Prehistoric Western Art 40,000 – 2,000 BCE
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Prehistoric Western Art 40,000 – 2,000 BCE Introduction Prehistoric Europe was an evolving melting pot of developing cultures driven by the arrival of Homo sapiens, migrating from Africa by way of southwest Asia. Mixing and mingling of numerous cultures over the Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic periods in Europe stimulated the emergence of innovative advancements in farming, food preparation, animal domestication, community development, religious traditions and the arts. This report tracks European cultural developments over these prehistoric periods, Figure 1 Europe and the Near East emphasizing each period’s (adapted from Janson’s History of Art, 8th Edition) evolving demographic effects on art development. Then, representative arts of the periods are reviewed by genre, instead of cultural or timeline sequence, in order to better appreciate their commonalities and differences. Appendices identify Homo sapien roots in Africa and selected timeline events that were concurrent with prehistoric human life in Europe. Prehistoric Homo Sapiens in Europe Genetic, carbon dating and archeological evidence suggest that our own species, Homo sapiens, first appeared between 150 and 200 thousand years ago in Africa and migrated to Europe and Asia. The earliest archeological finds that exhibit all the characteristics of modern humans, including large rounded brain cases and small faces and teeth, date to 190 thousand years ago at Omo, Ethiopia. 1 IBM announced in 2011 that the Genographic Project, charting human genetic data, supports a southern route of human migration from Africa via the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait in Arabia, suggesting a role for Southwest Asia in the “Out of Africa” expansion of modern humans. Figure 2 illustrates migration routes derived from Figure 2 Human Migration Routes Defined the genetic data. by the Genographic Project This website, titled Journey of Mankind, is an interactive genetic based human migration map. To access the site click on the URL while pressing the Ctr key. http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/journey There are different opinions among paleoanthropologists as to whether or not the earliest anatomically modern humans arriving in Europe had the modern cognitive and cultural abilities that define humans today. However, archaeological evidence suggests that these traits appeared long before the migration began. At archaeological sites in South Africa (see Appendix I), researchers have discovered engraved pieces of ochre, ostrich eggshell beads, and bone that suggest that by 80,000 years ago hominins (new scientific name for hominids) were making art and using symbols. Hominins in Africa during that period of time, the Middle Stone Age, were also producing stone blades, using grinding stones to process plant materials, and heat-treating stone to improve its knapping (shaping of stone tools and weapons) quality. By 40,000 years ago in the Upper Paleolithic period, Homo sapien populations in Europe exhibited the entire suite of physical characteristics that define anatomically modern humans, replacing indigenous populations of Neanderthals and Homo erectus. Over the 2 subsequent Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic periods numerous archaeological cultural groups developed in, or migrated to, the European theater. Twentieth century archeologist Gordon Childe articulated the following guidelines for classifying these groups: “We find certain types of remains - pots, implements, ornaments, burial rites and house forms - constantly recurring together. Such a complex of associated traits we shall call a ‘cultural group’ or just a ‘culture.’ We assume that such a complex is the material expression of what today we would call ‘a people.’ “ Upper Paleolithic Period The Upper Paleolithic period ranged from about 40,000 to around 10,000 BCE. The most prominent cultural groups inhabiting Europe during this period were the Aurignacians (c, 40,000 to 26,000 BCE), the Gravettians (c. 26,000 to 22,000 BCE), the Solutreans (c. 22,000 to 17,000 BCE) and the Magdalenians (c. 17,000 to 10,000 BCE). The geographical distribution of the Aurignacian culture is illustrated in Figure 3 and its origins were located in what is now Bulgaria and Hungary. The Aurignacian tool industry was characterized by worked bone or antler points. Their flint tools included fine blades and bladelets struck from prepared cores rather than using crude flakes. The Aurignacians produced Figure 3 Aurignacian Culture Distribution some of the earliest known cave art, such as the animal engravings at Aldène and the paintings at Chauvet Cave in southern France. They also made pendants, bracelets, ivory beads and three-dimensional figurines. The oldest European works of prehistoric art were found in this period in the Swabian Alps, Baden-Württember, Germany. Venus of Hohle Fels, a figurine, dates to some 40,000 years ago. An Aurignacian flute (~22 cm long and 2.2 cm in diameter; from the hollow wing-bone of a giant vulture) along with fragments of ivory flutes found at the Hohle Fels Cave in 2009 are the oldest undisputed musical instruments. 