Spring 2016

Minor Arts of Antiquity (Arts XXXX)

Dr. Fischer, Assistant Professor of Art History

Department of Art, College of Fine Arts and Communication, Lamar University
Classroom:
Class Time:
Office:
Office Hours:
Email: julia.fischer@lamar.edu
Office Phone: 409-880-7784 (the best way to contact me is via email)
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
Course Prerequisites Statement
In the sixteenth century, Giorgio Vasari was responsible for the division of the arts into major
(architecture, painting, and sculpture) and minor (everything else). This course seeks to discard
this modern division and return the minor arts to the mainstream. After all, as you will learn,
there was no such division between the major and minor arts in antiquity and usually works of
the minor arts were highly praised and valued at the time of their creation.
ARTS XXXX is a survey of the minor arts of antiquity, covering Egypt, the Near East, Greece,
the Hellenistic Period, Etruria, and the Roman Empire. We will examine a variety of materials
and media, from pottery and metal to jewelry and glass and investigate what these objects tell
us about these ancient cultures. By the end of the
Upon successful completion of this course, students will
Recognize the visual characteristics of period and individual styles through a study of
major works of minor arts from antiquity.
Utilize works of art to better understand the social, cultural, and economic realities of
the historical eras.
Use critical thinking skills in order to interpret, analyze, and assess works of art
based upon formal concerns, iconography, and historical context.
Improve visual literacy and to employ art historical terms.
Recognize the full picture of art in antiquity.
Please note: An impending graduation date or scholarship which requires the maintenance of a
particular GPA, or the GPA requirement for admission to an academic program of study or
internship will not earn you a passing grade in this course. While it does seem to be the trend
nowadays, there will be no negotiation of changing a final grade you will meet with no
success. I do not give grades your grade will be evaluated solely on the scores you earn on
your exams and assignments. While I am happy to meet with you to help you find ways to
improve your scores, do not wait until the end of term to contact me as this will almost certainly
be too late. If you believe I have made a mistake in my calculations, please contact me, and I
will be happy to review your grade.
Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS
Martin Henig, editor, A Handbook of Roman Art
Gisela Richter, editor, A Handbook of Greek Art
Additional readings will either be on reserve in the library or posted to Blackboard. See the list
below of additional sources.
REQUIRED READINGS ON BLACKBOARD
Cyril Aldred, Jewels of the Pharaohs: Egyptian Jewelry of the Dynastic Period
Carol Andrews, Ancient Egyptian Jewelry
Donald Bailey, Pottery Lamps, in Roman Crafts
Donald Bailey, Terracotta Revetments, Figurines, and Lamps, in A Handbook of Roman Art
Richard Brilliant, Etruscan Cinerary Urns: Mythological excerpts in Boxes, in Visual Narratives:
"
Storytelling in Etruscan and Roman Art
David Brown, Bronze and Pewter, in Roman Crafts
David Brown, Pottery, in Roman Crafts
Sarnia A. Butcher, Enamelling, in Roman Crafts
Henry Cleere, Ironmaking, in Roman Crafts
Dominique Collon, First Impressions: Cylinder Seals in the Ancient Near East
Julia C. Fischer, A Womans Weapon: Private Propaganda in the Large Imperial Cameos of the
!
Early Roman Empire, in More Than Mere Playthings: The Minor Arts of Italy
Forence Dunn Friedman, Gifts of the Nile: Ancient Egyptian Faience
A. Lucas and J. Harris, Ancient Egyptian Materials and Industries
Martin Henig, The Luxury Arts: Decorative Metalwork, Engraved Gems, and Jewelry, in A
"
Handbook of Roman Art
Reynold Higgins, Jewellery, in Roman Crafts
Reynold Higgins, Terracottas, in Roman Crafts
Colin Hope, Egyptian Pottery
Erik Hornung, The Ancient Egyptian Books of the Afterlife
Anthony King, Pottery, in A Handbook of Roman Art
Stephanie Langin-Hooper, Figuring Out the Figurines of the Ancient Near East
Kenneth Lapatin, Introduction, in Luxus: The Luxury Arts of Greece and Rome
Joan Liversidge, Woodwork, in Roman Crafts
W.H. Manning, Blacksmithing, in Roman Crafts
Jennifer Price, Glass, in A Handbook of Roman Art
Katie Rask, Devotional Labor: Making Luxury Textiles and Dressing the Gods in Ancient Italy,
!
in More Than Mere Playthings: The Minor Arts of Italy
Richard Reece, Coins and Medals, in A Handbook of Roman Art
Bridget Sandhoff, Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Reflections on Engraved Bronze Mirrors, in More
"
Than Mere Playthings: The Minor Arts of Italy
David Sellwood, Minting, in Roman Crafts
David Sherlock, Silver and Silversmithing, in Roman Crafts
David Smith, Mosaics, in A Handbook of Roman Art edited by Martin Henig
J.P. Wild, Textiles, in Roman Crafts
Wendy Elizabeth Wood, Early Wooden Tomb Sculpture in Ancient Egypt
OTHER USEFUL SOURCES FOR RESEARCH PAPERS
Justine Bayley, Ian Freestone, and Caroline Jackson, Glass of the Roman World
Brian A. Brown and Marian H. Feldman, eds., Critical Approaches to Ancient Near Eastern Art

Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

H. Michael Crawford, Coinage and Money under the Roman Republic

Katherine M. Dunbabin, Mosaics of the Greek and Roman World
John Boardman, The History of Greek Vases
Julia C. Fischer, More Than Mere Playthings: The Minor Arts of Italy
John W. Hayes, Handbook of Roman Pottery
Sybille Haynes, Etruscan Civilization: A Cultural History
Ann L. Kuttner, Dynasty and Empire in the Age of Augustus: The Case of the Boscoreale Cups
Kenneth Lapatin, The Berthouville Silver Treasure and Roman Luxury
Kenneth Lapatin, Luxus: The Luxury Arts of Greece and Rome
Roger Ling, Ancient Mosaics
Roger Ling, Making Classical Art: Process and Practice
Carol Mattusch, Enduring Bronze: Ancient Art, Modern Views
Gerhard Nestler, Etruscan Granulation
Michael Pfrommer, Greek Gold from Hellenistic Egypt
Gisela M. Richter, Catalogue of Engraved Gems: Greek, Etruscan, and Roman
Lauren Ristvet, Ritual, Performance, and Politics in the Ancient Near East
Gay Robins, The Art of Ancient Egypt
Jeffrey Spier, Ancient Gems and Finger Rings
Donald Strong, Roman Crafts
Judith Swaddling, Etruscan Mirrors: Archaic and Classical
David van Meter, Handbook of Roman Imperial Coins
Giorgio Vasari, The Lives of the Artists
Dyfri Williams, Greek Gold: Jewelry of the Classical World
USEFUL WEBSITES FOR STUDY
For a glossary: http://smarthistory.org/glossary.html or http://www.artlex.com/
Art History Resources on the Web: http://arthistoryresources.net/ARTHLinks.html
Smarthistory: http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/
Helbrun Timeline of Art History: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/
BLACKBOARD
This course has a Blackboard component which can be accessed through your https://
my.wip.lamar.edu/ account. On Blackboard, there are links to required readings and essential
materials such as the syllabus, handouts, powerpoints, dropbox to upload assignments and
papers, and announcements. Any changes to the schedule will be announced in class and/or
via email. You are responsible for checking your Lamar email account AND Blackboard
on a daily basis!
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Your grade will be based on FIVE weighted evaluations:
1.)!
Exams (3): 40%
2.)!
Three Short Research Papers: 30%
3.)!
Design Your Own Tomb Project: 10%
4.)!
Presentations: 10%
5.)!
Attendance and Participation: 10%
The grading scale I employ is a traditional 100% system: A = 90-100%, B = 80-89%, C =
70-79%, D = 60-69%, F = 59% and below. All of your grades will be posted on Blackboard.
Please familiarize yourself with the GRADING POLICY and COURSE POLICIES that are
posted on Blackboard.
Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

