YOU MIGHT CONSIDER...THE ANCIENT FIGURES OF VENUS AND FERTILITY MISINTERPRETED ANIMAL BRAINS

In the past week I have done some studying up on ancient art work. It was mainly spurred by an earlier post; a TED talk about the origins of beauty which sounded really weired and suggested that all humans love tear drop shapes...but out of that logic chaos I have found a new area of interest- prehistoric art. Specifically, I've been enamored with Venus Figurines; a group of depictions of the female body that are estimated to have been made around 20,000-40,000 B.C.E. These figures have enlarged secondary sexual characteristics like breasts, thighs, and hips, but usually small and undefined heads if any head at all. The sculptures are found all across Europe. The oldest known Venus was found in Germany and one of the newer ones in France, but the status are found as far east as Siberia. The Venus' are made out of a variety of materials including ceramic, mammoth ivory, serpentine rock, limestone, and black jet. Supposedly, they represent fertility and mother figures; it's been suggested that some of the figurines are pregnant mothers.
My fascination comes from how exaggerated the sculptures are compared to the real female frame; the changes that beauty takes over the years are bizarre and trivial, so it's interesting to see a completely different take on the ideal woman. Also, it's incredible that humans had the capability to create abstract images that many years ago. Abstraction is a higher level function of the mind and I think that it's incredible that unrealistic figures were made during such a primitive period in human ancestry.
Even more impressive, is the fact that they had the time to make art. We usually relate art to periods of enlightened civilization, so it's interesting that even when only small communities had formed, humans still had the time and appreciation for art.
On a side note, it's been suggested that the figures are not women at all, but instead sculptures of animal brains. At the bottom of this site you can see the comparison, or you can read more about the Venus figurines. VENUS.
It's funny how everything I do somehow relates to the brain even when I don't know it!
OH! Next month I'm going to try out Tumbler. Here is a link to my account- UTOPIA MATTER TUMBLER- see you next month.