Venus of Willendorf

25000-21000BC
Paleolithic (30000-10000 BCE)

This sculpture was carved in the round and the proportions of the sculpture adds the impression that it would be quite tall or monumental but it could fit into the palm of your hand. It is thought to be a fertility charm, hence the name Venus of Willendorf but it's actually problematic calling her Venus because it's a western narrative and provides a specific sort of bias. 

Hall of Running Bulls

15,000-13000 BCE Paleolithic. Lascaux Cave, France.

Paleolithic

Painting on limestone.

These cave paintings show evidence of protocinema by their depiction of animals with more than 4 legs to convey movement, as well as protograffiti where they used hollowed out tubes to blow paint out on end and onto the wall- giving a spray paint effect. The space may have been used as a ceremonial space for a pre-hunt ritual to acknowledge the sacrifice of the animal.

Stonehenge

England, 2800-1500 BC
Neolithic 6000/4000-2000 BC

Stonehenge is still a curiosity to historians and while it has been generally agreed that there were 3 phases of construction there is some controversy among archeologist when those 3 phases actually occurred. The first two stages include the erection of (possibly) wooden posts just inside a circular white chalk ditch. Phase 3 is where the familiar shape of the Stonehenge began to appear. Using Post and Lintel construction to make Trilithons (2 posts with a lintel stone laid horizontally) as well as mortice and tendon joints, similar to what woodworkers do to keep two pieces of wood from detaching and falling over. This building is considered an optic construction, a term created by art historian Alois Riegl.

Cylinder Seal, Uruk

3500-3000 BC
Mesopotamia Uruk Period 3500-3100 BC

The Sumer people had the earliest known written language and they used this seal to act as a signature or a seal of personal ownership. They made Greek carvings (glyptic) into cylinder stones. The stones would then be pressed into a soft material or laid in ink to leave raised impressions, referred to as the intaglio printing technique.

Warka Vase, Uruk, Iraq 3200-3000 BCE
Summerian Art

This bass relief have horizontal bands of narrative called registers to depict a sort of procession of people carrying votives to a deity, or someone closely associated to a god. This is shown by using hierarchical scale of the figure on the top register. The people leading up to the larger figure are guiding livestock, which is a sign of surplus in a culture, as well as

Statues from the Abu Temple, Tell Asmar, Iraq 2700-2500 BC

Sumer: Early Dynastic Period 2800-2300 BC

There is hierarchical scale shown in the tallest figure (30in.) There are different potential interpretations- one where they could be stylized familial depictions of the deceased or they act as avatars of the living to stand prayer at the temple 24/7. The hands in a devotional pose could be explained by both interpretations. The eyes, beard, and the fringe on the males skirts are all stylized but it could be argued that there was a very loose attempt at realism by adding some individuality to the statues.