There will be THREE EXAMS during the course of the semester. Your exam will consist of some
or all of the following: short slide identifications, slide comparisons, identifying unknown works of
art, an objective portion (with terms, artists, movements, important historic events and people), and
essays. About a week prior to the exam you will get a study guide which will have a list of works
and terms for which you are responsible.
There will be no make-up exams unless an extremely unusual circumstance prevents you from
taking the testand even then only if you have contacted me before the test and can provide
appropriate documentation. If you are granted and excused an absence for the exam (due to
serious illness, for example, or car accident or death in the family), the make-up exam will be a
different format than the regular exams. It is your responsibility to request and make an
appointment for a make-up exam if you are granted an excused absence. Students who miss
an exam without being excused will receive a zero.
You will have a series of three Short Research Papers. Each student will be responsible for
researching a particular media of minor arts. In Short Research Paper #1, you will write about
the history of that medium. In Short Research Paper #2, you will write about the techniques and
craftsman/artists of that medium. Finally, Short Research Paper #3 will discuss a particular
example of your medium in depth. At the end of the semester, you will present your research to
the class.
All papers MUST be turned in via the Dropbox on Blackboard as a PDF or Word document.
No hard copies of your papers or emailed papers will be accepted.
LATE WORK POLICY: For every day a paper is late, 15% of the assignment grade will be
subtracted. For example, a paper that would have received a 100 would receive a 85, and so
on.
You are also responsible for completing the Design Your Own Tomb Project via Google Art
Project. For this project, you will first pick an ancient culture and time period. Then you will pick
8-10 examples of objects of the minor arts that you will fill your tomb with and create a virtual
exhibition on Google Art Project. Further instructions will be discussed in class and posted on
Blackboard. On the last day of class, you will present your tomb project to the class.
Finally, Attendance and Participation are worth 10% of your overall final grade (or 5% each).
Throughout the semester, you are expected to participate in class discussions and
comparisons. In addition, attendance is crucial to your success in the course. Please be
advised of the following Department of Art policies apply to missed classes: three absences
will automatically result in a lowered letter grade. After that, the course letter grade will be
lowered half a letter grade for each additional absence. Students will be marked present if
present at time of attendance taking, marked tardy if attending the class late but within the first
half of the class, and absent if arrival is after class midpoint or student is not present. Two
tardies are the equivalent of an absence.
A student absent on the day of scheduled
presentation/exam or other in-class work, or who fails to present on the day of scheduled
presentation/exam or other in-class work while in attendance without prior instructor approval for
rescheduling his/her presentation/exam or other in-class work WILL NOT be granted the
privilege of rescheduling.

Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

IMPORTANT DATES: Mark these in your planner immediately!

