Question

which statement best describes how a seventeenth century european portrait (such as the Mona Lisa) differs from an ancient Mexican portrait ( such as ballgame(?) performer)? ancient mexican portraits were usually oil paintings while europeans created clay portraits, seventeenth century european portraits focused on showing the spirit of the subject, ancient mexican portraits used bright primary colors while european portraits were created with muted browns and greens, mexican portraits always portray dead ancestors while european portraits focused on the living

Answer 1

Option 2 is best: seventeenth‑century European portraits emphasized showing the individual’s presence or character (the sitter’s “spirit” or social identity).

Quick clarifications:
- The Mona Lisa is actually early 16th century, but it is a good example of the European concern with psychological realism and individual identity.
- Ancient Mesoamerican portraits (on ceramics, murals, codices, stone, or modeled clay) tended to be more stylized and symbolic, served ritual or communal purposes, and often used bright pigments — they were not oil paintings (oil painting was an Old World technique) and did not exclusively portray dead ancestors.