ancient Greek pottery is one of themselves to reliable sources of information about the history and traditions of ancient Greece.Its inhabitants are widely used metal and pottery for daily use.Shards and fragments, decorated with various mythological and genre scenes, archaeologists have found in all the places where he lived and traded this ancient people.Greek antique vases that have survived to this day, date back to different eras.From the time of the Minotaur (2.5 thousand. BC. E.) To the Christian era.
first thing that comes to mind at the mention of the phrase "Greek Vase" - an amphora.This overlooked that the amphora - not only finds that gets seekers during excavations.Inventive Greeks invented their own names for each everyday object was released from the hands of skilled potters of Athens and Sparta.
Technology of
This diversity is due to the technology of ceramic pottery in ancient Greece.Greek vase from Corinth, Crete and Athens has a very special quality composition of clay.Attica Ceramics made of a material of a reddish color.In Corinth to take pottery clay with a yellow tinge.A lower Italy left a legacy of pottery made of brown material.
ancient Greeks decorated painted almost all kinds of ceramic tableware.Thanks to the strong roasting, any Greek vase becomes resistant to the damaging effects of the environment, so to preserve the freshness of colors for several thousand years.Shards found by modern researchers, coming from time immemorial names vase painters, potters and the owners of these products.
Archaeologists distinguish vessels used by men and women.Greek ceramics male world is for amusement, feasts, drinking wine.Ceramic female world is for housekeeping.There is another group of products designed for the storage and trade.Remains of large vessels adapted for storing spices, flour, wine, olive oil, archaeologists have found in all the places where they lived and traded by the ancient Greeks.Bright, beautifully painted clay vessels were in demand by the peoples of the Mediterranean, and the trade pottery brought a good profit.
first vase painting
first Greek vases date from the Mycenaean culture sunset.Painting on pottery mainland Greece it is characterized by a simple pattern - simple geometrical figures on a uniform light background.Later, complicated drawings, added stylized images of people and animals in black, occasionally red.By the end of VII century BC.e.geometric style disappears, it is replaced by a new technique of painting ceramics, and therefore, new colorful drawings on vases and pitchers.
black-figure pottery
By the middle of VII century the center of the art of pottery becomes Corinth.On vases appear mythical heroes and curly ornaments.The strong influence of Eastern traditions with their griffins, sphinxes and cheetahs transferred to the surface of Greek vases.Manufacturing technology of black-figure painting assumed the triple firing.Firing gave vase red background, and glossy clay, which is painted on the walls of the vessel makes the image black.
In the heyday of black-figure pottery Greek vase decorated with scenes from everyday life, images of battles and feasts.To emphasize the white skin of women, began to use the appropriate color.In the sixth century BC.e.popularity of black-figure painting falls, and on the first place the Greek vase, painted in red-figure style.
red-figure pottery
first who guessed painted black background, not figures on a Greek vase was vazopisets Andokides.The development of the art of painting pottery and new technology allows you to move to the surface of pottery huge number of subjects.New center vase painting became Southern Italy.Along with the already well-known genre, war scenes and mythological tales, the surface of Greek vases decorated female profiles, daily sketches, landscapes and architectural structures.There are vases Bilingual, which are decorated with two kinds of painting at the same time.
White painted
For certain kinds of clay vessels, such as alabastron and lekythos, used a special kind of painting.On a white background with black or red bear the different figures.Because of the relative complexity of the manufacture of white painted shards of such products very rarely come across archaeologists.
In pursuit of perfection of form and painting ancient Greek vase seems to modern scholars as one of the most amazing and unique works of art.A huge number of stone, clay, metal and bone are represented in museums and collections of private collectors.A wide variety of shapes and bright-painted products allow infinitely admire the ancient vessels.
