Welcome to Greece!

Chapter 4

The Prehistoric Aegean

-The Greek World extends to large areas of coastal regions of the Mediterranean and the black sea.

-Late century 800 BCE onward overseas settlements were formed in different parts of the Mediterranean called Poleis (plural)/ polis (singular)

-There was no such thing as the Greek empire.

-At this time, Greece is not an independent country

-It is made up of individual city states.

TODAY-Cycladic, Minoan, Mycenaean

CYCLADIC ART

-3000-2000 BCE

-Marble was abundant and used to create statuettes

-Statuettes were mostly of nude women with their arms crossed

-Schematic body shape

-Made up of a series of triangles-Not free standing due to tapered shape-may represent dead women, fertility figures, or goddesses-parts may have been colored

-faces would have had painted features

Chalandriani, Island of SyrosCemetery ca. 3000-2300 BCE

MINOAN ART1600- 1200 BCE

-This period begins the construction of large palaces

-Palaces had residential units for King and his family-courtyards for ceremonies and games-administrative, commercial, and religious buildings

-The size and number of their Palaces attest to power and prosperity of Minoans.

Palace of Knossos, Aerial View, 1700-1370 BCE

Palace of Knossos

-Largest Palace on Crete-Home of King Minos-Large Central Court surrounded by residential and administrative units-Mazelike-origination of the word ‘Labyrinth’-built on a hill-3 stories high around central court-terracotta pipes for draingage-walls constructed of rough fieldstones embedded in clay-painted wooden columns

-distinctive, bulbous capitalsColumn shafts

-like stylized inverted tree trunks

Bull Leaping, from the Palace of Knossos, Crete, 1400 BCE

-Fresco (Painting on plaster that may be done dry or wet)-Minoan ceremony of Bull Leaping (man grabs horns and vaults onto the bull’s back)-No setting (Just focused on the figures (male and female)-Stylized figure- taper waists, profile poses-Bull’s power is illustrated in its elongated shape

MYCENAEAN ART1600-1200 BCE

-Forerunners of Greeks on the mainland-Fortified palaces at Tiryns and Mycenae-All palaces burned when Northern Invaders cause internal warfare between 1250 and 1200 BCE

TIRYNSCitadel (City-State) of Tiryns-Originally believed to have been built by the mythical Cyclopes, a race of one-eyed giants-Roughly cut stone blocks surrounding citadel-Walls differ from the openness of Crete palaces

-Walls for Defensive purposes-20 feet thick-long gallery of corbeled vaults-Long approach ramp to lure attackers into mazelike structure-Reception Hall called Megaron

-most important room in palace

Treasury of Atreus, Mycenae, 1300 BCE

Interior

Treasury of Atreus

- Tholos type tomb- Beehive shaped- Covered by earthen mound- Mistakenly believed to store treasure- Doorway and triangular window were between collumns- Stone laid on circular base to create dome- Complicated construction (read in text, 99)

MASKS -Repousse technique-hammered from single sheet of metal and features pushed out from behind-1st in Greece to sculpt life-sized human face

DAGGERS-Inlaid w/ gold, silver, and niello (a black metallic alloy)-illustrated wealth and warlike nature-Four hunters attacking a lion (top)-Minoan style figures (tiny waist, long hair) with Egyptian and Mesopotamian subject matter

What happened???