Paleolithic Era Lecture

Overview

• Lecture Duration: 2-3 hours.
• Paleolithic Era: Long span of time, foundational for later developments.
• Study and notes: Encouraged to use various methods (print, screenshot, digital) to keep track of key concepts.

Definition

• Paleolithic:
  • Meaning: “Old Stone” (Paleo: old, Lithic: stone).
  • Periods: Aurignacian, Gravettian, Magdalenian (Solutrean often combined with Magdalenian).

Key Periods and Features

• Aurignacian:
  • Significance: First cave art, evidence of human habitation in caves, paintings, and handprints.
• Gravettian:
  • Features: Fertility figures in addition to handprints.
• Magdalenian:
  • Advancements: Decorated weapons, possible spiritual/religious beginnings (animism).

Handprints and Cave Art

Positive Handprints

• Description: Hands dipped in pigment and placed on the wall.
• Examples: Found in Chauvet France. Often seen in a purposeful organization.

Bear Imagery in Chauvet

• Connection to Bears: Bears significant (reverence, placement of bear skulls).
• Handprint Arrangement: Resembling bear figures.
• Comparison: Emphasis on strength and authority similar to tribal mascots (sports teams, etc).

Bear Outline Example

• Style: Abstract, emphasizes parts related to strength (mouth, hump).
• Lines on Bear: Non-objective symbols, possibly spiritual.

Ethnographic Comparison

• Ethnographic Comparison: Analyzing symbols by comparing with known cultures (e.g., Celts, Greeks).
• Bears in Culture: Early Celtic (Artio) and Greek (Artemis) associations with bears (fertility, rebirth).

Hand and Symbol Analysis

Abstract vs Naturalistic

• Positive Handprint: Abstract, non-objective symbols present.
• Symbols Uncertainty: Example of grouped horse heads (difficult to interpret).

Pain and Healing Hypothesis

• Otzi the Iceman: Tattoos in groups of three lines (possibly for pain relief).
• Hypothesis: Handprint symbols might correlate with healing (comparison to Otzi’s tattoos).

Axis Mundi and Symbol Interpretation

• Axis Mundi: Symbolizing the connection between heaven, underworld, and realm of living.
• Cross Symbol: Ancient, not originally Christian, symbolizing life, death, rebirth intersection.
• Swastika: Ancient symbol of luck, later adopted negatively by Nazis.

Back to Chauvet

Negative Handprints

• Description: Hands used as stencils with pigment blown around them.
• Diversity: Different hand sizes and ages (including infants).
• Hypothesis: Possible healing ritual due to deeper placement in caves.

Diverse Cave Art Styles

• Abstract (Spirit Horse): Seen in smaller room in Chauvet using scratching technique vs painting.
• Naturalistic (Solid Horse): Comparison to more detailed naturalistic representations on opposite walls.

Gravettian Period

Cosquer Cave

• Hand Symbols: Negative handprints forming symbols (communication method).
• Footprints: Preserved in silt, indicating activity within the cave.

Animal Imagery

• Ibex and Horse: Different abstractions (movement vs crosshatching).
• Great Auk: Representation of the now extinct large penguin-like bird.

Magdalenian Period

Lascaux Cave

• Significance: Highly detailed and famous cave paintings.
• Hall of the Bulls: Naturalistic bison figures, overlapping technique suggests perspective.

Shaft of the Dead Man

• Abstract Imagery: Bird-headed ithyphallic figures, abstract representation of life, death, and rebirth.
• Comparisons to Otzi: Ritualistic lamps found, emphasizing symbolic importance.

Non-Objective Symbols and Weapons

• Dots and Checkerboards: Known patterns, purpose unclear.
• Advanced Weapons: Decorated tools indicate a cultural and ritualistic use.

Sculptural Figures

Fertility Figures

• Venus of Willendorf: Abstract, focus on fertility symbols (breasts, belly button, etc).
• Venus of Dolni Vestonice: Earliest known ceramic figure, feather insertions for symbolic importance.

Neolithic Transition

• Next Topic: Upcoming discussion on the Neolithic period.