Summary: Beyond Antiquity: Visual Arts 400-1400

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• Introduction: Definitons and Time Limits; the Impact of Antiquity

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• From when to when did Roman Antiquity last?

  Between 753 BC when it was allegedly founded and 476 CE when Rome was taken over by German troops.

• From when to when did the Middle Ages approximately last?

  From 400 to 1400 or from 476 (the fall of Rome) to 1453 (the fall of Constantinople).

• Who cointed the term "Dark Ages" and why?

  The people from the Renaissance, against whom Petrarch, as they believed they were better than the "stupid", "unenlightened" Dark Ages when Antiquity was not appreciated as much for being idealized.

• Why was Constantinople so important to the Middle Ages?

  Because it was the capital of the East Roman Empire.

• Why was Roman art based so much on Greek art and how did the two styles differ?

  After the Roman occupation of Greece, Roman "tourists" took Greek artworks back to Rome as appreciation and to have them copied for profit. Whereas the Greek style was very religious, the Roman style was all about propaganda and status.

• What are the two functions of Roman artworks?

  1. To serve as propaganda.
  2. To record history and to tell its tales.

• How did Greek and Roman portraits differ?

  Greek portraits were very perfect and idealized, whereas the Roman ones looked like the actual person because they were meant to praise him.

• What is the main difference in material between Greek and Roman statues?

  The Greek ones were cast out of bronze and therefore looked smoother/were stronger, whereas the Roman ones were made out of marble which is a low-tensile material and therefore needed to be stutted.

• Which Roman writer really praised Greek art?

  Pliny, who wrote very laudatively about the Aphrodite of Knidos.

• Why was Roman art so much more well known then Greek art?

  After the fall of the West Roman Empire, Greece (in the East Roman Empire) got cut off from the rest of Europe because of the distance and terrain. Slowly it was forgotten about, although the Romans had made a lot of copies from their artworks. Soon, people started thinking the Roman copies were originals.