Minoan ceramics Automatic translate

Minoan ceramics represent a remarkable achievement of ancient Mediterranean art, displaying an incredible diversity of forms, techniques and decorative solutions. Minoan ceramics, created on the island of Crete between 3000 and 1100 BC, reflect the evolution of artistic styles and technological innovations over two millennia.

Research shows that Minoan potters achieved the highest level of skill in creating thin-walled vessels known as "eggshells", the walls of which were only 1 millimetre thick. Ceramic products served not only utilitarian purposes, but also performed important ritual functions, as evidenced by the finds of rhytons and other ceremonial vessels. The stylistic development of Minoan ceramics from simple incised forms to complex polychrome compositions demonstrates the high level of artistic thinking and technical skill of the ancient Cretan craftsmen.

Chronological development of ceramic traditions

Early Minoan Period

Early Minoan ceramic production was characterized by a gradual increase in complexity of forms and decorative solutions. During the EM I period (3000-2600 BC), simple vessel forms predominated, including bowls, jugs, and cups. The potter’s wheel had not yet become widespread, so most products were molded by hand. The surfaces of ceramics from this period were usually smooth or had minimal decoration.

Decorative elements, when present, were made primarily by incising or stamping into the clay. Craftsmen used pointed tools to create linear patterns, as well as stamps and other objects to create relief prints. Such techniques made it possible to create simple but expressive ornamental compositions on the surface of vessels.

The EM II period (2600-2300 BC) was marked by important technological innovations. The potter’s wheel began to be used more widely, which allowed for more uniform and elegant forms to be created. Geometric patterns became more common in the decoration of ceramics during this period. Popular motifs included zigzags, triangles, and concentric circles, reflecting the continuation of linear traditions in the ornamentation of ceramics.

The EM III period (2300–2100 BC) saw a significant expansion in the typology of ceramic forms. Potters demonstrated increasing levels of specialization and experimentation, producing a greater variety of vessels and containers. Some ceramics from this period were decorated with naturalistic motifs, including depictions of marine life and plant patterns. Although these motifs still retained a certain stylization, they laid the foundation for the more complex images of subsequent periods.

Middle Minoan Period

The Middle Minoan period was an era of revolutionary changes in the ceramic art of Crete. The spread of the fast potter’s wheel led to the creation of finer and better quality products, which in turn contributed to the development of more sophisticated decoration. The ceramics of this period demonstrate significant technological progress and artistic maturity of the Minoan masters.

The MM IA period (2100-1925 BC) was characterized by the appearance of the first examples of the famous Kamares ceramics. Already at an early stage, this style used polychromy, creating bright contrasting compositions on a dark background. Finds from this period have been discovered in Mochlos and Vasiliki in eastern Crete, in Patricia on the Messara plain, and in the Western Court of the palace at Knossos.

During the MM IB period (1925-1875 BC), the Minoans fully mastered the potter’s wheel, which led to the creation of vessels with even thinner walls. Kamares vessels from this period were distinguished by more complex polychrome patterns. Some decorative features indicate that the ceramics were created to imitate metalwork. Kamares pottery shards from this period have been found at El-Lisht in Egypt, near the pyramid of Amenemhat I, indicating extensive trade relations between the Minoans.

Late Minoan Period

The late Minoan period was marked by further improvements in ceramic technology and the emergence of new artistic styles. Ceramics of this period were of higher quality due to firing at higher temperatures. The clay was usually light yellow, and the decor was applied using the technique of a dark pattern on a light background. The best examples were characterized by a glossy black coating with additions of white and red colors.

The first phase of the Late Minoan period (1550-1500 BC, PM IA) included the development of the plant style. Decorative compositions of this time tended to zonal division of the vessel surface. Typical forms were tea cups, jugs with horizontal or cut spouts, rhytons of various shapes and large pear-shaped storage vessels.

The plant style, as its name suggests, used plant motifs in the decoration of vessels. Flowers, grasses and reeds became the main elements of ornamental compositions. These same motifs were often found in the background parts of Minoan frescoes, demonstrating the unity of the artistic language of various types of art.

The second phase (1500-1450 BC, PM IB) continued the development of the previous styles, but added a fundamentally new marine style. The marine style of ceramics received its name due to the use of a wide range of sea creatures in decorative compositions. Octopuses, argonauts, dolphins, fish and starfish were depicted against a background of seaweed, sponges and corals. The compositions, covering the entire surface of the vessel, were distinguished by spontaneity and inventiveness of artistic solutions.

