Human representation in the art of Ancient Near East

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Human Representation in the Art of the Ancient Near East
The Ancient Near East is a diverse and expansive region along with its art. In the north, its location is all the way from Turkey towards Mediterranean coast, to Mesopotamia and Iran in the east, and then all the way to Indus River valley. Understanding the geography and its history is essential in grasping the complex art of this region.
The art of the Ancient Near East emphasizes the human relationship with the divine. Its designs is mostly focused on religious beliefs and practices. The images of humans are also depicted as idealistic rather than naturalistic. The reason of portraying human forms in their art works is to show the social structure and reveal the customs and way of life during that era. This have started from the Paleolithic age up to the Ancient Egypt and Greece. The artworks were also political depicting the ruler’s power, strength, wisdom and prestige. Skilled workers who are oriented to art exhibits their techniques to show off their skills than to have a sense of originality in their work.
This region’s art varies from period to period and according to its area of origin. The Ancient Near East depiction of human form in their art has started way back from the Paleolithic Age or the Old Stone Age, which is the earliest period in the evolution of art. Most common art forms in this period includes cave paintings, necklaces out of shells, and animal and human forms. Paleolithic art can be characterized as portable or stationary. The former is prominent during the earlier period where the figures are typically small and are carved from several objects or molded using clay. People often use concrete objects to visualize the sculptures rather than abstract objects CITATION Ess19 \l 1033 (Essak, 2019). Additionally, most of the paleolithic figures are proportional in shape. However, the artwork Venus of Willendorf, a stone sculpture from this era depicting a female human form, is different since there are less discernible parts of her body. The prominent parts include the breast, hips, belly, legs, and the triangular inguinal area. Thus, symbolizes fertility and the features of a woman during the prehistoric ages (Kleiner). The figure includes a round head with only a tuft hair on the top, emphasizing fertility more than beauty. Her bulky figure was also interpreted that healthier women have better chances of conceiving during this period. By contrast, stationary art has been mostly found as cave paintings or carvings that are mostly symbolic in nature rather than concrete. Most of these are found in Europe (Pratap, 2017).
The prominent civilizations of the Ancient Near East includes the Sumerians, Babylonians, Akkadians, Hittites, and Persians. The art forms depict the daily lives of these civilizations. Unlike the Paleolithic Age, this age did not comprise nudity in their art forms. Human art form of males were shown with bare chests only while females were depicted with breast placed with cover. This only shows how the society progressed along with their arts. The art of the Ancient Near East is also characterized with detailed carved faces depicting facial features as...