Panhellenism and the Barbarian in Archaic and Classical Greece by Mitchell Lynette.;

Author:Mitchell, Lynette.; [Mitchell, Lynette.;]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781905125142
Publisher: ISD Distribution
Published: 2007-11-22T06:00:00+00:00

Domesticated monsters

Greek art was also influenced by the cultures of Asia, but in a different way for similar ends. The impact on Greek art of the seventh century is most obvious in the so-called ‘orientalizing revolution’, an artistic movement which provided a fresh idiom for exploration of new ideas. In the eighth century, as we have already seen, the Euboeans were in contact with the civilizations of Asia (possibly through Al Mina), and large amounts of Euboean pottery found their way to the Levant and Near East.25 Although artistic expression in many parts of Greece remained conservative, exotica presented as dedications have also been found at the Samian Heraeon and Perachora (two sanctuaries which, along with Eretria, were also among the first to build temples in the eighth century, suggesting close links with Asia).26

Also in the eighth century, in vase-painting, there were some oriental borrowings in the depiction of animals such as deer and gazelles, although in shape and arrangement these were subordinated to the geometric theme.27 In other media, gold bands from the last quarter of the eighth century bear animals which are oriental in technique and inspiration, though still arranged in a rhythmic geometricizing sequence.28 On Crete, which resisted Attic-style geometric pottery until the end of the ninth century, a bronze tambourine from the Idaean cave, dating to the eighth century, stands out as a work ‘surely by an eastern hand’, as do embossed shields also from the Idaean cave and elsewhere in Crete, as well as Delphi, Dodona and Miletus.29

At the end of the eighth century, after more than a century of quite profound contact with Asia and Asian cultures, oriental motifs truly seized the artistic imagination. After the geometric pottery style had run its course, first at Athens jewellery displayed sphinxes and mythical creatures, then, with new shapes and new techniques, painted pottery appeared at Corinth at the end of the eighth century, followed by Athens, the Cyclades and Crete from about 700 Bc.30 In this new style, which replaced the now exhausted Late Geometric, exotic animals and plants abounded. In sculpture, mould-made clay plaques of the naked Syrian goddess Astarte were translated into clothed figures of Aphrodite with what became known as the ‘Daedalic’ style: frontal relief, angular form, wig-like hair, large eyes and prominent nose.31 These Daedalic figures were then produced on jewellery, vases and wheel-made figurines, and finally carved in stone, though the idea for monumental sculpture probably derived from Egypt.32

Initially, Greek craftsmen copied oriental forms. Coldstream, for example, identifies ninth-century granulated earrings from Lefkandi as crude copies of originals from Asia.33 Once new techniques had been mastered, however, the Greeks set out to create something of their own. With painted pottery, the Corinthians who originated the style applied the new motifs, both flora and fauna, to a medium in which it had been virtually unknown in this period among the cultures of Asia.34 Boardman also points to ivories from Athens dating to the middle of the eighth century. Modelled on plump Astarte

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.