Exam 1:
Exam 2:
Exam 3:
Short Research Papers:
Research Paper Presentation:
Fill Your Own Tomb Project/Presentation:
Last day to drop or withdraw from the course WITHOUT academic penalty:
Last day to drop or withdraw from the course WITH academic penalty:
CLASS ETIQUETTE AND DECORUM
You are expected to arrive on time and not disturb those around you with private chatter, doing
work for other classes, answering cell phone calls, texting, or playing games. No eating or
drinking in the classrooms. All cell phones must be turned completely off when you enter the
classroom. Students who participate in disruptive and inappropriate behaviors will be asked to
leave the class. If you intend to take notes on your laptop, please respect the decorum of the
classroom by not working on other assignments or playing games, updating your facebook
status, etc. This is disrespectful not only to the professor but especially to those around you
who are engaged in the class. Falling asleep, surfing the internet, disrupting class, and
disrespectful behavior towards the class or the instructor will negatively affect your final grade.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
All students are expected to familiarize themselves with all university policies pertaining to
academic performance and conduct. As stated in the Lamar Student Handbook, all students
should maintain complete honesty and integrity in their academic experiences. In this course,
disciplinary action will be brought against any student found guilty of academic dishonesty
including, but not limited to, cheating on an examination or other academic work to be
submitted, plagiarism, collusion, and the abuse of resource materials. Cheating, plagiarism,
collusion, and the abuse of resource materials are defined on page 82 of the Student
Handbook. In addition, by University policy, a student cannot avoid any penalty for cheating set
forth by the instructor in a course syllabus by dropping the course. Procedures for disciplinary
action due to academic dishonesty shall be the same as in other violations of the Student Code
of Conduct (see Student Handbook) except that all academic dishonesty cases shall first be
considered and reviewed by the faculty member. The process of appeal is located in the
Student Handbook available online.
The course instructor will complete a thorough and impartial investigation of any instance of
academic dishonesty. A student found guilty of academic dishonesty will be notified in writing by
the instructor of the violation, the penalty, and the students right to appeal the determination of
dishonesty and/or the sanction imposed. Penalties for academic dishonesty in this course will
result in either a lowered letter grade or failure of the course as determined by the instructor.
Any occurrences of cheating and/or plagiarism will be prosecuted to the fullest extent
possible.
Disability Resource Center (DRC)
Lamar University is committed to providing equitable access to learning opportunities for all
students. The Disability Resource Center (DRC) is located in the Communications building room
105. Office staff collaborate with students who have disabilities to provide and/or arrange
reasonable accommodations. If you have, or think you may have, a disability (e.g., mental
Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

health, attentional, learning, chronic health, sensory, or physical), please contact the DRC at
409-880-8347 or drc@lamar.edu to arrange a confidential appointment with the Director of the
DRC to explore possible options regarding equitable access and reasonable accommodations.
If you are registered with DRC and have a current letter requesting reasonable
accommodations, we encourage you to contact your instructor early in the semester to review
how the accommodations will be applied in the course.
EMERGENCY PROCEDURES
Many types of emergencies can occur on campus; instructions for severe weather or violence/
active shooter, fire, or chemical release can be found at: http://www.lamar.edu/about-lu/
administration/risk-management/index.html.
Following are procedures for the first two:
SEVERE WEATHER

Follow the directions of the instructor or emergency personnel.

Seek shelter in an interior room or hallway on the lowest floor, putting as many walls
as possible between you and the outside.

If you are in a multi-story building, and you cannot get to the lowest floor, pick a
hallway in the center of the building.

Stay in the center of the room, away from exterior walls, windows, and doors.
VIOLENCE/ACTIVE SHOOTER (CADD)
CALL - 8-3-1-1 from a campus phone (880-8311 from a cell phone).
AVOID - if possible, self-evacuate to a safe area outside of the building. Follow the
directions of police officers.
DENY - Barricade the door with desks, chairs, bookcases, or any other items. Move to
a place inside the room where you are not visible. Turn off the lights and remain quiet.
Remain in side there until told by police it is safe.
DEFEND - Use chairs, desks, cell phones, or whatever is immediately available to
distract and/or defend yourself and others from attack.
CAMPUS CLOSURE (ACADEMIC CONTINUITY PLAN)
In the event of campus closure and evacuation due to a hurricane or other disaster, this course
will continue in an online format until campus reopens. After four days of closure (for evacuation
and relocation), please login to the courses page on Blackboard for class instructions. Lamar
will communicate through Blackboard, your official Lamar email address, and the university
webpage (www.Lamar.edu). These efforts will allow you to complete the course and semester
on time.
This syllabus is an agreement between the professor and student to respectively provide and
complete a worthy learning experience. By remaining a registered student in this course, the
student has identified their understanding of the obligations set forth in this syllabus for
satisfactory completion of the course.

Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

CLASS SCHEDULE

DATE

TOPIC/
ASSIGNMENTS DUE

REQUIRED READING

1/19

Introduction to the course/

What are the minor arts?

