Sentence:  Whenever artists , indeed , turned to actual representations or molded three-dimensional figures , which <WSD>were</WSD> rare down to 800 B.C. , they tended to reflect reality ( see Plate 6a , 9b ) ; a schematic , abstract treatment of men and animals , by intent , rose only in the late eighth century . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)