The art of the Greeks

Contents

PAGE

List of Plates ......... ix

Preface ......... xiii

Chapter I Pages

Modern study of Greek Art — Limits of the Subject — Winckelmann and Ancient Art — Character of Greek Art — Originality and Idealism — Plastic Character— Influence of Religion and Athletics — Division into Periods — Origins — Archaic Period — Best Period — Period of Decline — Chronological

Chapter II

Early Greek Art and Recent Discoveries — Bronze Age Civilisation — The Mycenaean People — Early Remains of Troy and the Greek Islands —

Crete and Minos — Mycenae and its Remains — Metal- Work and Painting — Literary Traditions — Art in Homer — The Chest of Kypselos — Oriental Influence (Egypt, Assyria^ Phoenicia) ..... 11-28

Chapter III

Prehistoric Architecture — Palaces at Tiryns and Knossos — The Beginnings of the Temple — The Doric Style and its Characteristics — Typical Doric Temples — The Parthenon — Methods of Construction — The Ionic Style — Temples at Athens and in Asia Minor — The Corinthian Style — Secular Buildings ......... 29-52

S 0 f o

V

CONTENTS

Chapter IV Greek Sculpture: Introductory

Literary Records of Greek Sculpture — Monumental Evidence — Lost and Existing Sculptures — Originals, Copies, and Imitations — Materials Employed — Wood, Gold and Ivory, and Marble — Models and Tools — Polishing and Colouring — Reliefs — Technical Processes in Bronze .

CHAPTER V THE RISE OF GREEK SCULPTURE (600-480 b.c.)

Early Cult-Images — Adherence to Conventional Types — Athletic Statues — Technical Inventions — The Dorian School — The Ionian School — Argos — Athens — The Aeginetan School . . . . .

Chapter VI

Rise of Monumental Sculpture — Kalamis, Pythagoras, and Myron — The Olympia Sculptures — Pheidias — The Sculptures of the Parthenon — Other Attic Sculptures and Sculptors — Polykleitos — Architectural Monuments ........

Chapter VII

Characteristics of Fourth-Century Sculpture — Praxiteles — The Hermes — Skopas — Sculpture in Asia Minor — The Mausoleum — Other Fourth-Century Sculptors — Lysippos — Attic Sepulchral Reliefs — The Sidon Sarcophagi — The Hellenistic Age — The Schools of Rhodes and Pergamon — The Laocoon — The Aphrodite of Melos and other existing Works — Genre Subjects and Reliefs .......

PAGES

53-69

70-88

89-114

115-138

VI

CONTENTS

Chapter VIII Greek Painting

Technical Methods — Early History of Painting — Literary Records — Painting in Ionia and at Corinth — Attic Tombstones — Polygnotos — Apollodoros, Zeuxis, and Parrhasios — The Fourth-Century Schools — Apelles and Protogenes— Painting in the Hellenistic Age — Landscapes and Genre Subjects— Etruscan Paintings ......

Chapter IX Greek Vases

Greek Origin, not Etruscan — Uses of Greek Vases — Shapes — Technical Methods — Classification — Primitive Ionic and Corinthian Fabrics — Attic Black-Figured Vases — The Red-Figure Period — White-Ground Vases^ — - Vase-Painting in Southern Italy — Decadence of the Art .

Chapter X Greek Terra-cottas

Terra-Cotta in Architecture — Origin of Sculpture in Clay — Primitive and Archaic Types — Technical Processes — Uses — Tanagra Statuettes — Types and Subjects — Differences of Styles and Fabrics — Forgeries

Chapter XI Greek Gem Engraving

Oriental Use of Precious Stones — Signets and Cylinders — Cretan and Mycenaean Gem-Engraving — Island Stones — Scarabs and Ionian Gems — Gem-Engraving of the Archaic and Finest Periods — Scaraboids — Hellenistic Intaglios — Artists’ Signatures — Cameos and Vases — Gem- Engraving in Etruria — Technical Details — Modern Imitations and

Forgeries .........