Lapatin, Introduction

1/21

PART I: THE MINOR ARTS OF EGYPT AND

THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST
Pottery in Egypt and the ancient Near East

Hope TBD
Ristvet TBD

1/26

Egyptian and Near Eastern Figurines

Friedman TBD
Langin-Hooper TBD

1/28

Egyptian Wooden Tomb Sculpture

Wood TBD

2/2

Near Eastern Cylinder Seals

Collon TBD

2/4

Egyptian and Near Eastern Jewelry and Gems

Andrews, TBD
Alded TBD

2/9

Egyptian and Near Eastern Metalwork

TBD

2/11

Egyptian and Near Eastern Glass, Wood,

Mosaics, Books, and Textiles

TBD

SHORT RESEARCH PAPER #1 DUE by

9:35AM (History of your minor arts medium)
2/16

EXAM 1

2/18

PART II: THE MINOR ARTS OF GREECE,

THE HELLENISTIC WORLD, AND ETRURIA
Pottery and Vase-Painting in the Greek and
Hellenistic Worlds Part I

Richter, Ch. 11: Pottery

and Vase-Painting

2/23

Pottery and Vase-Painting in the Greek and

Hellenistic Worlds Part II

Richter, Ch. 11: Pottery

and Vase-Painting

Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

DATE
2/25

TOPIC/
ASSIGNMENTS DUE
Greek and Hellenistic Jewelry and Gems

REQUIRED READING
Richter, Ch. 7: Engraved
Gems
Richter, Ch. 9: Jewellery

3/1

Greek and Hellenistic Figurines

Richter, Ch. 4: Statuettes

and Small Reliefs
Richter, Ch. 6: Terracotta
Statuettes and Small
Reliefs

3/3

Greek and Hellenistic Metalware

Richter, Ch. 5: Decorative

Metalwork

3/8

Greek and Hellenistic Mosaics

Richter, Ch. 10: Paintings

and Mosaics

3/10

Greek and Hellenistic Coins, Furniture, and

Textiles

Richter, Ch. 8: Coins

Richter, Ch. 12: Furniture
Ricther, Ch. 13: Textiles

3/143/18

SPRING BREAK: NO CLASSES

3/22

Etruscan Minor Arts Part I

Sandhoff, Mirror, Mirror on

the Wall
Brilliant, Etruscan
Cinerary Urns

3/24

3/29

Etruscan Minor Arts Part II

Rask, Devotional Labor

SHORT RESEARCH PAPER #2 DUE by

9:35AM (Craftsmen and Technique of your
minor arts medium)

A Mysterious Fibula,
Regolini Galassi

EXAM 2

Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

DATE
3/31

TOPIC/
ASSIGNMENTS DUE

REQUIRED READING

PART III: THE MINOR ARTS OF THE

ROMAN EMPIRE
Roman Figurines, Lamps, and Pottery

King, Pottery

4/5

Roman Cameos

Fischer, A Womans
Weapon
Henig, The Luxury Arts

4/7

Roman Jewelry and Gems

Butcher, Enamelling

Bailey, Terracotta
Revetments, Figurines,
and Lamps

Higgins, Jewellery
4/12

Roman Metalware

Sherlock, Silver and

Silversmithing
Brown, Bronze and
Pewter

4/14

Roman Mosaics

Smith, Mosaics

4/19

Roman Coins and Medals

Sellwood, Minting
Reece, Coins and
Medals

4/21

Roman Glass

Price, Glass

4/26

Roman Woodwork and Textiles

SHORT RESEARCH PAPER #3 DUE by
9:35AM (Specific example of your minor
arts medium

Liversidge, Woodwork

4/28

STUDENT PRESENTATIONS

5/3

STUDENT PRESENTATIONS

5/5

Bring in Tomb Projects/Tomb Presentations

Thurs
5/12

EXAM 3: 11-12:20

Minor Arts of Antiquity - Spring 2016

Wild, Textiles