Chapter V: Preface (2)

How did the Greek painter apply the glaze to his pottery? We know that on the broader surfaces the brush was used, for brush marks are clearly visible in many cases.[40] When possible the backgrounds and horizontal bands were painted while the piece was rotating on the wheel; where a panel had to be reserved, the irregularity of free-hand brush work can readily be observed (fig. 54). For the “flat” glaze lines, in both the figured scenes and the ornamental motives, smaller brushes were employed. But what was the instrument which produced the famous “relief” lines, that is, those fine lines which stand out perceptibly from the surface and which were used for the contours and inner markings of the figures during the best red-figured period (fig. 55)? The quality of these lines has been justly admired by all who have studied them and it has been thought that the instrument used had much to do with the result.[41] After a number of experiments with fine brushes, single bristles, reeds, feathers, pens, etc., I have come to the conclusion that it is of little avail to discuss the instrument used before we can employ in our experiments a glaze identical with the Greek. For to get the wonderful flow of the Greek line, the glaze must run much more easily than any imitation black glaze which we have so far produced. The groove which runs down the middle of the relief lines hardly affords a clue; for slight pressure of any instrument seems to produce such a result.

Met. Mus. Acc. No. 10.210.18]

RED OCHRE WASH

In three statements of ancient writers the addition of red ochre to Athenian pottery is referred to.[42] In Pliny, Natural History, XXXV, 152, we read: Boutades inventum est rubricam addere aut ex rubra creta fingere, “Boutades first added red ochre, or made pottery of red clay.” Isidorus, Etymologiae, XX, iv, 3, speaks of pottery vases having been first invented at Samos and then adds: Postea inventum et rubricam addere et ex rubra creta fingere, “a later invention was to add red ochre and to make pottery of red clay.” Suidas in his lexicon, where he describes Cape Kolias as a place in Attica where pottery is made, says that the clay from that region is the best, and adds: ὥστε καὶ βάπτεσθαι ὑπὸ τῆς μίλτου, “so that it is also dyed with red ochre.”

Archaeologists have assumed that this red ochre was mixed with the clay and that to it was due the deeper color of Athenian ware as compared, for instance, with the geometric. Thus in practically all our books on vases the preparation of the clay for the manufacture of Athenian vases is described somewhat as follows: “The clay having been thoroughly purified and washed, was then kneaded and brought to a consistency suitable for shaping it on the wheel. It was at this stage that other substances, chiefly a red earth (ochre = μίλτος), were worked in with the clay to deepen the color.” First of all, it should be noted that if ochre is to be added to the clay it must be done long before the kneading stage, otherwise the red ochre will of course not mix evenly. The best time would be when the clay is dry, so that a definite proportion could be weighed out. But that is too obvious to need discussion. The question is, Does the addition of red ochre materially change the color of the clay? It may be interesting in this connection to record my experience in the matter. About three years ago I was asked to speak at a convention of modern potters meeting at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, on the subject of Greek vases. I thought that these potters would probably be specially interested in the technical side of Greek ceramics, and with the courage of ignorance I described in detail our theories regarding the manufacture of Greek pottery. It was the questions which the potters asked me afterwards which convinced me that it was time I went to a pottery school. One of my statements which aroused considerable interest was this theory that red ochre was added as an ingredient to deepen the color of red clay. Several men came to me after the talk and said, “I don’t see why the Greeks did that; for by just slightly raising the temperature they could easily have deepened the color.” I had no answer then, but when I went to the pottery school I thought I should take nothing for granted, but convince myself by making my own experiments. So I made some tests, adding certain percentages of ochre to see how it would affect the color. Apparently the ochre had little effect, and the pieces with and without ochre were about equally pink when they came out of the kiln. I then burned some pieces without any ochre to a little higher temperature and the red was considerably deepened. I was quite convinced then that the ochre added as an ingredient to the clay would not have the desired result; besides, if we needed further proof we might remember that analyses made of Athenian clay have shown no trace of ochre.[43]