PAGES

139-160

161-183

184-202

203-221

CONTENTS

Chapter XII Greek Coins

Use of Study of Greek Coins — Artistic Features — Invention of Coinage — Technical Processes — Inscriptions — Coin-types and their Meaning — Character of Coins of Different Countries — Italy and Sicily — Greece and Asia Minor — Chronological Classification and Artistic Development

Chapter XIII Greek Metal-work

Origin of Metal-working in Greece — Bronze, Gold, and Silver and their Use — Mycenaean Metal-work and Jewellery — Rise of Gold-working in Greece and Etruria — Etruscan Jewellery — Etruscan Bronze Mirrors and Cistae — Greek Bronze-work — Greek Gold-work of Best Period — Jewellerv from the Crimea — Forgeries — Silver-chasing in the Hellenistic Age

PAGES

222-242

243-266

LIST OF PLATES

Frontispiece — Tlie Aphrodite of Melos

PLATE PAGE

I. Painted Pottery of ‘ Minoan ’ Style .....

II. Gold Ornaments from Mycenae (Athens Museum) . . . 13

HI. Cretan Fresco-paintings (from Knossos) .... 16

IV. Faience Vases and part of Ivory Casket from Enkomi, Cyprus (British

V. The Vaphio Gold Cups (Athens Museum) .... 18

VI. Engraved Dagger-blades from Mycenae (Athens Museum) . . 19

VII. Mycenaean Painted Pottery . . . . . .22

VIII. The Lion Gate at Mycenae . . . . . .23

IX. Galleries in the Palace at Tiryns ..... 30

X. The Temple of Poseidon at Paestum .... 31

XI. The Temple of Apollo at Phigaleia (Bassae) ... 38

XII. The ‘ Theseion ^ at Athens ...... 39

XIII. The Parthenon ....... 42

XIV. The Temple of Athena Nike, Acropolis, Athens ... 43

XV. The Erechtheion, Athens ...... 48

XVI. The Mausoleum, Halikarnassos (Restoration by Petersen) . . 49

XVII. The Choragic Monument of Lysikrates, Athens ... 50

XVIII. The Theatre of Dionysos, Athens ..... 51

XIX. Early Female Statues from Samos and Naxos . . . 70

XX. The Apollo of Tenea (Munich) and the Stele of Aristion (Athens) . 71

XXI. The Nike of Archermos (Athens Museum) .... 74

XXII. Metopes from Temples at Selinus ..... 75

XXIII. The ‘ Harpy ’ Tomb (British Museum) .... 78

XXIV. Seated Figure from Branchidae (British Museum) ... 79

XXV. Poros-pediment from the Acropolis, Athens ... 82

XXVI. Female Statue from the Acropolis, Athens .... 83

XXVII. Figures from the Aegina Pediments (Munich Museum) . . 86

XXVIII. The Bronze Charioteer from Delphi ..... 90

XXIX. The Ludovisi Throne (Museo delle Terme, Rome) ... 91

XXX. The Diskobolos of Myron (Palazzo Lancelotti, Rome) . . 92

XXXI. Figures from the West Pediment, Olympia .... 93

XXXII. Metope from the Temple of Zeus, Olympia .... 96

XXXIII. The Varvakeion Statuette of Athena (Athens Museum) . . 97

XXXIV. The ‘ Theseus ’ from the east pediment of Parthenon (British Museum) 100

IX

LIST OF PLATES

PLATE PAGE

XXXV. The Group of ‘ Three Fates" from the same . . • 101

XXXVI. Horsemen from the Parthenon Frieze .... 102

XXXVII. Slabs from the East Frieze of the Parthenon . . .103

XXXVIII. Caryatid from the Erechtheion (British Museum) . . . 106

XXXIX. Victory from tlie Balustrade of the Nike Temple, Athens . . 107

XL. The Hermes Propylaios of Alkamenes, and the ‘ Mourning Athena "

(Athens Museum) . . . . • .108

XLi. The Nike of Paionios (Olympia Museum) .... 109

xLii. Busts of Pericles and Alexander the Great (British Museum) . 110

XLiii. The Diadumenos and Doryphoros of Polykleitos . . . HI

XLiv. The Hermes of Praxiteles (Olympia Museum) . . . 114

XLv. The Aphrodite of the Vatican, and the Demeter of Knidos (British xLvi. Bronze Heads of Aphrodite (.?) and Hypnos (British Museum) . 119

