Melische ornate amphorae
As Melian Pithamphora , melic amphorae or in respect of their creators melic group is a genus of large Bauchhenkelamphoren referred to in the Archaic period to the Cyclades were produced. Due to their shape and colored painting in the oriental style , they are among the most famous Greek vases. So far eleven copies are known.
The amphorae are in the 7th and early 6th centuries BC. The last ones were probably made in the 580s. Your name is misleading, so the addition “melisch” is often put in quotation marks today. After Alexander Conze found the first three vessels of the form on the Cycladic island of Melos in 1862 , he named them "Melische clay vessels" after their location. The name has been retained, although the location of the production in Melos is now widely disputed. A majority of the researchers, such as Ingeborg Scheibler , suspect production in Paros , others in Naxos , and still others like Thomas Mannack believe both variants are possible. Dimitrios Papastamos and, for a long time, John Boardman , who meanwhile does not rule out a Parian origin, continued to take the view of a Melian origin. The longtime excavator on Paros, Otto Rubensohn , denied that there were any usable clay deposits on the island. Many researchers believe that, based on current knowledge, a decision cannot be made using archaeological methods. However, sound analyzes indicate that it originated in Paros.
Only a comparatively small number of these vases are known to date, a total of eleven pieces that have been preserved in full (9 copies) or in fragments (2 copies). Despite the few surviving specimens, the distribution is greater than that of any other Cycladic vase. The export went beyond the Cyclades to the Parian colony of Thasos , where imitations of the vase shape were also created, and to North Africa. Some of the fragments of vases were found on Delos , so the amphorae were probably already before the island was cleaned in 426 BC. Has been destroyed.
The amphorae are up to 107 centimeters high and come in two shapes, an older, somewhat broader, and a younger, somewhat slimmer form. The structure of three main parts is clearly recognizable: the body of the vessel, the broad neck, which, unlike the canonical forms of amphorae, is almost as wide as the body, and the high, conical base. The foot is provided with burning gaps at regular intervals. They stand in the tradition of older Cycladic vessels, the early Cycladic conical neck vessels ( Kandíles ) and the geometrical - Theraic amphorae of the linear island style . In contrast to these early forms, the splendid amphorae have a more organic structure. The lateral belly handles are set as horizontal double handles. They can also work as an additional optical effect by painting. On the one hand, they can give the impression of goat horns, so that the amphorae look like goat heads with widely spreading horns. In a second variant, eyes are painted under the handle, so the handles look like eyebrows.
All amphorae have a central image on the body. Often the necks are figuratively decorated, less often the feet. With a few exceptions, the neck is completely or partially provided with metopes that occupy the neck in full height. The main representation takes up about the upper half of the body, below it usually follows two bands with spiral or volute patterns . The foot is usually decorated with double volutes between the burning gaps, above and below they are framed by geometric bands. A halo follows at the end. The pictures shown are usually quite delicate and elegant, the painters use larger amounts of opaque colors. Late examples show figures in the black-figure style , on other vases the late animal frieze style is imitated.
The amphorae were used as representative vases of the upper class in the grave cult and had the function there that was later assumed by statues: they were to mark the graves. In addition, they were probably also used as cult objects in shrines. With the growing importance of the sculptures, the production of the vases also came to a standstill. The pictures show horses ( horse amphora ), riders ( rider amphora ), gods ( Apollon and Artemis : Apollon amphora ), legendary figures ( Herakles in a chariot : Herakles amphora , Sphinx : Sphinx amphora ) and on a fragment in Berlin the mistress of the animals ("Gerhard'sches Fragment").
Compilation of the Melian amphorae
Called name after Dimitrios Papastamos
| Surname | image | storage |
|---|---|---|
| Heracles amphora | .jpg) |
Athens, National Museum Inv. 354 |
| Apollo amphora |  |
Athens, National Museum Inv. 911 |
| Rider amphora |  |
Athens, National Museum Inv. 912 |
| Horse amphora |  |
Athens, National Museum Inv. 913 |
| Sphinx amphora | Athens, National Museum Inv. 914 | |
| Dionysus amphora | British School at Athens | |
| Gerhard's fragment |  |
Berlin, Antikensammlung Inv. F 301 |
| Conze's fragment | Bonn, Academic Art Museum Inv. 2040 | |
| Neapolis amphora | Kavala, Archaeological Museum | |
| Amphora depicting the Paris judgment |  |
Paros, Museum Inv. B 2652 |
| Amphora depicting a plowing scene | .jpg) |
Paros, Museum Inv. B 2653 |
literature
- Dimitrios Papastamos: Melische Amphoren (= Orbis Antiquus Bd. 25). Aschendorff, Münster 1970 (at the same time: dissertation, University of Münster).
- Photeini Zapheiropoulo: Προβλήματα της μηλιακής αγγειογραφίας . Athens 1985.
- Werner Ekschmitt : Art and Culture of the Cyclades. Volume 2: Geometric and Archaic Time (= cultural history of antiquity . Volume 28, 2). von Zabern, Mainz 1986, ISBN 3-8053-0900-7 , pp. 136-145, plates 40-43
- Ingeborg Scheibler : Greek pottery art. Manufacture, trade and use of antique clay pots. 2nd, revised and expanded edition. CH Beck, Munich 1995, ISBN 3-406-39307-1 , p. 165.
- John Boardman : Early Greek Vase Painting. 11th - 6th Century BC. A Handbook (= World of Art. ). Thames and Hudson, London 1998, ISBN 0-500-20309-1 , pp. 111-112.
- Photeini Zapheiropoulou: Paros. Archaeological Receipts Fund, Athens 1998, ISBN 960-214-902-7 , pp. 38-39.
- Thomas Mannack : Greek vase painting. An introduction . Theiss, Stuttgart 2002, ISBN 3-8062-1743-2 , pp. 89-90.
Remarks
- ^ RE Jones: Greek and Cypriot Pottery. A Review of Scientific Studies (= The British School at Athens Fitch Laboratory Occasional Paper Vol. 1). British School at Athens, Athens 1986, pp. 652-658.