History of Ancient Pottery: Greek, Etruscan, and Roman. Volume 2 (of 2)Walters, H. B. (Henry Beauchamp)
History
History of Ancient Pottery: Greek, Etruscan, and Roman. Volume 2 (of 2)
Walters, H. B. (Henry Beauchamp)
Mythology, Classical, in art; Pottery, Ancient; Pottery, Etruscan; Pottery, Greek; Pottery, Roman
The region with which the present section deals is that comprised by
the three districts of Apulia, Lucania, and Campania. The barbarian
races by which it was occupied in classical times were known by various
names, used with some vagueness; but roughly we may divide them into
two groups: the Iapygians or Messapians and the Peucetians, occupying
the south-east portion of the peninsula from modern Bari to the end of
the “heel”[2378]; and the Osco-Samnites, who occupied Campania and the
mountainous district of Samnium on its north-eastern border. In Lucania
the district of Sala Consilina has yielded local pottery.[2379] The
Osco-Samnites appear to have been more amenable to the influence of
Greek civilisation than the others, owing to the existence in their
midst of such centres of culture as Cumae, Capua, and Poseidonia
(Paestum); hence we find that the pottery of that region shows a much
more Hellenic character than that of Apulia, and is more like that of
Etruria in its attempts to imitate the Greek imported fabrics (see Vol.
I. p. 484).
Greek painted vases are found in Southern Italy as early as the seventh
century B.C., though even in “Aegean” times they had penetrated as far
as Sicily, and even Marseilles (see Vol. I. pp. 69, 86).[2380] At Cumae
in particular, and also at Nola, “Proto-Corinthian” and Corinthian
wares have been found; during the sixth century Ionic and Attic B.F.
wares make their appearance, but never in large quantities, as in
Etruria. They, however, gave rise to a class of imitative fabrics found
chiefly in Campania: small amphorae and other forms rudely painted with
black silhouettes, dating from the fifth century. At Tarentum the finds
of vases have been mainly Greek, but even these are comparatively rare.
The principal examples of local wares are to be seen in the museums of
Bari, Lecce, Taranto, and Naples; the British Museum, Louvre, and
Berlin only possess isolated specimens.[2381] The general scarcity of
imports is due, Signor Patroni thinks, to the restricted intercourse
between the colonies on the coast and the interior districts peopled by
hostile local tribes. After the fifth century, when large numbers of
Greek artists were established in the towns of Southern Italy, the
circumstances became different, and we have already made in Chapter XI.
a general survey of the various fabrics produced from that time in the
various centres down to the total decay of the art.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account