3 Around 32,000 BCE, the Gravettian culture appeared in the Crimean Mountains (southern Ukraine), reaching the southwestern region of Europe around 22,000 BCE. The Gravettian technology soon disappeared from Europe, with the notable exception of the Mediterranean coasts of Iberia, the Caucasus and the Zagros mountains. Portable art, such as carvings of animals and Venus figurines were popular during the Gravettian era. These figurines included in-the-round subjects like the Woman of Willendorf, and relief works like the Venus of Laussels. The Solutrean culture flourished approximately 17,000 to 22,000 years ago. Solutrean flint smiths produced some of the most skillfully crafted thin bifaces (stone tools with two faces) that have ever been made. Evidence indicates that eyed needles were invented by this culture. The Solutreans produced cave art (such as the famous paintings at Lascaux) and open air art (such as the monumental Côa Valley and Mazoucoin in Portugal and Fornols- Haut in France). Artists fashioned large figures of horses, bison, reindeer and mountain goats, some of them standing out almost 6 inches in impressive bas relief. Around 17,000 BCE, the Magdalenian culture became dominant in Europe with its earliest sites found in France. Figure 4 illustrates its distribution along with the Epigravettian, another similar culture appearing during the same period in Italy and Eastern Europe Figure 4 Magdalenian & Advanced Gravettian Culture Distributions (Moldavia). The Magdalenians represent the culmination of Upper Paleolithic cultural development in Europe. They lived at a time when reindeer, wild horses, and bison formed large herds. The people appear to have lived a semi-settled life surrounded by abundant food. They killed animals with spears, snares, and traps and lived in caves, rock shelters, or substantial dwellings in winter and in tents in summer. 4 Art and decorative forms significantly increased during the Magdalenian era, indicating an abundance of leisure time. Artists were sculptors and painters, expert engravers and doodlers. The small arts, already at a high level in the Aurignacian era, reached a climax in the Magdalenian Period, with delicate, detailed engravings and carvings. Engravings were often rendered with two or more animals represented together in a recognizable scene, as exemplified by the Swimming Reindeer found in France. Cave paintings from this period occur far to the east in the Urals, as far north as Central England, to southwestern France and to northern Spain. The ultimate masterpieces of the Magdalenian era are at Altamira, a cave in northern Spain. There was little interest in formal composition but the figures themselves were rendered with remarkable realism and sophisticated designs. Magdalenian culture disappeared as the cool, near-glacial climate warmed at the end of the Fourth (Würm) Glacial Period (c. 10,000 BC), and herd animals became scarce. The Maglemosian and Azilian cultures, which followed the Magdalenian, were much simplified, and there was a poverty of art. Clearly the richness of Magdalenian culture owed much to the abundance of food, allowing time for the development of aesthetics. Mesolithic Period The Mesolithic period began around 10,000 BCE and ended with the introduction of farming, a date which varied in each geographical region. Regions that experienced greater environmental effects as the last glacial period ended have a much more apparent Mesolithic era, lasting millennia. In northern Europe, for example, societies were able to live well on rich food supplies from the marshlands created by the warmer climate. Such conditions also delayed the coming of the Neolithic until as late as 5000 BCE in northern Europe. Most of the glacial ice in the Northern Hemisphere had retreated. Along with the glaciers, certain foods disappeared (for example, the wooly mammoth) and the migration patterns of others (reindeer) changed as well. People gradually adapted to the changes, assisted by invention of the bow and arrow, more temperate weather and more diverse, edible plants. Hunting and fishing settlements appeared along rivers and on lake shores, where fish and mollusks were abundant. One of the many cultural groups of the period was known as the Kitchen-Midden (i. e., waste product) culture for the large deposits of mollusk shells found around its settlements. 5 The small art of the period was created primarily with a purpose for use. Pottery