xLvii. Group of Niobe and daughter (Florence), and Charioteer from the

Mausoleum Frieze (British Museum) . . . .120

XLviii. Statue of Mausolos (British Museum) .... 121

xLix. The Agias and Apoxyomenos of Lysippos . . . .124

L. Sepulchral Reliefs of Hegeso and Dexileos (Athens Museum) . 125

Li. The Alexander Sarcophagus from Sidon (Constantinople Museum) . 128

Lii. The Dying Gaul (Vatican) . . . . . .129

LIU. Slabs from the Pergamene Frieze (Berlin Museum) . . .130

Liv. The Laocoon Group (Vatican) . . . . .131

Lv. The Nike of Samothrace (Louvre) ..... 134

Lvi. Bronze Statue from Kythera (Athens Museum) . . 135

Lvii. Statuettes of Hellenistic Style . . . . .138

Lviii. Hellenistic Relief (British Museum) . . . .139

Lix. Fresco-painting from Tiryns . . . . .140

LX. Early Corinthian Paintings . . . . . .141

Lxi. Part of painted Sarcophagus from Clazomenae (British Museum) . 146

LX 1 1. Athenian Paintings ...... 147

Lxiii. Wall-Painting from a Tomb at Cervetri (British Museum) . . 148

Lxiv. Vase-painting in the Style of Polygnotos (Louvre) . . .149

Lxv. Pompeian Wall-painting — Herakles Strangling the Serpents . 154

Lxvi. Mosaic representing the Battle of the Issus (Pompeii) . . 155

Lxvii. Painting from Herculaneum by Alexandros . . .160

Lxviii. Painting from Sarcophagus at Corneto . . . .161

Lxix. Geometrical Vase of ‘ Dipylon " Style .... 168

Lxx. Ionic Vase Paintings (Bibliothkpie Nationale, Paris) . . 109

Lxxi. Corinthian Vases (British Museum) . . . . .170

X

LIST OF PLATES

PLATE PAGE

Lxxii. The Francois Vase (Florence) . . . . .171

Lxxiii. Panathenaic Amphora (British Museum) . . . . 172

Lxxiv. Amphora by Nikosthenes, and Vase-painting by Exekias (Louvre) 173 Lxxv. Vase-Painting by Euphronios (Munich Museum) . . .176

