Ancient Egyptian Art http://www.ancientegyptianart.

org/ Ancient Egyptian Art essentially refers to the style of painting, architecture, sculptures and crafts that were employed by the civilization that thrived on the banks of the River Nile between 5000 B.C and 300 A.D They had a well-structured hierarchy in administration and definite system of governance.

Pottery Pottery was typically made of steatite and varied in sizes from small vases to large pots. The pots were usually used to contain body parts such as heart Liver, lungs and other body parts after they were duly removed and embalmed from the body of the person who would be mummified and then placed in a sarcophagus in the pyramid. Pottery usually contained images of various deities, animals, and other vivid images.

Paper Paper a word derived from the word papyrus was first used by the Egyptians to record information about their culture and also contained illustrations of ancient Egyptian life. This became the foundation for two of the most prominent scripts that later followed; the Arabic and Roman.

Paintings And Hieroglyphics Despite the millennia since they were first painted, many Egyptian paintings have managed to survive till today thanks to the very dry climate of the region. Some of the paintings also depicted the life of person who was mummified in the pyramid. Most of the paintings were aimed to make the journey into the afterlife easier, having themes which centered on the after world and the protective gods such as Osiris the god of the underworld.

Chinese New Year http://www.c-c-c.org/culture-resources/holidays/traditional-celebration-of-thechinese-new-year/

Of all the traditional Chinese festivals The New Year is perhaps the most important, colourful, and elaborate. This is a time for the Chinese to congratulate each other and themselves on having passed through another year The Chinese New year is celebrated on the first day of the First Moon of the lunar calendar. Chinese New Year as the Western new Year signified turning over a new leaf. Socially it is a time for family reunions and for visiting friends and relatives. Every corner of the house must be swept and cleaned in preparation for the new year. Spring Couplets written in black ink on large vertical scrolls of red paper were put on the walls or on the sides of the gateways. Chinese New Year presents are similar in spirit to Christmas presents although the Chinese tended more often to give food items such as fruits and tea. The last days of the old year were also the time to settle accumulated debts. On New Years Day, the children are given Red Lai See Envelopes, good luck money wrapped in little red envelopes. On New Years Day everyone has on new clothes and puts on their best behavior. It is considered improper to tell a lie, raise ones voice use, indecent language, or break anything on the first day of the year. On the streets the stores were closed and an air of gaiety prevailed. There were numerous lion dances acrobats theatrical shows and other diversions. Firecrackers which symbolized driving away evil spirits were heard throughout the first two weeks of the New year. The Seventh Day of the New Year was called everybodys birthday as everyone was considered one year older as of that date.

The New Year celebrations ended on the 15th of the First Moon with the Lantern Festival. On the evening of that day, people carried lanterns into the streets to take part in a great parade. Young men would highlight the parade with a dragon dance. The dragon was made of bamboo, silk, and paper, and might stretch for more than hundred feet in length. The bobbing and weaving of the dragon was an impressive sight, and formed a fitting finish to the New Year festival.

collecting and preparing the roots, bark or leaves needed to make the dye. Young palm fibers must also be collected and prepared, as well as the grasses that make up the core of the basket coils. It is the detail and perfection of the pattern, balance and symmetry of the piece and the tightness and evenness of the weave that determine the value of each basket. The tighter and finer the weave, the more symmetrical the basket and the more complex the design; the more valuable the basket.
Botswana Baskets http://africandesertcrafts.com/sho p/botswana/cat_7.html
Made by the Hambukushu and Bayei women of Ngamiland, in the far Northern region of the great Okavango Delta on the fringes of the vast Kalahari Desert. skillfully woven from fibers of the leaf of the Mokolwani, or Real Fan Palm (Hyphaene petersiana), and dyed using local plant derived pigments. The dried palm fibers are a natural light cream color, which is used in combination with shades of browns, ochre and occasionally mauve to create the stunning traditional and abstract designs that adorn the baskets. Botswana baskets are woven by using the coil method. A thin bundle of palm fiber, grass, or a single piece of vine is used for the interior of the coil, which is wrapped with the colored palm fibers. Small holes are made in the previously woven row with an awl and then a strip of palm is inserted into the hole and wrapped around the core.