What, then, do Pliny and Suidas mean when they speak of the addition of red ochre to Athenian pottery? A number of archaeologists have observed from time to time that Athenian vases, especially of the late red-figured period, show traces of a reddish pigment applied over the surface. Reichhold in his technical description of vases in Furtwängler und Reichhold, Griechische Vasenmalerei, frequently refers to it as “rötliche Lasur.”[44] Pottier ascribed it to a sort of varnish or lustre applied over the surface of the decorated, fired vase which on decomposition precipitated into a red deposit.[45] Walters thought that red ochre was rubbed on certain parts of the vase which had remained too pale after baking.[46] A detailed examination of the vases in many European and American museums convinced me that the use of this red pigment was quite general throughout the red-figured period, and to a limited extent in the black-figured period. On a few vases it appears in excellent preservation.[47] The majority of red-figured vases of all periods[48] and a few of the black-figured vases[49] show traces of it. When it is not otherwise visible, it can often be detected in the slight depressions of the preliminary sketch, or under the handles, or on the under side of the foot. As the color comes off when rubbed with a damp cloth, it is not surprising that it is not better preserved, after the extensive cleaning that most museum specimens have undergone. But the many traces which are still preserved can only be satisfactorily explained by assuming that it was the general practice—at least in the red-figured period—to apply a red pigment over the whole surface of the vase.

Met. Mus. Acc. No. 12.236.2]

In the light of this experience let us again examine what Pliny and Suidas say. Pliny’s statement is sufficiently vague to make any interpretation possible; but Suidas’ use of the word βάπτεσθαι, “to be dipped,” is illuminating. The clay could not have been “dipped” in a powdery or liquid state, the only way of having the ochre become an actual ingredient in the clay. The term βάπτεσθαι implies that the clay must have become a solid vase, in which case the ochre was applied only on its surface. Indeed Athenaeus (480 E) uses the term βάπτεσθαι to signify the “glazing” or “silvering” of earthen vessels. So that literary testimony seems to agree with the evidence of the vases themselves that the ochre was applied on the surface. At what stage, then, was this ochre added? Was it before or after the black glaze? Careful examination has shown that it was previous to the glazing. When the black glaze is chipped off it generally takes the surface too, so that instances of the red ochre showing underneath are not numerous; but there are nevertheless a number of undoubted examples.[50] An especially convincing instance is on an amphora in the Metropolitan Museum in which a diluted black glaze line goes clearly over traces of the red lift in a preliminary sketch line (fig. 56). Furthermore, in many cases the glaze on the background surfaces has disintegrated and shows the red ochre beneath.[51]

Since the black glaze was probably applied to the leather-hard clay, the ochre wash must also have been added in that state. The leather-hard vase might have been dipped in an ochre solution or the ochre applied with a brush or rubbed into the surface as a powder. In order to make it adhere properly to the clay actual experiments have shown that by far the best results are obtained by giving the surface a good polish after the application of the ochre. The ochre is thereby actually incorporated with the clay and forms a good firm surface. If not so polished, it is powdery after firing and comes off easily.

Experiments further showed that (1) red ochre applied in this manner on the red clay in leather-hard condition produced an effect identical with the red “wash” observable on the Athenian vases; (2) preliminary sketch lines engraved lightly with a blunt tool did not remove the ochre; (3) the ochre in no way interfered with the adhesion of the black glaze over it; (4) the ochre came off only a little at a time even when rubbed hard while wet. It is therefore only during the long processes of wear and time that the red ochre application has worn off. But even when it has entirely disappeared, it has stained the clay a deeper color—namely, the orangey hues which we see now; for the actual color of the clay is lighter and pinker, as any fracture will show.[52]

Originally, however, we learn from our investigation, the red-figured Athenian vases had an even deeper and richer tint than they have now—approaching more nearly the color of copper. The general effect, therefore, must have been considerably more vivid than it is today, and to some this thought may not at first appeal. But we should remember that we are discovering also in other fields that the Greeks loved bright, intense color, not the faded tints that so many of their works present today.

WERE ATHENIAN VASES MADE FOR EVERY-DAY USE?