Main ceramic styles

Basilica pottery

Basiliki pottery is a characteristic type of Minoan ware produced in Crete during the Early Minoan period. The style takes its name from finds in the area of ​​the town of Basiliki in the Lasithi region, although similar pottery was also produced elsewhere on the island. Vessels of this type were covered with a reddish-brown glaze, applied unevenly to imitate stone vessels.

The characteristic mottling of Basilica pottery was achieved by unevenly firing the vessel, covered with engobe. The hottest areas acquired a dark color. Given the controlled nature of the mottling, forming a certain pattern, it was probably created by touching with hot coals. There was also a variant of the style with creamy white paint over a reddish-brown glaze, which covered the entire surface of the vessel.

The first examples of Basilica pottery appeared in eastern Crete during the EM IIA period, but it became most widespread in the following period, EM IIB, when it became the dominant form among the quality pottery of eastern and southern Crete. Datings vary among researchers, but the Early Minoan II period is usually assigned to the period between 2600 and 2000 BC.

The typical long-nosed vessels with a relatively small top opening are often called "teapots" by archaeologists. Another common shape was the so-called "shot glass". These characteristic shapes demonstrate the functionality and aesthetic preferences of early Minoan potters.

Kamares ceramics

Kamares pottery is the most characteristic style of Minoan ware, recognizable by its light decoration on a dark background. White, red and orange abstract motifs were applied over a black base, creating bright, contrasting compositions. This prestigious style required a high level of craftsmanship and was presumably used as elite tableware. The best examples were so thin-walled that they were called "eggshell pottery."

The style first appeared in the Middle Minoan IA period (c. 2100 BC) and remained an active part of Minoan culture until the Late Minoan IA period (c. 1450 BC). Although produced in Crete, Kamares pottery was traded throughout the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean. Finds of this pottery have been found in the Levant and Egypt, indicating the extensive trade links of the Minoan civilization.

Kamares ceramics were characterized by the use of light decoration on a dark background. Typical vessels were decorated with combinations of abstract curvilinear patterns and stylized plant and marine motifs. The painting was done in white, red, orange and yellow paints on a black background. Among the surviving examples, ribbed bowls, small round jugs with spouts and pithoi stand out.

The most significant finds from the Middle Minoan II period (c. 1875-1750 BC) come from the palaces of Knossos and Phaistos. These examples demonstrate the highest level of artistic skill and technical execution. The quality of workmanship and the sophistication of the decoration of Kamares ceramics of this period were unparalleled in the contemporary Mediterranean world.

Barbotine ceramics

Barbotine pottery occupies a special place in the history of Minoan pottery as an example of the creative ingenuity of Cretan craftsmen. During the Middle Minoan period, Barbotine pottery demonstrated the creative genius of the Minoan potter. The complex decorative motifs of these vessels played an important role in the development of Minoan pottery.

The barbotin technique included several methods of applying relief decoration to the surface of a vessel. One method involved filling a nozzle, probably made from a goat’s bladder, with engobe and squeezing it onto the surface of the vessel. This method made it possible to create convex lines and patterns of varying complexity.

The irregular polygonal ridges of the Barbotine pottery included four main varieties: monochrome, white-spotted, black-spotted, and sharply delineated. The earliest examples of this style appeared in the MM IA period at Knossos and Phaistos. At Phaistos, such pottery was usually found on globular-conical jugs with a single thick round handle.

Comb decoration was usually arranged in a single broad band around the widest part of the vessel’s body, with brown bands applied above and below. The edge of the spout was often framed by rough bosses with a convexity on either side of the handle. Polygonal comb decoration of all subtypes appeared in the MM IA/Pre-Kamares period and was most frequently used in the MM IB/Early Kamares period.

Shapes and types of vessels

Stirrup-shaped jugs

The stirrup jar is a characteristic vessel type associated with the culture of Mycenaean Greece. These vessels had small, squat bodies, a pouring spout, and a second, non-functional spout above which the handles joined like a stirrup. They were used for the export of oils during the Late Bronze Age and have been found in large quantities at sites throughout the eastern Mediterranean and beyond.

Despite its association with Mycenaean Greece, the stirrup jar is considered a Minoan invention. Researcher H.W. Haskell has suggested that it originated during the Middle Bronze Age as a one-time invention designed to reduce the wasteful pouring of expensive liquids. While earlier vessels required almost complete inversion to pour, pouring from a stirrup jar required only holding the jar by the stirrups and tilting.

Haskell’s view was based on MM III jars found at Kommos (Crete) and Kea (island). From there the form spread to the Cyclades and only later to mainland Greece. Mycenaean stirrup jars were highly standardized, but Minoan and Cycladic examples varied considerably.

