Published: June 15, 2018 By

Photograph of a Minoan pyxis with its lid in place, from the side against a neutral gray background.Introduction

The peoples who lived on the island of Crete during the Bronze Age are known today as the Minoans, after Minos, a legendary king of Crete. The history of is broken into Early, Middle, and Late Minoan periods, and although the exact dates for narrower subdivisions are debated, are largely agreed upon (1).Ìý

Early Minoan Period (c. 3,000-2,000 B.C.E.)

Among the earliestÌý isÌýIncised Ware, characterized by incised decoration of parallel lines creating patterns on the surface of the clay. Contemporary with Incised Ware isÌýAghios Onouphrios Ware, a type simply painted with dark red or blackÌýdiagonal lines, which formÌýboth series of parallel lines and criss-crosses on a light surface; these designs typically appear on jugs and bowls (2). , with its mottled surface achieved by novel means of firing, was probably meant to approximate more substantial and expensiveÌýstone vessels. A reddish coat of paint increased the stone-like appearance of Vasilike Ware vessels. At this time, vessels carved of such variegated and colorful stone as serpentine and alabaster are indeed knownÌý(3).

The ÃÛÌÇÖ±²¥ Art Museum's collection contains one vessel from the Early Minoan period, an incised pyxis with its lid intact.

Middle Minoan Period (c. 2,000-1,550 B.C.E.)

Ìýwas transformed by the introduction of the fast ±è´Ç³Ù³Ù±ð°ù'²õÌý·É³ó±ð±ð±ô, an innovation that led to thinner and finer wares, which, in turn, led to finer decoration.ÌýÌýis decorated with abstract designs, often in complex patterns. Kamares Ware decoration is light-on-dark polychrome and sometimes includes animal or figural representations rather than abstract patterns. The same types of patterns are found on a much thinner type of vesselÌýknown as eggshell ware because of its extreme delicacy and fineness (4). An incredible variety of designs adornedÌýthe vases of the Middle Minoan periodÌýthough eventually the energy of the earlier Kamares Ware calmed a bit, becoming more formal with the introduction of repeated vegetal motifs and other nature-inspired designs (5).Ìý

Late Minoan Period (c. 1,550-1,100 B.C.E.)

The Late Minoan period brought the Ìýof the several . Well-known themes in Minoan fresco painting include fanciful floral arrangements, heavily adorned women and men, shrines and other religious motifs, and, perhaps most well-known, acrobats or . Not suprisingly, some of the most decorative ceramic types also come from the Late Minoan period. During this later period of Minoan history, dark-on-light pottery predominated, replacing the earlier polychrome, light-on-dark wares. The Floral Style was one early result of this shift, featuring vases covered in repeated decorative floral motifs. A simliar and contemporary style was the Pattern Style, which covered vessels in geometric designs, rather than florals. The patterns may have been inspired by the borders of fresco paintings in the great palaces (6). Slightly later in date came the , which exhibited sinuous octopuses,Ìýrealistic fishes, dancing dolphins, and speeding nautiluses, as well as jagged, spiky seaweed nad rocks.Ìý

Following the Marine Style in the middle of the Late Minoan period was the so-calledÌýPalace Style, in which the earlier decorative motifs of plants, flowers, and sea life are arranged symmetrically and in a greatly stylized mannerÌý(7). This change from the exuberant Marine and Floral Styles to the more formalized and symmetrical Palace Style is often seen as evidence that , who originated on the mainland,Ìýoccupied Crete and imposed their stylistic sensibilities on the native Minoan art (8). At the end of the Late Minoan period came , after which the mainland would become the center of artistic production in Greece.

This essay was written to accompany aÌýcollection of Greek artifacts at the ÃÛÌÇÖ±²¥ Art Museum.Ìý

Footnotes

  1. The dates used in this article are drawnÌýfrom John G. ±Ê±ð»å±ô±ð²â,ÌýGreek Art and ArchaeologyÌý(Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1993): 29.
  2. Jeremy B. Rutter, Prehistoric Archaeology of the AegeanÌý(), accessed 01 February 2019; ±Ê±ð»å±ô±ð²â,ÌýGreek Art and Archaeology:Ìý30, fig. 1.8.
  3. On Vasilike Ware, see Philip P. Betancourt,ÌýVasilike Ware: An Early Bronze Age Pottery Style in CreteÌý(Göteborg: Paul Ã…ströms Forlag, 1979); see also ±Ê±ð»å±ô±ð²â,ÌýGreek Art and Archaeology:Ìý32-3, fig. 1.6.
  4. ¸é³Ü³Ù³Ù±ð°ù,ÌýPrehistoric Archaeology of the Aegean.
  5. ±Ê±ð»å±ô±ð²â,ÌýGreek Art and Archaeology: 52-5.
  6. ±Ê±ð»å±ô±ð²â,ÌýGreek Art and Archaeology: 76.
  7. For pottery of the Late Minoan period see William R. Biers,ÌýThe Archaeology of GreeceÌý(Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1980): 50-52.
  8. ±Ê±ð»å±ô±ð²â,ÌýGreek Art and Archaeology: 78.