Glossary
ancestor – someone who is related to you who lived a long time ago.
to embody – to be the best possible example of a particular idea, quality, or principle, especially a good one.
value – amount something is worth.
ivory – a knife with an ivory handle.
antlers – one of the horns on the head of a male deer.
to engrave – a trophy engraved with the winner’s name.
charcoal – a black substance made from burnt wood, used as a fuel, especially for cooking food outside.
bulges – a shape that curves outwards on the surface of something, often made by something under it or inside it.
hulk – the shape of something such as a large ship or building, especially after the inside of it has been destroyed by fire.
randomly – chosen or happening without any particular method, pattern, or purpose.
navel – a small round place in the middle of someone’s stomach where they were separated from their mother at birth.
cradle – a small bed for a baby that you can move gently from side to side.
convey – to communicate ideas or feelings indirectly.
pursuit – the process of trying to achieve something.
rigid – not easily changed.
acre – a unit for measuring the surface area of land, equal to4,047 square metres.
depict – to describe someone or something using words or pictures.
rigidly – not easily changed.
granite – a type of very hard stone, used especially for building.
Activities
1. Answer the questions to the text.
Who was the first human ancestor?
Is the prehistoric art primitive and modern – complex?
What techniques and materials were used in the prehistoric era?
What are the main characteristics of the prehistoric art?
Did Mesopotamian paintings depict animals?
Give the examples of realistic features in Mesopotamian and Egypt art.
Why did Egypt art remain stable for thousands of years?
What are the main features of Egypt paintings and sculptures?
2. Look at the picture of «Venus of Willendorf». Describe it and answer the questions, use the cloud of clues or click on the link to read the Wikipedia article.
The Museum of Natural
History of Vienna
Joseph Szombathly
Limestone
Sometime between 25,000
an 22,000 BC
A statuette
Near Willendorf, a
village in Austria
Carved
An icon of the
prehistoric art
1908
What is it?
Why is it called the «Venus of Willendorf»?
How long has it been in the museum?
How did the museum acquire it?
What does it represent?
What is it made of?
How was it made?
Where is it displayed?
Who discovered it?
Why is it important?
When does it date to?
3. Translate the sentences from English into Russian.
1. For thousands of years three art forms – painting, sculpture, and architecture – embodied the ambitions, dreams, and values of their cultures.
2. The first «paintings» were probably made in caves approximately 15,000 years ago. These pictures of bison, deer, horses, cattle, mammoths symbolized good luck in hunting.
3. Drawings were often superimposed randomly, perhaps because new images were necessary before each hunt.
4. Colossal architecture and Egyptian art existed to surround the pharaoh's spirit with eternal glory. In the pursuit of permanence, the Egyptians established the essentials of a major civilization: literature, medical science, and higher mathematics.
5. Much of what we know about ancient Egypt comes from the surviving tombs.