The Cyrus Cylinder, a proclamation by the Persian king Cyrus the Great, gives rare historical insight into ancient Persian culture. These guides can be used to explore the Cyrus Cylinder and related objects in the Getty Villa's collection to learn about Persian culture and Persian interactions with the Greeks. Each guide contains information for teachers as well activities for students that can be carried out in the classroom. Resources include:

Students will be introduced to some of the conventions of portraiture; consider how symbols can be used in a portrait to add meaning; be introduced to the technique of photomontage.

Students will be able to discuss and analyze the sculpture Sketch for a Fireplace Overmantel by Francesco Antonio Franzoni; consider current styles of home interiors; create studies in 2-D and 3-D for a decorative overmantel for the celebrity patron of their choice; research and read about the life and style of an arts patron and create a design for an overmantel that reflects the patron's life; and articulate in writing the processes they followed to create their overmantels.

Students will be introduced to artists who developed new visual forms through experimentation; consider artists' choices of material; introduced to the term "Constructivism."

Students will be introduced to the principles of the Bauhaus; consider the elements of chair design; introduced to the printmaking technique of lithography; consider how technological progress affects art and design.

Students will be introduced to two artists, Kazimir Malevich and Piet Mondrian, who pioneered different systems of abstract painting; consider how the two artists' use of shape, line, composition, and color reflect both similarities and differences in their artistic ideologies.

Students will look at Egon Schile's "Self-Portrait: Pulling Down an Eyelid, 1910" noting use of color and decorative elements, clothing, facial and body language and emotion. Students will also consider Schiele's use of line and his contrasting blocks of color. Students will compare his work to that of his mentor, Gustav Klimt. Working in groups, students will construct and act out a dialogue between artist and subject based on a Schiele drawing. Students will engage in two continuous drawing activities; two contour drawing activities; and create a digital self-portrait experimenting with contortion, asymmetry, and/or disproportionate elements.

Students will learn the skills necessary for a career in the fast growing industry of fashion design. Students will learn how to design, sew, and re-style clothing; apply the elements and principles of design in various aspects of the fashion industry; understand the relationship between history and fashion; know the general characteristics, production, and maintenance of textiles and textile products; study and analyze fashion trends; understand the principles of apparel pattern making; and demonstrate the skills and procedures necessary for sales and marketing in the fashion industry.

Students will learn to broaden their descriptive and analytical vocabulary through comparisons and close analysis of works of art; discuss changes taking place in the modern world and the psychological effects on the artists discussed in this guide.

Students study an ancient bronze statue, analyze its pose, and discover how conservators remove and prevent corrosion.

Students will be able to discuss and analyze the subject and compositional elements of a three-dimensional portrait bust; use multiple techniques for creating a portrait bust with their hands and simple tools; experiment with additive techniques in sculpture; create a three-dimensional portrait that communicates the characteristics of a friend, through the position of the head, facial expression, and movement; and articulate in writing the processes undertook to create a portrait bust.

Students will compare and contrast works of art; learn observational techniques; become familiar with buildings in their community; learn the terms foreground, middle ground, and background, as well as terms for describing objects such as line, color, shape, form, and pattern.

In this lesson students will view the work of contemporary book artist Julie Chen. Through investigating Julie Chen?s non-traditional approach to bookmaking and the process she employs, students will contemplate and discuss the definition of a book, consider how books are made, collaborate and brainstorm ways to push the boundaries of books, and explore books as sculpture. Students will create their own artist books that have personal meaning and go beyond the confines of a traditional book.

Students will be able to discuss the growth of suburban development in the United States after World War II; write a persuasive essay about suburban development in California; and design a plan for a utopian and environmentally-friendly housing development.

Students will become familiar with the term "landscape" and will revisit the terms "foreground," "middle ground," and "background." Students will consider how an artist's painting technique impacts a viewer's interpretation of a painting.

Students will practice using vocabulary associated with a room and objects in the room.

Students will discuss the style and function of an 18th-century compound microscope and its case and then design their own modern scientific or technological instrument. Students should be able to discuss and analyze the elements and principles of design as seen in the Compound Microscope and Case; discuss and compare the design of the microscope to the design of modern scientific or technological devices; and apply the elements and principles of design to the creation of their own modern scientific or technological device.

Students will view Pistoletto's "Mirror Architecture" and consider why an artist might choose a fractured mirror to create a work of art; how the surroundings and the viewer interact with the sculpture; and how our perceptions of the piece might change in different locations. Students will write a story with the mirror as the central subject. Students will also write a short story which explores the symbolism of mirrors.

Students will explore artists' choices of nontraditional art materials; explore how artists use different materials to engage space and will consider the role of the viewer in that process.

Students will be introduced to the notion of ephemeral and site-specific art and will consider the role of the photo-documentation of these works; explore works that challenge traditional notions of where art should be displayed; be introduced to artists' strategies of institutional critique.