Stirrup jugs were decorated with a variety of patterns. They offered two main areas for decoration: the body and the shoulder. These areas were defined by concentric bands of color around the bottom and top of the vessel. The bands were present on almost every stirrup jug, whether the surfaces were painted or not.

Rhytons

A rhyton is a ritual vessel used for pouring liquids, with holes at the top and bottom. Bulls are among the most important images in Minoan art, and as many as eleven bull-headed rhytons come from Knossos. The famous bull-headed rhyton was found in a structure called the Little Palace, about 200 metres northwest of the palace at Knossos.

The rhyton dates from the original Neo-Palaetal period (1600-1450 BC), when the building was constructed. The vessel was probably deliberately broken before being discarded. It is badly damaged - the left side of the bull’s head and left ear, as well as its golden horns, were restored by Sir Arthur Evans.

The bull’s head rhyton was carved from a single block of black soapstone. The carving of the bull’s head is remarkable for its combination of vivid realism and stylization. The bull’s eyes were made of inlaid rock crystal lenses, painted on the flat back with a black iris and red pupil surrounded by white. The edge of the eye was inlaid with red jasper, giving the bull a wild, frightening, bloodshot appearance.

The bull is depicted as shaggy, with realistic strands of hair hanging down over its muzzle. The strands are cut into the soft stone with very small notches and filled with ground white stone to contrast with the black soapstone. The folds of skin on the bull’s neck are carved very realistically. However, other parts of the bull’s image are quite stylized.

Larnaca

A larnaca is a type of small closed coffin, box, or "ash urn" often used in the Minoan civilization and ancient Greece as a container for human remains. Larnacae could contain either the body (folded back on itself) or cremated ashes.

The first larnakes appeared in the Minoan period of the Aegean civilization, when they took the form of ceramic boxes designed to imitate wooden chests. They were probably modeled on Egyptian linen chests. Larnakes were richly decorated with abstract patterns, octopuses, and scenes of hunting and cult rituals.

In the later Hellenistic period, larnakes in the form of small terracotta sarcophagi became popular. Some were painted in styles similar to contemporary Greek vases. In a few special cases, larnakes appear to have been made of precious materials.

Pyxids

Pyxis is a cylindrical box typical of the Minoan ceramic tradition. Most of the Minoan palace centers on Crete were destroyed around 1450 BC, marking the end of Minoan influence on arts and crafts in the Aegean region. These sites were later occupied and rebuilt by the Mycenaeans from mainland Greece.

The pottery produced in Crete during the post-palatial period reflects the introduction of new artistic styles and vessel forms. Although the painted decoration of the pottery of post-palatial Crete is not as fine as the earlier work produced in the palace workshops, the quality of the pottery and pyrotechnology reached a high point. Pyxis is a variation of the characteristic Minoan type, which usually had a taller cylindrical body.

Minoan pyxides demonstrate the evolution of ceramic forms and their adaptation to changing cultural conditions. These vessels served to store various objects and substances, fulfilling both utilitarian and ceremonial functions in Minoan society.

Decorative techniques and motifs

Plant motifs

The plant style of Minoan pottery was characterized by the use of various natural elements in decorative compositions. The most common depictions were of thin branches with papyrus leaves and flowers. Perhaps the most famous example of this style is the Phaistos jug, completely covered with a herbal design.

Plant motifs were not limited to ceramics, but were widely used in various forms of Minoan art. The same motifs were often found in the backgrounds of Minoan frescoes. This indicates a single artistic language that united the various forms of art of the Minoan civilization.

Flowers, grasses and reeds became the main elements of ornamental compositions of the plant style. The masters demonstrated a deep understanding of natural forms, creating stylized but recognizable images of the plant world. This approach reflected the special connection of the Minoan culture with nature and the environment.

The technical execution of plant motifs required high skill from the artists. The craftsmen skillfully used the curves and contours of the vessels to place plant compositions, creating a harmonious unity of form and decor. Plant elements were often arranged zonally, dividing the surface of the vessel into separate decorative areas.

Marine motives

The marine style of ceramics got its name from the use of a wide range of sea creatures in decorative compositions. Octopuses, argonauts, dolphins, fish and starfish were depicted against a background of seaweed, sponges and corals. The compositions covered the entire surface of the vessel and were distinguished by the spontaneity and inventiveness of artistic solutions.

