase VI in the Chalcolithic period and Phases VII-IX in the Historic period. Some scholars further suggest that the paintings could even have originated around 40,000 B.C.E. or earlier. Based on considerable archaeological evidence, it is suggested that there is a clear distinction between the cave paintings from the Mesolithic and Historic periods and those from the Upper Paleolithic period and later medieval period, which are fewer in number and less significant, as they do not subscribe to a distinct style, as seen in the drawings from the Mesolithic and Historical periods.

The earliest paintings

Early Bhimbetka paintings predominantly feature wild animals such as gaur, a native variety of wild ox, deer such as the chital, monkeys, wild boars, stags, and elephants as well as hunting scenes in which humans are depicted with bows and arrows and headgear. There are also depictions of different types of scenes, including ritual practices, women digging out rats from holes, and men and women foraging for fruits and honey.

Contemporary scholars have categorized the painted animal figures in these illustrations into natural, geometric, or abstract styles based on whether they are simple outlines, partially filled-in or silhouetted figures.

For instance, several pregnant animals painted with visible markers such as enlarged stomachs are outlined and drawn using naturalistic or geometric styles. Sometimes, instead of being colored, the body of an animal is filled-in with another animal, suggesting a more conceptual style. For instance, some paintings depict an elephant painted within the outline of a deer, which could suggest a fantastical and possibly humorous approach to depicting subjects.

Historic period paintings

In contrast, later paintings from the Historic period onwards depict processions, scenes of warriors with swords, shields, and daggers and collective rituals. These paintings are characterized by a marked absence of animal figures, which are disproportionately drawn whenever they do appear. It has also been suggested that the motifs used in some of these later paintings reveal the religious influence of Hinduism or Buddhism.

In some, there are clear depictions of gods such as Ganesha and Shiva, representations of the Mother Goddess and symbols such as the and swastika.

Archaeologists have been able to differentiate these paintings from the earlier, more faded paintings underneath through processes such as radiocarbon dating and other methods. By this time, humans were no longer living in caves as hunter-gatherers but were in the early stages of civilization and a sedentary life with domesticated animals.

Boar Rock

Also known as Bhimbetka Shelter III F-19 and Bull Rock, this rock shelter derives its name from its depiction of a large, boar-like creature and is prominent among the hundreds of structures that comprise the Bhimbetka cave paintings. The animal depicted in the painting has a large head, horns and what appears to be fur on its back. It appears to be charging leftwards, towards two figures-a human and a crab. The painting is rendered in deep red, which is believed to have been obtained from hematite, and is known for its magnitude, which is over 1.2 meters tall and .87 meters wide.

Unlike the other hunting scenes depicted in the Bhimbetka rock shelters, the scene illustrated at Boar rock depicts a human figure being attacked by, and fleeing, a wild animal. While paintings of boars appear in several other instances in the region, scholars believe that the animal at Boar Rock is mythical and seems to be a combination of a boar, an ox, and an elephant.

Materials and techniques

To produce these paintings-especially the earlier iterations-brushes were most likely made from twigs that were chewed to soften and discard the fibers. Additionally, fingers, bird feathers, and animal hair are believed to have been used as brushes. Pigments for different colors may have been obtained from vegetables or from surrounding sedimentary rocks. Hydrated iron oxides from rocks were likely used to make shades of ochre and red and burnt to produce colors such as yellow, rust orange, and brown. Bird droppings or plant sap may have been used for whites. Evidence suggests that colors were only used in the wet form-by mixing pigments with oils and water-and never in solid or powdered form.

The first works of art in the region

Scholars believe that the Bhimbetka cave paintings were quite mature and advanced for their time and were probably not the first works of art created by human beings in the region. Although the purposes of these paintings are unknown, they provide immense historical information about humans, their relationship with animals and nature, the stages of Prehistoric hunter-gathering, and the eventual transition into more sedentary civilizations with domesticated animals.

The Bhimbetka rock shelters were marked as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003.
Additional resources
Jāvīd ʻAlī and Tabassum Javeed, World Heritage Monuments and Related Edifices in India (Algora, 2008).

"Bhimbetka Rock Shelters," New World Encyclopedia.

Bradshaw Foundation, " The India Rock Art Archive," Bradshaw Foundation.

K. L. Kamat, Prehistoric Rock Paintings of Bhimbetka," Kamat's Potpourri.

Yashodhar Mathpal, Prehistoric Painting of Bhimbetka (Abhinav Publications, 1984).

V. N. Misra, " The Prehistoric Rock Art of Bhimbetka, Central India," Sahapedia.

Steven J. Mithen, After the Ice: A Global Human History, 20,000-5000 BC (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2012).

Ranesh Ray and A. R. Ramanathan, Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka: Continuity through Antiquity, Art & Environment (New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India, 2002).

Palaash Vaswani, " Bhimbetka: The Art of Rock Paintings," D'Source, 13 January 2016.

UNESCO World Heritage Centre, " Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka," UNESCO World Heritage Centre.
Drawing from articles on The MAP Academy

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Paintings in the rock shelters in Bhimbetka are the oldest art of South Asia.