Lxxvi. Vase-Paintings by Duris and Hieron . . . .177

Lxxvii. Vase by Meidias (British jMuseum) . . . .178

Lxxviii. Vases with Painting on White Ground (British Museum) . . 179

Lxxix. Vases of Southern Italy . . . . . .182

Lxxx. Terra-cotta Antefixal Ornaments from Italy (British Museum) . 184

Lxxxi. Terra-cotta Toys and Dolls (British Museum) . . .185

Lxxxii. ‘ Melian ** Reliefs (British Museum) .... 188

Lxxxiii. Archaic Greek Terra-cottas (British Museum) . . .189

Lxxxiv. Tanagra Statuettes (British Museum) . . . .192

Lxxxv. Terra-cotta Groups of Third Century Style (British Museum) . 193

Lxxxvi. Statuettes from Myrina and the Cyrenaica (British Museum) . 196

Lxxxvii. Statuettes from Cyprus and Sicily (British Museum) . . 197

Lxxxviii. Mycenaean Gems and ‘ Island-Stones ’ . . . . 206

Lxxxix. Graeco-Phoenician and Ionic Gems .... 207

xc. Archaic Greek Gems . . . . . .210

xci. Gems of Fifth Century Style . . . . .211

xcii. Later Greek Gems . . . . . . .214

xciii. Etruscan Gems ....... 215

xciv. Archaic Coins (Asia Minor and Greece) .... 226

xcv. Archaic Coins (Italy and Sicily) ..... 227

xcvi. Coins of the Fifth Century (Asia Minor and Greece) . . 230

xcvii. Coins of Sicily (Fifth Century) ..... 231

xcviii. Coins of the Fourth Century (Asia Minor and Greece) . . 234

xcix. Coins of the P'ourth Century (Crete and Western Greece) . . 235

c. Coins of the Hellenistic Period ..... 238

ci. Cbins of the Graeco-Roman Period .... 239

cii. Early Gold Ornaments from the ‘ Aegina Treasure ’ (British Museum) 246 cm. Etruscan Gold Ornaments (British Museum) . . . 247

CIV. Etruscan Engraved Mirrors (British Museum) . . . 252

cv. Greek Engraved Bronzes (British Museum) . . . 253

cvi. The Siris Bronzes and Heroic Figure from Bracciano (British Museum) 254 evil. Greek Bronze Reliefs (British Museum) .... 255

cviii. Greek Gold-work of the Fifth Century (British Museum) . . 260

cix. Gold Ornaments from the Crimea (St. Petersburg) . . . 261

cx. Later Greek Gold Ornaments (British Museum) . . . 262

CXI. Hellenistic Silver Work (British Museum) . . . 263

XI

LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS

ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT

FIG. PAGE

1. Plan of the Palace at Tiryns ..... 31

2. Temple in Antis ....... 35

3. Prostyle Temple ....... 35

4. Amphiprostyle Temple ...... 35

5. Peripteral Temple ....... 36

6. Dipteral Temple ....... 36

7. Pseud operipteral Temple ...... 36

8. Part of the Athenian Acropolis, with Plans of Parthenon (A),

Erechtheion (B), and Old Temple of Athena (C) . . 41 •

9. Diagram of Doric Entablature (from the Theseion) . . 44

10. (a) Ionic Entablature ; (6) Ionic Base (Asiatic Type) . . 46

11. Bronze Foundry. From a Vase at Berlin .... 67

12. Parthenon, the East Pediment. (Drawing by Jacques Carrey) . 101

13. Parthenon, the West Pediment. (Drawing by Jacques Carrey) . 101

14. Shapes of Vases ....... 164

15. Inferior of Pottery. (From a Vase at Munich) . . . 167

16. Scene in a Vase-Painter’s Studio. (From a Vase found at Ruvo) . 168

17. Design on Mycenaean Gold Ring (enlarged) . . . 205

18. The Ficoroni Cista ....... 254

XU

Preface

The author desires to express his warmest acknowledgments to the following persons and bodies who have kindly placed illustrations at his disposal : — To the Committee of the British School at Athens and Dr. Arthur Evans for permission to illustrate Cretan pottery and frescoes (Plates i. and iii.) ; to the Council of the Hellenic Society for similar facilities in regard to Plates i., lvi., exiii., and i.xviii. ; to MM. Homolle and Mowat for permission to reproduce Plates xxviii. and xijx. (Fig. 2) from the Fouilles de Delphes ; to Mr. John Murray for kind permission to use his blocks for Figs. 15, IG and Plates iii., Lxxiii., Lxxvii., and lxxx. ; to Messrs. Grevel for similar permission for Plate xxx. ; to ^Ir. J. Pierpont JNlorgan for a photograph of the bronze Eros in his possession (Plate lvii.). Permission to illustrate the Petworth head (p. 119) was unfortunately refused. Among personal friends he desires to thank Mr. R. Phene Spiers, Prof. E. A. Gardner, and Mr. J. ff. Baker-Penoyre for the loan of drawings and photographs, and in particular Mr. G. F. Hill for the loan of casts of coins, and for much valuable assistance in the preparation of Chapter xii. Thanks are also due to JNlessrs. W. A. IMansell and Co. for assistance in regard to many of the photographs ; those of subjects in the British Museum are from their collection, while others have been obtained from the English Photo. Co. (Athens), Messrs. Alinari (Florence), Anderson (Rome), Brogi (Rome), Bruckmann (Munich), and other sources.

