Category: Ancient & Classical Art
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Prehistoric Art as a Fundamental Element of Humanity
Discoveries of artworks created up to 45,000 years ago prove that making and using visual images is an ancient and fundamental part of being human.
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A Universe of Art at TEFAF Online
This is my experience viewing TEFAF Online. This art fair has a little bit of everything, plus the unique twist of only showing one object per gallery.
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The World Between Two Empires: Ancient Middle Eastern Art at the Met
The World Between Two Empires shows beautiful and unusual Middle Eastern art and artifacts from about 100 BCE to 250 CE.
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Don’t Walk Like an Egyptian, Because They Didn’t, Either!
People often talk about “walking like an Egyptian”, but ancient Egyptians did not walk this way. Instead, the iconic pose comes from Egyptian art.
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The Minoan Bull Leaping Fresco
In the ancient city of Knossos, archaeologists found many beautiful frescos. One of them depicts something strange – a trio of people vaulting over a bull.
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Art That Inspires Me: Faiyum Mummy Portraits
In Roman Egypt, many beautiful mummy portraits were made in and around the area of Faiyum. They were attached to mummy wrappings to cover the mummy’s head.
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Art That Inspires Me: Cycladic Figurines
I’ve always loved ancient Cycladic figurines – little marble statues depicting stylized human figures. They can be found in most major museums.
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The Hidden Colors of Antiquity
We’re used to thinking of ancient sculptures as colorless, but that’s totally wrong. Learn how the ancients painted statues and how they might have looked.
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The World’s First Painter: A Fun Fact That’s Totally a Fable
In his Natural History, The ancient Roman historian Pliny the Elder tells a memorable tale about the world’s first painter.
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Fool Me Once: A Fun Fact
Roman historian Pliny the Elder tells a humorous story about two artists trying to outdo each other with their illusionistic paintings.
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William the Hippopotamus Makes a New Friend
The Met’s famous mascot, William, gets paired with a 1936 adaptation by Carl Walters. As a William fan, I was so excited to see the two hippos together.
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A Guide to Classical Roman Architecture
Understand the major ideas and components of classical Roman architecture. What was its context, and what later monuments did it influence?