# data[].attributes.body
I found these intriguing due to the stories behind the creation of this art. The art on these vases are in a way considered a screenshot of a scene and then sculpted onto the vase. This adds a meaning and a story behind the decoration of what is on the pot. The attatchment to this shows a pot with the decoration of a fight taking place. Behind this was an entire story and series of events which led up to that scene to be taken place and given the opportunity to become decoration on a pot.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
A distinctive red and black colour scheme characterises most of the painted pottery of sixth- and fifth-century Athens. The colours result from the skilful exploitation of the high iron content of Athenian clay by an ingenious process of differential firing. The black areas of a black or red-figured pot were coated in a fine solution of the same clay that was used for the body of the vase. Before the vase was placed in the kiln, it would have been orange-red in colour, with the coated areas slightly deeper in tone.

Once the kiln had been loaded, the a three-stage firing took place. In the first, oxidising, phase plenty of air was allowed into the kiln, and the temperature was gradually made to rise to around 800º C. At this point, the vase turned a bright orange-red, as the oxygen in the atmosphere combined with the iron in the clay to produce (red) ferric oxide.

When the potter judged that the required temperature had been reached, he stopped up the air vents and perhaps introduced damp material in the form of green wood or even bowls of water. This produced a reducing (oxygen-poor) atmosphere in the kiln and the red ferric oxide was converted to (black) ferrous oxide, so that the entire pot turned black. The temperature in the kiln continued to rise to around 945º C. The intense heat caused the fine particles of the clay of the coated areas of the pot to 'sinter', that is, to fuse together to form a hard, smooth, almost glassy surface.

In the third and final stage, the temperature was allowed to drop, and at about 900º C the ventilation holes were opened up, oxygen returned to the atmosphere of the kiln, and the ferrous oxide of the uncoated areas converted back to ferric oxide, so that as the kiln cooled down these parts turned orange-red again. The sealed surface of the sintered areas was impervious to the presence of the oxygen and so remained black.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Firing Athenian black and red figure vases

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A distinctive red and black colour scheme characterises most of the painted pottery of sixth- and fifth-century Athens. The colours result from the skilful exploitation of the high iron content of Athenian...

# data[].attributes.body
Hellenistic statues from my knowledge require a lot of attention to detail to complete. I find it really interesting that how on a piece of rock or marble, an individual can construct emotion, expressions, wrinkles, muscles, movement, and much more. The attachment I added gives a lot of detail. It perfectly shows wrinkles, it shows how an arm is missing without it looking odd, and it also gives the impression that the statue is of an older lady. It really fascinates me how all of these details come together to form something unique.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Hellenistic Sculpture: Realist Art in Ancient Greece | Art & Object

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The ancient Greek body is perhaps one of the most recognizable and influential forms in art history.

# data[].attributes.body
The reason Byzantine Mosaics are interesting to me is because of the way they are constructed. They are constructed by pieces of glass, stone, or ceramic. It amazes me how much skill the people sculpting these mosaics must have to be able to perfectly depict how much material is needed for which part of the structure. For instance, I think of it as if someone had to cut a piece of glass, how would they do it so perfectly to fit the structure so perfectly. Byzantine art is also connected with religious expressions which is what the art usually references to.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.provider_name
Aleteia - Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the year 285, the Roman Empire split up into two parts: the Western part, with Rome as its capital, and the Eastern part, with Constantinople, also known as Byzantium, as its capital. That's why in the following centuries, religious art from the Roman Empire, which adopted Christianity as its official religion in 300, developed along two parallel trends. Christian art produced in Rome maintained its interest in naturalism, while art produced in the Eastern part of the empire focused more heavily on mysticism, adopting some key aspects of Hellenistic style and iconography.

Mosaics are probably one the best examples of how Hellenistic practices were included in what became known as Byzantine Christian art. The technique of creating portraits out of tiny pebbles was first invented in Mesopotamia during the 3rd millennium BC and became widely diffused in ancient Greece, where the tessera technique was developed in 200 BC. Thanks to the technique, it was not just tiny pieces of natural pebbles that could be used to make mosaics but also finely cut fragments of marble and limestone, known as .

During the Byzantine period, craftsmen started to widen the materials that could be turned into tesserae, including gold and precious stones. According to 1st century architect Vitruvius, the ideal foundation of a mosaic was made of four layers. The first layer, called , was composed of large chunks of bricks or pottery. The following layers, known as , were made of a thick mix of rubble and lime. The third layer, or , was made using a mix of lime and tiny brick pieces. The last layer, on top of which the tesserae would be laid, was made of a finer mix of crushed lime and brick powder.

On this moist surface, mosaic artists would then proceed to incise guidelines that would later contain different tesserae, using tools like strings, nails and calipers. In order to create tesserae, artists used a hammer and a chisel-like blade set to carve the tiny pebbles out of a block of material. Thanks to their wise use of these tools, anything from marble to glass could be turned into finely shaped pieces that could fit the guidelines marked into the base.

The end result were glittering works of art whose aura attempted to capture an ethereal and spiritual realm. Click on the slideshow to view some of the most striking works of mosaic art from the Byzantine period.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The breathtaking beauty of Byzantine mosaics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
From Istanbul's Hagia Sophia to Saint Mark's in Venice, churches around the Mediterranean are a trove of Byzantine artifacts.