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Lesson Plans
Art History ©1999
by Marilyn Stokstad
Focus Lesson 21
Chapter 12: "Art of the Americas Before 1300"
Chapter 23: "Art of the Americas After 1300"
AP* Course Description
- Non-European Artistic Traditions
Key Components
- Instructor's Resource Manual with Tests, Vol. I: pp. 38–40, 70–71, 154–159, 221–222
- Study Guide, Vol. I: pp. 103–108
- Instructor's Resource Manual with Tests, Vol. II: pp. 31–34, 75–76, 127–131, 188–189
- Study Guide, Vol. II: pp. 67–71
Key Web Sites
Given the changing nature of the Internet, you may wish to preview these sites. Check the Online Companion Web site for updated information and links to other sites.
Key Words and Terms
- stucco
- talud-tablero
- entablature
- speech scroll
- stelae
- corbeled vault
- roof comb
- apotheosis
- codex style
- Chacmool
- lost-wax casting
- backstrap loom
- warp
- bobbin
- weft
- embroidered
- tapestry
- geoglyph
- adobe
- stockade
- henge
- kiva
- beveled
- atrial cross
- cherub
- beadwork
- reintegration
- tepee
- ovoid
- formline
- coiling
- twining
- plaiting
- blackware
- matte
Suggested Pacing
Allow a week or less for this chapter. However, it would be useful to check the College Board Web site early in the school year to determine what the topics will be that year for the 30-minute essay question that requires the inclusion of non-European examples in the response.
Test Strategy
In writing their essays, students should pay particular attention to what the College Board says about answering questions on the slides: "Responses that directly answer the question in an organized and articulate way will receive higher scores than those that simply list characteristics." Students need to internalize the process and rhetoric of artistic analysis so they can write convincingly about art, even if they have never seen a particular work of art before the exam.
Key Concepts
- Urban development
The complex cities of the Mayan, Aztec, and Incan civilizations are especially astounding in their size and design. Cities such as Machu Picchu and the Taos Pueblo might be compared not only with prehistoric cities such as Catal Huyuk but also with ancient Greek city planning. - Mayan calendar and writing
The Maya developed a highly detailed calendar that marked time forward from the date August 13, 3114 BCE. Their writing system includes at least 800 identified glyphs, used mostly to record the history of the royalty. - Aztec ritual sacrifice
The Aztecs believed it was necessary to perform human sacrifice to maintain the favor of their gods. Their step pyramids were designed as the sites for these sacrifices. The sacrificial offerings climbed the steps to reach the temple at the top where the priests would perform the ritual sacrifice. - Reintegration
As Native American artists began to have more contact with Europeans in the nineteenth century, they incorporated European techniques into the making of their traditional art forms. For example, they used tiny beads from Venice and Bohemia in their needlework.
Summing Up Student Understanding
At this point in the course, students have encountered the pyramid in several cultures—the ancient Near East, Egypt, India, and the Americas. Have students undertake a project comparing and contrasting the designs and uses of the pyramid structures in these cultures.
The project might take the form of a poster or presentation board with illustrations of examples of pyramids from each culture. Important design elements should be labeled, and each example should be accompanied by captions describing the uses of each pyramid. Students should also compare size and materials, as well as construction techniques for the different peoples' pyramids. Among the questions their reports should answer are:
- Why did this same basic structure come to be used in so many different parts of the globe?
- Is the sound structural shape of the pyramid the reason for its popularity as a tall building design, or is there some other reason, perhaps religious in origin, that made the pyramid universal?