The Marine style perhaps produced the most distinctive Minoan pottery with its detailed, naturalistic depictions of sea creatures. The Minoans took full advantage of the mobility of sea creatures to fill and surround the curved surfaces of their pottery in a truly unique artistic style. This style effortlessly conveyed the island people’s obvious love of the sea.

Octopuses became a particularly popular motif in the marine style due to their flexible tentacles, which were ideal for decorating the rounded surfaces of vessels. Artists masterfully used the natural plasticity of these sea creatures to create dynamic compositions. The images were complemented by sea plants, corals and other elements of the underwater world.

The technique of performing marine motifs required a deep understanding of the anatomy of marine animals and their movements. The masters created not just decorative elements, but lively, dynamic images that conveyed the energy and beauty of the sea. This approach reflected the maritime orientation of the Minoan civilization and its close connection with the Aegean Sea.

Geometric patterns

Geometric forms formed an important part of the decorative repertoire of Minoan potters throughout the history of the civilization. In the Kamares style, curves and spirals were most common, but tassels, rosettes, palms, circles, dots, bands, stripes, and lattices were also used. These geometric elements were often combined with more naturalistic motifs.

Spirals and lines became less common as a central theme in the Neo-Palatial period, but persisted in less significant areas such as around the handles and necks of vessels. This transition reflected the evolution of artistic preferences from abstract to more naturalistic forms of representation.

Geometric patterns also included religious images. These included bull heads, double axes, and sacred knots. These motifs attest to the important role of religious representations in Minoan art and their integration into everyday objects.

Early geometric patterns of the EM II period included zigzags, triangles and concentric circles. These simple forms were gradually complicated and combined to create more complex compositions. Geometric elements served as the basis for the development of more complex decorative systems in subsequent periods.

Technological innovations

Potter’s wheel

The potter’s wheel was a revolutionary innovation in Minoan ceramic production. During the EM II period, the potter’s wheel began to be used more widely, allowing for more uniform and elegant forms to be created. This technology radically changed the capabilities of potters and the quality of the products they produced.

The full development of the potter’s wheel occurred during the MM IB period (1925-1875 BC), when the Minoans fully adopted this technology. The potter’s wheel allowed the creation of vessels with even thinner walls and perfect shapes. Such technological advances became the basis for the development of the Kamares style and other exquisite ceramic traditions.

The introduction of the fast potter’s wheel in the Middle Minoan period led to a transformation of ceramic production. This innovation led to the creation of finer, higher-quality pieces, which in turn stimulated the development of more elaborate decoration. Technological advancement and artistic development went hand in hand in the Minoan ceramic tradition.

The use of the potter’s wheel also contributed to the standardization of vessel shapes and sizes. This was especially important for trade purposes, when vessels of a certain capacity were required to transport goods. Standardization of shapes became a characteristic feature of the late Minoan period.

Firing techniques

Firing techniques developed considerably during the Minoan period. Basilica pottery shows an early mastery of controlled firing. The characteristic mottled appearance was achieved by unevenly firing the engobe-lined vessel. The hottest areas were darkened.

The controlled nature of the spotting, which forms a specific pattern, indicates a high level of technical skill. It is likely that touches with hot coals were used to create the patterns. This technique required a precise understanding of the behavior of clay at different temperatures and the ability to control the firing process.

In the late Minoan period, ceramics were produced at higher quality due to firing at higher temperatures. Higher firing temperatures resulted in stronger, higher quality pieces. Improved firing techniques also allowed paints and glazes to adhere better.

The quality of workmanship and pyrotechnology reached a high point in the post-palatial period. Despite changes in artistic styles, the technical aspects of ceramic production continued to improve. This demonstrates a continuous tradition of technological innovation in Minoan pottery.

Decorative techniques

Minoan potters developed a variety of techniques for applying decoration to the surface of vessels. The barbotine technique included several methods for creating relief decoration. One method involved filling a nozzle, probably made from a goat’s bladder, with engobe and squeezing it onto the surface of the vessel.

The barbotine technique allowed for the creation of complex relief compositions on the surface of ceramics. The masters experimented with Robert Parrott, and researcher Karen Foster studied barbotine techniques. Such experiments helped to understand the working methods of ancient potters and recreate their techniques.

Kamares ceramics demonstrated the highest level of decorative mastery. The technique of light decoration on a dark background required precise application of paints and an understanding of their behavior during firing. Craftsmen created complex polychrome compositions using white, red, orange and yellow paints.

Decorative patterns were applied at various stages of the vessel’s manufacture. Some patterns were created by applying engobe when the pot was in a leather-hard state, or after partial firing. After the final firing, the pattern became an integral part of the hardened surface.