The theory has often been advanced that the painted black-figured and red-figured vases were made for decoration and for votive and funeral purposes, but not for actual use. Percy Gardner in his Grammar of Greek Art (p. 160) holds this view and gives as his reason that the painted vases were too fragile to be easily handled and too porous to contain liquid. Reichhold in Furtwängler und Reichhold, Griechische Vasenmalerei, Text, I, p. 82, and Skizzenbuch griechischer Meister, p. 10, is of the same opinion, and bases his assumption on the fact that a number of the vases show ancient rivet marks and could not therefore have served any practical purpose in such a condition; also that no ancient vases show signs of wear, which would have been unavoidable if they had been in daily use. Does our investigation of the technique of Athenian vases help to settle this question? Let us look first at the case in its broader aspects.

Nobody can work long with Greek vases or other forms of Greek industrial art without being impressed with the wonderful combination of beauty and practical utility which these objects show. The Greek vases are not only finely proportioned, but each one is admirably adapted to its purpose. We need only try pouring from an oinochoë to see how easily the liquid flows without any danger of spilling; or from a lekythos to see how the oil trickles through the narrow neck, drop by drop, or in a very thin stream, just right for cooking or the making of salad dressing. We need only drink from a kylix to realize how, contrary to expectations, it is an easy and delightful process—the little curve of the rim preventing the liquid from spilling down one’s cheeks.[53] We need only closely observe the handles of Greek vases to see how their positions, their curves, and above all their extraordinary solidity render them eminently practical. Moreover, the study of a hundred little details, the forms of the knobs on pyxides, the projections for holding the lids in place, the outward or inward curves of the lips, the substantial feet, all combine to form overpowering evidence that these vases were designed for actual use. It is only in isolated instances, such as the loutrophoroi which have no bottoms or the white lekythoi which have no connection between the neck and body, that this rule does not hold good. Such vases, however, belong to clearly defined classes evidently made as votive offerings or as tomb furniture.

That the bulk of vases were made for votive purposes, there is no real evidence. Among the many sixth- and fifth-century inscriptions recording such offerings there are few relating to pottery vases. Nor is it conceivable that these vases were purely ornamental. We know that private houses in Athens were at that period excessively simple, consisting mostly of a courtyard and a few rooms opening on it, so that it is not likely that people surrounded themselves with a lot of useless ornaments; nor can we believe that in a period which, at least in the sixth century, was still one of strenuous endeavor, these vases were exported to all parts of the world merely as decorative bric-à-brac. Everything we know of Greek life at that time points against such an assumption. Moreover, if the Greeks had such decorations in their homes we should expect to see, depicted in the vase paintings, cabinets or shelves with vases displayed on them; instead, when vases are shown, they are invariably in actual use, or hanging on a nail on the wall, ready for immediate service.[54]

There is another consideration. Even if, from our modern point of view, we may hesitate to believe that a beautiful cup of Euphronios was used merely as a drinking vessel, where are we to draw the line? Any one who has worked in a museum or has excavated on fifth-century sites knows that besides the selected specimens exhibited in museum cases there are a large number of inferior examples, hastily decorated, which could hardly have been displayed as ornaments, but which are open to the same objections raised against the vases of better workmanship.

And now let us examine these objections. First, the vases are supposed to be too porous to contain liquid. The fineness of the clay, the polish which was imparted to it, and perhaps the application of the ochre tended to reduce this porosity somewhat. In the course of time the deposit left by wine and oil would still further close the pores. In any case, experiments show that Athenian vases do hold liquids without any difficulty. The unglazed portions become damp, and a damp mark is left on the table if the foot is not glazed; but in the days before highly polished furniture there was no strong objection to that, and there was on the other hand a very real advantage. For it allows a certain amount of evaporation which would tend to cool the liquid—a very desirable thing in a warm climate without a regulated ice supply. Any one who has tried the experiment of keeping water in an unglazed jar in a warm room has found that the evaporation keeps it delightfully cool. In southern Europe today liquids are kept in that manner during the summer. We must also remember that a large number of the early wares from the Bronze Age down, as well as the commoner wares at all times, are either wholly unglazed or have unglazed portions. And surely nobody wants to contend that these vases were not manufactured for use.

The objection that Athenian pottery is fragile is easily disposed of. Actual handling of the vases will show that they are anything but fragile, in fact that they are remarkably strong. All those portions which would get special wear, such as handles and rims, are almost always stoutly made, more so than much of the china and earthenware and glass we use today. Occasionally, of course, we get a very thin and delicate example; and that would have to be handled with special care.

