Deck 4: Art of the Ancient Aegean

Question 1

The beautiful Harvester Rhyton (Fig. 4-9) may have been covered with

A) niello.
B) gold leaf.
C) serpentine.
D) fresco.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Scholars who think a confederation of aristocrats ruled Minoan civilization during the Old Palace period interpret the "palace" complex at Knossos as

A) the residences of several ruling families.
B) sites of religious ceremonies or rituals.
C) an administrative complex.
D) a commercial district.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Scholars believe the Bull Leaping mural from the palace of Knossos on Crete represents

A) a popular form of entertainment.
B) a scene from Minoan legend.
C) a fertility ritual or initiation practice.
D) a dance of sorrow.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which term is used to describe the precisely cut blocks used to build Mycenaean tholos tombs?

A) rhyton
B) ashlar
C) faience
D) cyclopean

Question 5

Which culture's artistic characteristics seen in the wall paintings found at Akrotiri demonstrate in color and detail a sophisticated decorative sense?

A) Minoan
B) Trojan
C) Mycenaean
D) Cycladic

Question 6

According to art historian Gail Hoffman, what features on Head with Remains of Painted Decoration (Fig. 4-3) are related to Cycladic rituals of mourning the dead?

A) painted eyes
B) presence of a necklace
C) red lines
D) floral motif

Question 7

The great lions of the Lion Gate at Mycenae were inserted into the

A) the posts.
B) the lintel.
C) the corbelled arch.
D) the flanking walls.

Question 8

The Bull's-Head Rhyton (Fig. 4-10) would have been used

A) to pour ritual libations.
B) as a votive statue.
C) to carry water.
D) as a tomb guardian.

Question 9

What have archaeologists found most helpful in determining dates for their Aegean finds?

A) pottery from Kamares
B) the volcanic eruption on Thera
C) geographic descriptions in the Iliad
D) shipwrecks in the Mediterranean

Question 10

In which millennium BCE was the potter's wheel introduced to the Minoan world?

A) fourth
B) third
C) second
D) first

Question 11

Which of the following is characteristic of Kamares ware?

A) painted military scenes
B) extreme thinness
C) delicate glazing
D) relief carvings

Question 12

Which cultural influence can be seen in the metalworking skills used to make the Vapheio Cup (Fig. 4-13)?

A) Minoan
B) Mycenaean
C) Egyptian
D) Near Eastern

Question 13

Girl Gathering Saffron Crocus Flowers (Fig. 4-1) demonstrates Aegean cultural practices related to

A) a woman's entry into adolescence.
B) domestic role of women.
C) the harvesting of food.
D) marriage ceremonies.

Question 14

What were the earliest tomb structures on mainland Greece called?

A) tholos tombs
B) beehive tombs
C) shaft graves
D) passage graves

Question 15

Which city's walls were rebuilt three times?

A) Knossos
B) Mycenae
C) Pylos
D) Troy

Question 16

Aegean artists created exquisite luxury goods from imported

A) gold.
B) beeswax.
C) glass.
D) marble.

Question 17

The first example of dressed stone in the Aegean is at

A) Thera.
B) Mycenae.
C) Akrotiri.
D) Knossos.

Question 18

What features suggests a main difference between Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations?

A) towers
B) citadels
C) crenellations
D) bunkers

Question 19

In the Harvester Rhyton (Fig. 4-9) the men might have been marching to the beat of a

A) drum.
B) flute.
C) trumpet.
D) sistrum.

Question 20

Which of the following was an architectural feature of the "palace" complex at Knossos?

A) marble columns
B) fortified outer walls
C) corbeled ceilings
D) flat roofs

Question 21

What makes Minoan wall painting an eloquent art form?

Question 22

Trace the development of luxury goods from the Aegean world from the Cyclades islands to Crete and then to the Greek mainland.

Question 23

What is exceptional about the materials of the Statuette of a Male Figure and how may it have functioned?

Question 24

Why is the term labyrinth appropriate for the Palace of Knossos?

Question 25

What defines the style of the Cycladic Island works of art?

Question 26

Give two reasons that the Harvester Rhyton is exceptional.

Question 27

Compare the "palace" complex of Knossos with the Mycenaean citadel.

Question 28

What scene is shown in the most famous painting of Knossos, the Bull Leaping mural?

Question 29

How would you compare and contrast the art of the Minoans with the art of the Mycenaeans?

Question 30

What iconography appears on the Lion Gate at Mycenae, and what was its possible purpose

Question 31

In comparison to the Harvester Rhyton (Fig. 4-9), the figures on the Warrior Krater (Fig. 4-26) do not have the

A) majestic scale.
B) vibrant energy.
C) static march.
D) calm expression.

Question 32

Art historian Thomas Strasser identified the subject of the so-called Flotilla Fresco as

A) a fishing expedition.
B) a specific seascape of Thera.
C) a volcanic eruption.
D) the approach of a Mycenaean warship.

Question 33

Describe the iconography in Aegean art, and give at least three examples.

Question 34

What is the metalworking technique that fuses minute balls of precious metal to a surface?

A) fresco
B) relief
C) filigree
D) granulation

Question 35

Discuss the evidence that suggests the Minoans and Mycenaeans both traded with cultures from the Near East and Egypt. Give specific examples.

Question 36

What defines the styles used for depictions of sea life decorating works like Octopus Flask (Fig. 4-11)?

A) energetic
B) stoic
C) serious
D) idealistic

Question 37

The Statuette of a Male Figure (Fig. 4-8) has been interpreted as a(n)

A) soldier.
B) prisoner.
C) young god.
D) athlete.

Question 38

How did the Mycenaean tomb develop from the shaft grave to the tholos tomb?