In Early Europe and West and Central Asia, architectural structures intended for religious pilgrimage were designed to reinforce the beliefs of the cultures that created them.
Select and completely identify a religious pilgrimage structure from the list below or any other relevant structure from Early Europe and West and Central Asia (400 CE – 1300 CE).
Explain how the design or decoration of the architectural structure you have selected reinforces the beliefs of the culture that created it.
In your response you should do the following:
• Provide two accurate identifiers for the work of art you have selected.
• Respond to the prompt with an art historically defensible claim or thesis that establishes a line of reasoning.
• Support your claim with at least two examples of relevant visual and/or contextual evidence.
• Explain how the evidence supports the claim.
• Corroborate or qualify your claim by explaining relevant connections, providing nuance, or considering diverse views.
When identifying the work you select, you should try to include all of the following identifiers: title or designation, name of the architect and/or culture of origin, date of creation, and materials. You will earn credit for the identification if you provide at least two accurate identifiers, but you will not be penalized if any additional identifiers you provide are inaccurate. If you select a work from the list below, you must include at least two accurate identifiers beyond those that are given.
Sample Solution
