#neolithic art

[memories-of-ancients]

Marble female figurine, Cycladic Islands (Greece), 4500-4000 BC

from The Metropolitan Museum of Art

[thephilosophersapprentice]

Sometimes when I'm bored I just go out and read Wikipedia.

Today, I was in the midst of a deep dive into neolithic structures and art when I came across a mention of an artistic motif called a "cup and ring mark" and naturally I was curious.

Here's one gorgeous example: the Perda Pinta ("Painted stone") from Sardinia (photo from Wikipedia.)

I thought "that looks familiar..."

While the concentric rings in this case appear to be raked, as in a rock garden, this is not the only surface we see the same design on. It also appears on the underside of the pillars that let Link ascend out of the depths and on the metallic floors and ceilings in shrines, which, incidentally, appear to be made from bronze.

The cup-and-ring marks also date back to the Bronze Age. Given that bronze is also used in the Zonai shrines and possibly in Zonai devices, I think the Zonai were either inspired by or intended to be a Bronze Age culture. Which is fascinating, as they are also a very advanced society--advanced enough to create constructs that have lasted until the current era in Hyrule and smooth stones almost perfectly while balancing them with the widest sections uppermost.

I could even argue that the Sheikah golden age when the Divine Beasts were created could be an Iron Age to the Zonai Bronze Age, though that is on much flimsier grounds.

Just some interesting ideas to swirl around.

[izvletchenie]

Neolithic Aegean Marble Idol, 5th—4th millennium BC

[04032021]

[hartshorn-and-isinglass]

The oldest story in the Near East*... is about a dude jacking off in front of a pair of hungry leopards.

*ETA: the above and other sources imply this is the oldest known narrative in the world, but the original paper refers to it as the oldest in the region.

[shamandrummer]

5,000-Year-Old Drum Discovered in Britain

A Stonehenge-era chalk drum is the "most important piece of prehistoric art to be found in Britain in the last 100 years," according to the British Museum. The 5,000-year-old drum, discovered within an ancient children's burial site, is going on display for the first time. It will be unveiled, six years after its discovery, as part of the "World of Stonehenge" exhibition at the British Museum.

The drum was found on a country estate near the village of Burton Agnes in East Yorkshire, England in 2015 when a routine excavation had to be carried out so the owners could erect a structure. During the routine excavation, a team of archaeologists with the independent company Allen Archaeology found an ancient burial site. Within the burial site were the remains of three children, aged 3 to 12, whose bones had been intertwined for millennia.

"They were cuddling," according to Mark Allen, the founder of Allen Archaeology. The drum was placed above the head of the eldest child, along with a chalk ball and a polished bone pin. Archeologists do not believe the drum was used as a musical instrument despite the name. It was more likely a piece of sculptural art, a talisman, or, perhaps, a toy for the children. The grave is a rare find, because ancient people in Neolithic Britain would usually leave bodies for cremation or to be eaten by crows.

And the drum is so significant because it is "one of the most elaborately decorated objects of this period found anywhere in Britain and Ireland," the British Museum said. The carvings on the drum, which show spirals and triangles, feature a "butterfly" motif. They are artistically similar to other objects found at Neolithic sites in Scotland and Ireland, Wilkin said, suggesting that prehistoric communities were in communication with each other despite significant geographical distances.

"This drum is particularly intriguing, because it basically encompasses a sort of artistic language that we see throughout the British Isles at this time, and we're talking 5,000 years ago," project curator Jennifer Wexler said. The discovery comes more than 100 years since the unearthing of the Folkton Drums. Three similar chalk drums were found in the village of Folkton -- around 15 miles from Burton Agnes -- in 1889. "We've been waiting for over 100 years for another one of these amazing objects to come up, and for it to come up with children -- again -- is astonishing," Wilkin said.

[howaboutanicecupoftea]

[arthistoryanimalia]

On the blog for #WorldGiraffeDay: The Dabous Giraffes

The Dabous Giraffes (on-site photo)

These two life-size giraffe petroglyphs are the largest known animal carvings in the world! They are found in Africa the Aïr Massif region of the Sahara Desert in modern-day Niger, and have been dated to the Neolithic c. 6000-8000 BCE., during the lusher African Humid Period. More info here:

[letmeinimafairy]

A bigger decorative piece with cave painting handprints. River pebble and tempera

[thesilicontribesman]

Achnabreck Prehistoric Rock Art Panels, nr. Lochgilphead, Argyll, Scotland

[victusinveritas]

Cave Art of Banging, Algeria, c. 7000 BCE

[teethands]

little snapshots of a mod i have been working on for a few days, cenozoicraft, understandably based around adding cenozoic animals to the minecraft world along with neolithic tools. its heavily based around hunting and utilizing animal parts. most of what is here is tamable and rideable with fun little taming mechanics, so dont expect to be able to waltz up to a smilodon. more to come soon

[sixteenseveredhands]

Prehistoric Mirrors from Turkey, c.6000 BCE: these are the oldest manufactured mirrors in the world, dating back about 8,000 years; they were meticulously crafted from pieces of obsidian

Two of the obsidian mirrors from Çatalhöyük (Turkey); this pair was found buried together back in 2012

At least eight of these obsidian mirrors have been found at Çatalhöyük, a Neolithic site located in Turkey. All of these mirrors date back about 8,000 years, and each one was crafted from a chunk of obsidian (volcanic glass) that was knapped into the shape of a disc and then meticulously polished with progressively finer abrasives until a smooth, slightly convex surface had been developed. Some of these mirrors can still produce remarkably clear reflections.

Sources & More Info:

The Archaeologist: World's Oldest Mirrors Found at Neolithic Çatalhöyük Site

Çatalhöyük Research Project: Archive Report from 2012 (PDF download)

Çatalhöyük Research Project: Main Website

The Past: Cyber Archaeology, How 3D Modeling is Unpeeling the Neolithic at Çatalhöyük

[04032021]

[memories-of-ancients]

Marble female figurine, Cyclades Islands (Greece), 4500-4000 BC

from The Metropolitan Museum of Art