Mesopotamian Sculpture in Colour

Mesopotamian Sculpture in Colour PDF Author: Astrid Nunn
Publisher: PeWe-Verlag
ISBN: 3689850193
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 279

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Book Description
We can now be sure that Mesopotamian sculpture of the human form was typically coloured. Our project, which set out to reconstruct the polychromy of Mesopotamian stone statues dating from the fourth to the first millennium BCE, is a part of a slow shift to incorporate more visual evidence in research about colour and perception in the ancient world that has long been dominated by ethno-linguistic studies. Our scientifically grounded reconstructions serve as a prelude to a more comprehensive exploration of the materiality and aesthetics of Mesopotamian sculpture, which open many windows onto historical, cultural, and symbolic issues. In this study, we trace the chronological development of the use of colours and consider why they changed over time. The manner in which colours served as social markers - of gender, ethnicity and class for example - are explored from the material culture and textual perspectives. When used to describe hair, skin, and garments, Sumerian and Akkadian words for colour denote more than just physical properties. They also evoke qualities such as lightness or darkness, dullness or glossiness, and encode specific symbolic values that impinge on many aspects of society. In all cultures, the notion of skin colour is subject to social concepts, prejudices, and ideals, and is thus a matter of convention. Our discovery that the face and body in particular were so vibrantly coloured provides an entirely new and unexpected view of ancient Near Eastern effigies. Through such luminous, radiant and lucid colours, we are now able to recognise the true faces of the statues, and to visualise what was considered beautiful and acceptable to the gods.

Mesopotamian Sculpture in Colour

Mesopotamian Sculpture in Colour PDF Author: Astrid Nunn
Publisher: PeWe-Verlag
ISBN: 3689850193
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 279

Get Book Here

Book Description
We can now be sure that Mesopotamian sculpture of the human form was typically coloured. Our project, which set out to reconstruct the polychromy of Mesopotamian stone statues dating from the fourth to the first millennium BCE, is a part of a slow shift to incorporate more visual evidence in research about colour and perception in the ancient world that has long been dominated by ethno-linguistic studies. Our scientifically grounded reconstructions serve as a prelude to a more comprehensive exploration of the materiality and aesthetics of Mesopotamian sculpture, which open many windows onto historical, cultural, and symbolic issues. In this study, we trace the chronological development of the use of colours and consider why they changed over time. The manner in which colours served as social markers - of gender, ethnicity and class for example - are explored from the material culture and textual perspectives. When used to describe hair, skin, and garments, Sumerian and Akkadian words for colour denote more than just physical properties. They also evoke qualities such as lightness or darkness, dullness or glossiness, and encode specific symbolic values that impinge on many aspects of society. In all cultures, the notion of skin colour is subject to social concepts, prejudices, and ideals, and is thus a matter of convention. Our discovery that the face and body in particular were so vibrantly coloured provides an entirely new and unexpected view of ancient Near Eastern effigies. Through such luminous, radiant and lucid colours, we are now able to recognise the true faces of the statues, and to visualise what was considered beautiful and acceptable to the gods.

The Meaning of Color in Ancient Mesopotamia

The Meaning of Color in Ancient Mesopotamia PDF Author: Shiyanthi Thavapalan
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004415416
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 523

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Book Description
"In The Meaning of Color in Ancient Mesopotamia, Shiyanthi Thavapalan offers the first in-depth study of the words and expressions for colors in the Akkadian language (c. 2500-500 BCE). By combining philological analysis with the technical investigation of materials, she debunks the misconception that people in Mesopotamia had a limited sense of color and convincingly positions the development of Akkadian color language as a corollary of the history of materials and techniques in the ancient Near East"--

The Ancient World Goes Digital

The Ancient World Goes Digital PDF Author:
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004527117
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 571

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Book Description
The new volume of the CyberResearch series brings together thirty-three authors under the umbrella of digital methods in Archaeology, Ancient Near Eastern Studies and Biblical studies. Both a newbie and a professional reader will find here diverse research topics, accompanied by detailed presentations of digital methods: distant reading of text corpora, GIS digital imaging, and various methods of text analyses. The volume is divided into three parts under the headings of archaeology, texts and online publishing, and includes a wide range of approaches from the philosophical to the practical. This volume brings the reader up-to-date research in the field of digital Ancient Near Eastern studies, and highlights emerging methods and practices. While not a textbook per se, the book is excellent for teaching and exploring the Digital Humanities.

Ancient Mesopotamian Materials and Industries

Ancient Mesopotamian Materials and Industries PDF Author: Peter Roger Stuart Moorey
Publisher: Eisenbrauns
ISBN: 9781575060422
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 456

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Book Description
This is the first systematic attempt to survey in detail the archaeological evidence for the crafts and craftsmanship of the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians in ancient Mesopotamia, covering the period ca. 8000-300 B.C.E. As creators of some of the earliest farming and urban communities known to us, these people were among the first pioneers of many crafts and skills that remain fundamental to modern ways of life. Many of the raw materials for crafts had to be imported from outside the river valley of the Tigris and Euphrates, providing an unusually sensitive indicator of the commercial and cultural contacts of Mesopotamia. In this book, Dr. Moorey reviews briefly the textual evidence, and then goes on to examine in detail the material evidence for a wide range of crafts using stones, both common and ornamental, animal products--from hippopotamus ivory to ostrich egg-shells--ceramics, glazed materials and glass, metals, and building materials. With a comprehensive bibliography, this will be a key work of reference for archaeologists and those interested in the early history of crafts and technology, as well as for specialist historians of the ancient Near East.

Color and Meaning in the Art of Achaemenid Persia

Color and Meaning in the Art of Achaemenid Persia PDF Author: Alexander Nagel
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009361341
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 303

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Book Description
This book explores the use of polychromy in the art and architecture of ancient Iran. Focusing on Persepolis, he explores the topic within the context of the modern historiography of Achaemenid art and the scientific investigation of a range of works and monuments in Iran and in museums around the world.

The Story of Colour

The Story of Colour PDF Author: Gavin Evans
Publisher: Michael O'Mara Books
ISBN: 178243691X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 354

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Book Description
The Story of Colour tells the story of how we have come to view the world through lenses passed down to us by art, science, politics, fashion and sport, and, not least, prejudice.

Library of Congress Catalog: Motion Pictures and Filmstrips

Library of Congress Catalog: Motion Pictures and Filmstrips PDF Author: Library of Congress
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Filmstrips
Languages : en
Pages : 712

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Book Description


The Building News and Engineering Journal

The Building News and Engineering Journal PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 856

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Book Description


Building News

Building News PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 788

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Book Description


Seeing Color in Classical Art

Seeing Color in Classical Art PDF Author: Jennifer M. S. Stager
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1009034669
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 566

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Book Description
The remains of ancient Mediterranean art and architecture that have survived over the centuries present the modern viewer with images of white, the color of the stone often used for sculpture. Antiquarian debates and recent scholarship, however, have challenged this aspect of ancient sculpture. There is now a consensus that sculpture produced in the ancient Mediterranean world, as well as art objects in other media, were, in fact, polychromatic. Color has consequently become one of the most important issues in the study of classical art. Jennifer Stager's landmark book makes a vital contribution to this discussion. Analyzing the dyes, pigments, stones, earth, and metals found in ancient art works, along with the language that writers in antiquity used to describe color, she examines the traces of color in a variety of media. Stager also discusses the significance of a reception history that has emphasized whiteness, revealing how ancient artistic practice and ancient philosophies of color significantly influenced one another.