The process of producing the colors and dying the fibers is time consuming and begins with

Basket weaving in the rural regions of Ngamiland, Botswana provides a source of much needed income for the ladies in the area. It is common to find several women gathered in the shade, sitting on blankets laid out in the Kalahari sand; gossiping and working on their baskets when the daily chores of attending to children and animals, cooking and caring for the fields are finished.

are said to have been made during ceremonial activities. These petroglyphs pre-date Columbus arrival to Puerto Rico in 1493, and were probably made many centuries earlier. Just about everybody. Rock art of one form or another occurs all over the world, Australia, Africa, Europe, North and South America. The U.S. has sites in most of its states, including some celebrated Hawaiian 'glyphs. Some states have more sites than others. Petroglyphs are powerful cultural symbols that reflect the complex societies and religions of the surrounding tribes. Petroglyphs http://www.petroglyphs.us/ http://www.puertoricodaytrips.co m/cueva-del-indio/ http://ltmtnele.tripod.com/elyunq ue/id3.html http://www.nps.gov/petr/historyc ulture/why.htm Petroglyphs are carved, pecked, chipped or abraded into stone. The outer patina covered surface of the parent stone is removed to expose the usually lighter colored stone underneath. Some stone is better suited to petroglyph making than others. Stone that is very hard or contains a lot of quartz does not work well for petroglyph making; however, a nice desert varnished basalt usually works very well. he Taino Indians held tribal meetings in this area and made numerous carvings in the walls of these natural limestone caves. The petroglyphs The context of each image is extremely important and integral to its meaning. Note each petroglyph's orientation to the horizon and surrounding images, as well as the landscape in which it sits. Today's native people have stated that the placement of each petroglyph image was not a casual or random decision .Some petroglyphs have meanings that are only known to the individuals who made them. Others represent tribal, clan, kiva or society markers. Some are religious entities and others show who came to the area and where they went.

Petroglyphs are normally found around water. The old timers allege

that when the Fajardo yacht club was developed, thousands of them were destroyed. What we see now are just the ones that have survived. To find the petroglyphs, look around pools of water. Another good place to look is a section of land between two small streams. It has been said that the indigenous Indians thought that water was magical.
troglyphs are rock carvings (rock paintings are called pictographs) made by pecking directly on the rock surface using a stone chisel and a hammerstone

accompanies the wearer of the mask during the ritual. The dancer brings forth messages of wisdom from his ancestors. Often the messages are grunted utterances and the translator will accurately decipher the meaning of the message. Rituals and ceremonies are always accompanied with song, dance and music, played with traditional African musical instruments.
African masks are made from different materials: wood, bronze, brass, copper, ivory, terra cotta and glazed pottery, raffia and textiles. They are often decorated with cowrie shells, colored beads, bone, animal skins and vegetable fibre. However, the majority of masks and sculptures are made of wood for two reasons: 1. Trees are in plentiful supply in the forest. 2. The carver believes that the tree has a spiritual soul and its wood is the most natural home for the spirit in the mask.

African Masks http://www.artyfactory.com/africa nmasks/context/artist.htm http://www.rebirth.co.za/African_ mask_history_and_meaning.htm

he African tribal artist's training, which may last many years, involves the knowledge of traditional carving techniques and how these apply to the social and religious objects he creates. His craft can be learned as an apprentice in the workshop of a master carver, or sometimes these skills are passed down from father to son through many generations of his family. The artist holds a respected position in African tribal society. It is his job to provide the various masks and sculptures for use in ritual ceremonies.

Wooden masks are often colored with natural dyes and pigments created from vegetables, plants, seeds, tree bark, soil and insects. Occasionally they are splashed with sacrificial blood to increase their spiritual power. The tools used to make a carving traditionally the Adze - are also endowed with their own particular spirits.

During the mask ceremony the dancer goes into deep trance, and during this state of mind he "communicate" with his ancestors. A wise man or translator sometimes

In Africa masks can be traced back to well past Paleolithic times. African masks are considered

amongst the finest creations in the art world and are highly sought after by art collectors.