In the spelling of the proper names throughout the work it may

• • •

Xlll

PREFACE

be felt that there is a certain inconsistency and want of system, but it is impossible to steer a middle course between the absurdities of extreme pedantry on the one hand, and of wholesale Latinising on the other, without incurring such a charge in a greater or less degree. Experience proves that no one system can entirely disarm criticism, still less command universal approval.

H. B. W.

s

XIV

BIBLIOGRAPHY

GENERAL WORKS

A. Baumeister, Denkmdler des Klassischen Altertuins. 3 vols. Munich and Leipzig 1884-1889.

E. T. Cook, Handbook to the Department of Greek and Roman Antuinities, British Museum. London, 1903.

J. G. Frazer, Commentary on Pausanias. 6 vols. London, 1898.

E. Jex-Blake and E. Sellers, Pliny s Chapters on Art. London, 189d.

A. S. Murray, Handbook of Greek Archaeology. London, 1892.

C. T. Newton, Essays on Art and Archaeology. London, 1880.

G. Perrot, Histoire de 1’ Art dans k Antiquite. Vols. vi.-viii. In progress. Paris, 1894- 1904.

S. Reinach, The Story o f Art through the Ages, chaps, iv.-x. (Eng. Trans., 1904).

F. B. Tarbell, A History o f Greek Art. London, 1890*.

SPECIAL PERIODS AND SUBJECTS

H. R. Hall, The Oldest Civilisation of Greece. London, 1901.

C. Schuchhardt, Schliemann s Excavations (Eng. Trans., 1891).

C. Tsountas and J. I. Manatt, The Mycenaean Age. London and Cambridge (Mass.) 1897.

Annual of British School at Athens, Vols. vii.-x., 1900-1904 (for Excavations in Crete).

See also Quarterly Review, Oct. 1904, p. 374.

E. A. Gardner, Handbook oj Greek Sculpture. 2nd ed. London, 1906.

A. S. Murray, History of Greek Sadpture. 2 vols. London, 1890.

M. Collignon, Histoire de la Sculpture Grecque. 2 vols. Paris, 1892-1897.

A. S. Murray, The Sculptures of the Parthenon. London, 1903.

H. S. Jones, Select Passages from Ancient Authors illustrative of the History of Greek Sculpture. London, 1895.

E. A. Gardner, Ancient Athens. London, 1902.

W. J. Anderson and P. Spiers, The Architecture of Greece and Rome. London, 1902. P. Girard, La Peinture Antique (Bibliotheque de TEnseignement des Beaux-Arts, Paris).

W. Smith, Dictionary oJ Antiquities. 3rd ed., art. Pictura (for Painting).

XV

BIBLIOGRAPHY

H. B. Walters, Ajicieni Pottery. 2 vols. London, 1905.

British Museum Catalogue of Vases. Vols. ii.-iv. 1893-1896.

,, „ Catalogue of Terra-cottas. 1903.

„ „ Catalogue of Gems. 1888.

„ ,, Catalogue of Bronzes. 1 899-

C. A. Hutton, Greek Terra-cottas {Portfolio Monograph, No. 48). London, 1899* J. H. Middleton, Ancient Gems. Cambridge, 189L P. Gardner, Types of Greek Corns. Cambridge, 1883.

B. V. Head, Historia Numorum. London, 1887.

G. F. Hill, Handbook o f Greek and Roman Coins. London, 1899.

A. S. Murray, Greek Bronzes {Portfolio Monograph, No. 36). London, 1898.

XVI

THE ART OF THE GREEKS