The Creative Independence of Late Bronze Age Cyprus: An Account of the Archaeological Importance of White Slip Ware (Denkschriften der Gesamtakademie)
This volume attempts to present a comprehensive account of the historical developments in Cyprus during the period of the production of White Slip Wares (ca 15801180 BC). Using the Kitchen chronology for the Egyptian New Kingdom, which commenced in 1540 BC, the study emphasizes the importance of archaeological records and how context analysis allows more precision in a relative chronology. This period witnessed the emergence of Cyprus into the political and economic interaction of the East Mediterranean. With special focus on White Slip pottery, the historical events outlined herein demonstrate the growth of Cyprus into a vibrant, independent society from the early 16th century BC into the 12th century BC. Throughout this period, Cyprus developed trade, cultural as well as “diplomatic” relations with the most powerful kingdoms of the surrounding area. A focal point of the study is the role of Cypriot wares especially White Slip, Base-ring and Red Lustrous Wheel-made on the island itself as well as in other places. A major role is given to White Slip as it is considered a chronological beacon in the analysis of events during the Late Bronze Age, a time when there are few historical references to the island and its people. Comprising eight chapters, this comprehensive analysis of Cyprus’s material culture is accompanied by a historical account in which the period in Cyprus from 15801180 BC is divided into seven chronological periods based on Astrom’s original chronology. The comprehensive historical discussion in Chapter VII seeks to depict the interactions between Cyprus and the surrounding cultures during this period. The interpretation of the evidence shows that the island’s leaders were skilful in achieving a balance between the interests of these various civilizations, which included the Minoan and Mycenaean from the Aegean, the Canaanite groups, the Hittite Empire, and of course the Egyptians. The evidence shows that independent Late Bronze Age Cyprus established extensive trade and diplomatic links with these societies notwithstanding the various conflicts among them. The Cypriots managed this within the complex and changing interrelationships between the empires during these very turbulent times. In so doing, Late Bronze Age Cyprus managed to develop the creative skills of its people this especially reflected in the wide range of its ceramic wares (such as White Slip) as well as their extensive production and distribution to many lands.
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read moreHellenistic Gold Eros Jewellery: Technique, style and chronology (British Archaeological Reports)
This work presents systematic and objective examination of the large corpus of Hellenistic gold Eros jewellery. By focusing on the question of the interconnections between the major centres of production – Egypt, South Italy and South Russia, Western Asia Minor, Greece and Syria a number of regional schools and new jewellery groups are identified. The keys to the discussion are the well documented find contexts from Northern Greece, South Italy and Tel Atrib (Egypt) that make it possible to arrive at a relative chronology for a particular type of Eros, found throughout the Hellenistic world. The morphological, stylistic, iconographic and technical continuities between Hellenistic jewellery and in particular the Eros motif ensure the successful use of this methodology. Evidence from Koroni in Attica and from several South Italian tomb groups has been examined in detail and dated, according to the methodology described above to ca. 240 BC. The study includes a discussion of the significance of Eros in the Hellenistic period. The study has shown the value of Eros jewellery as an indicator of the cultural life of the Hellenistic world – its values, literature and basic lore about nature and the arts. The Eros motif and its morphological lineage are traced through related depictions in contemporaneous decorative arts. The catalogue has brought together as much material as possible to establish a typology and chronology of Eros jewellery in the hope that it will provide the maximum amount of information for future studies. 32 plates, including 12 in colour, illustrate the work.