Dark Ages to Geometric Period

1
Dark Ages to Geometric Period

• Dark Ages (Architectural Term) Protogeometric
  Period ( Pottery Term) 1100 - 900 BCE
• Geometric Period (Architecture, Sculpture, and
  Pottery) 900 - 700 BCE

2
End of the Mycenaean World

• Literary tradition from Homer and other ancient
  epics. Destruction of Troy at the hands of a
  contingency of Mycenaean warriors.
• Destruction of Troy. Which Troy is the Troy of
  the Trojan war? Troy VI? Troy VIIA?
• Destruction of the mainland palaces (Mycenae,
  Tiryns, Athens, Gla, Pylos, Thebes, Orchomenos)
  are all under different circumstances.

3
Theories for Destruction

• The Dorian Invasions (Return of the Herakleidae
  or Internal Revolt?)
• The Raids of the Sea Peoples
• Intercity Warfare
• Drought, Famine, Earthquakes, and Other Natural
  Disasters.

4
Dark Age Sites

• Karphi, Crete
• Kavousi, Crete
• Lefkandi, Euboea
• Nichoria, Messenia
• Oval House, Smyrna

5
Karphi

• Middle Bronze Age to Geometric
• Unwalled settlement
• 150 adjoining rooms
• Great House

6
Lefkandi - The Heroon

• Heroon - 10th century
• Cemetery - 9th century
• Apsidal (50 m by 10 m)
• Burial of man, woman, horses

7
Lefkandi - The Plan
8
The Centaur

• Eretria Museum
• Terracotta
• 10th c BCE
• Found in Heroon, split in two pieces, one in each
  grave.

9
Isis and Horus Necklace

• Found in tombs near Heroon at Lefkandi.
• 11th/10th century.
• Faience, Egyptian in origin.
• Isis and Horus statuettes common in Egyptian
  world.

10
Protogeometric Pottery

• Shapes derived from Mycenaean oeuvre krater,
  oinochoe, cups, amphorae.
• Faster wheel.
• Compass drawn pendent semicircles or concentric
  circles.
• Kerameikos cemetery in Athens.

11
Geometric Cult Sites

• Dreros on Crete
• Eretria - Apollo Daphnephoros
• Sparta - Temple of Artemis Orthria
• Heraion at Samos
• The Argive Heraion
• Temple of Hera at Perachora
• Thermon

12
Dreros

• Temple of Apollo.
• Earliest known temple - 750 BCE.
• City fortification.

13
Cult Statues

• From shelf in temple.
• Sphyrelaton method sheet hammered bronze over
  wood core.
• Apollo, Leto, Artemis.

14
Eretria
15
Apollo Daphnephoros

• Four phases of the temple.
• Apsidal hut.
• Second structure with apsidal walls.
• Hekatompedon (100 footer).
• Geometric Daphnephorion
• All geometric structures leveled at the end of
  the 8th c. BCE.
• Early Archaic hekatompedon (670 - 655 BCE)

16
Harbor at Samos
17
Samos from theAir
18
Heraion at Samos
19
Geometric Heraion at Samos

• Local Carian deity originally.
• Hera and Zeus married here beside a sacred bush.
• Hekatompedon - 8th c BCE.

20
Hera Limenaia at Perachora

• Corinthiad
• Again, a port.
• Apsidal structure.
• Geometric bronze finds.
• 9th/8th c BCE.

21
Perachora - Geometric Plan
22
Thermon

• Geometric period, the site became religious.
• 3 temples.
• Megaron A and B.

23
Thermon - Temples

• Archaic temple built over Megaron B.

24
Thermon Megaron B
25
Geometric Pottery

• Early - increased geometric patterns. Meanders
  become more and more prominent.
• Use as tomb markers in Athens.
• Very fine clay and fast wheel.
• Athens at forefront of Geometric pottery
  production.

26
Agora Rich Lady Burial

• Belly amphora - female.
• Granary - symbol of status or wealth?
• Cremation.
• 9th c BCE.

27
Agora Male Burial

• Cremation
• Neck amphora
• Sword around amphora
• Horse pyxis - symbol of wealth?

28
Horse Pyxis
29
Athens 804

• Pictorial Narrative.
• Prothesis and Ekphora.
• Tomb Marker from the Dipylon gate cemetery.
• 750 BCE
• 1.55 m high.

30
Other narratives

• Fox hunt?
• Boeotia.
• Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
• 750 BCE

31
Sculpture

• Boston MFA
• Under 8 inches.
• Bronze
• Solid Cast
• 9th c BCE.