context, comparison, and prehistoric art Lesure, Richard G. creator text bibliography nyu New York Cambridge University Press 2011 monographic eng

print

xiv, 256 p. : ill., maps ; 27 cm. "This book examines ancient figurines from several world areas to address recurring challenges in the interpretation of prehistoric art"-- "This book examines ancient figurines from several world areas to address recurring challenges in the interpretation of prehistoric art. Sometimes figurines from one context are perceived to resemble those from another. Richard G. Lesure asks whether such resemblances play a role in our interpretations. Early interpreters seized on the idea that figurines were recurringly female and constructed the fanciful myth of a primordial Neolithic Goddess. Contemporary practice instead rejects interpretive leaps across contexts. Dr. Lesure offers a middle path: a new framework for assessing the relevance of particular comparisons. He develops the argument in case studies that consider figurines from Paleolithic Europe, the Neolithic Near East, and Formative Mesoamerica"-- Universalist explanation and prehistoric figures -- Comparison and context -- The questions we ask of images -- A cross-cultural explanation for female figurines? -- Mesoamerican figurines and the contextualist appeal to universal truths -- Figurines, goddesses, and the texture of long-term structures in the Near East -- On figurines, femaleness, and comparison. Richard G. Lesure. Includes bibliographical references (p. 219-250) and index. Figurines, Ancient Art Historiography Art and anthropology Art and society NB70 .L47 2011 738.8/209 9780521197458 (hardback) 0521197457 (hardback) 2010035783 DLC 100820 20170208112711.0 16426008