Then, as regards the question of wear. Terracotta is, as a matter of fact, one of the most indestructible materials we have, and especially so when glazed. Glazed earthenware, consequently, even though in constant use shows little trace of wear. What little we should expect, a close inspection of Athenian vases will reveal. The black glaze, even when perfectly preserved on the exterior, is much worn on the interior of stamnoi or kraters (cf. fig. 57), where the liquid came in constant contact with the glaze, and the unglazed interiors of amphorai and hydriai are certainly not perfectly fresh and unused looking. It is also noteworthy that finely and poorly decorated vases are in the same condition in this respect. A comparison with the Corean pottery of the Korai period, 935-1392 A.D.,[55] which is known to have been made to serve merely as tomb furniture, is helpful. The fresh and clean insides of these vases offer a very different appearance from that of the discolored interiors of Greek amphorai and hydriai—a clear proof that the Athenian ware did not serve the same unutilitarian purpose as the Corean.

Met. Mus. Acc. No. 07.286.74]

Lastly, regarding the argument about riveted vases, it is surely natural now and then, instead of throwing away a broken pot, to have it put together and make the best of it in its mended state. We do the same thing nowadays. At all events, the vase could still have been used to contain dry materials. Such Athenian vases with ancient rivet marks are in any case infrequent, and do not compare in number with the broken vases which have not been mended.

Such considerations should once for all explode the theory that Athenian vases were not actually used; so that we can think of them, in the way that appeals to our imagination, as serving in the daily life of the Athenians and as adding to the enjoyment of that life, both by their beauty and by their usefulness.

II. REPRESENTATIONS OF ANCIENT POTTERS

An important source of knowledge for the technique of Greek vases is supplied by the representations of ancient potters at work and by potter’s implements which have survived. It may be interesting to review these and see what new interpretations experience at a modern pottery school will suggest.

FASHIONING THE VASES

_1. Black-figured hydria in Munich._

Furtwängler u. Reichhold, Griechische Vasenmalerei, I, Text, p.
159.

Jahn, Beschreibung der Vasensammlung in der Pinakothek zu
München, No. 731.

Furtwängler u. Reichhold, _Griechische Vasenmalerei_, I, Text, p. 159]

An Athenian pottery establishment. To the left a man sits on a stool and is holding with both hands an amphora on his lap; a boy (only the head and one hand are preserved) is standing before him, placing one hand on the body of the vase; the latter is painted black, that is, it has already been glazed. The man has the air of inspecting it, while the boy is apparently helping him hold it (since it is still in leather-hard condition, it requires careful handling). The next group represents a man throwing a tall vase on a wheel; a boy is sitting before him on a low stool, turning the wheel with both hands at whatever speed is required. The vase is so tall that the entire forearm of the potter is inserted; while his other hand (now missing) was doubtless placed on the outside of the vase, so that by the pressure of the two hands the pot might acquire the necessary form and thickness. The vase is painted white to show that it is as yet unglazed. A pair of calipers is hanging on the wall ready for use, to enable the potter to check the heights and widths of his products. To the right a youth is carefully carrying away a vase that has just been thrown, to dry. A similar vase is already standing on the other side of a column, drying in the open air or in a court. Both vases are painted white to indicate their unglazed condition. Next we see an old man walking leisurely with a stick. His dignified air is in strong contrast to the busy absorption of the workmen. He is evidently the overseer or proprietor of the pottery. To his right a tall youth is carrying a heavy weight on his back, apparently a sack of charcoal. He is bringing it to the kiln, which is being stoked by the fireman. The kiln has a satyr head at the top to avert the evil eye and protect the pottery from all danger during the firing.[56]

_2. Fragment of a Corinthian pinax in the Berlin Museum._

Antike Denkmäler, I, 1886, pls. 8, 17.

Furtwängler, Beschreibung der Vasensammlung in Berlin, I, No.
869.

_Antike Denkmäler_, I, pl. 8, No. 17]

A potter throwing a vase on a wheel, with both his hands placed on the outer surface; only the two hands of the potter and the upper part of the wheel with the vase are preserved.

_3. Red-figured fragment from the Akropolis in Athens._

Athenische Mittheilungen, XIV, 1889, p. 157.

_Athenische Mittheilungen_, 1889, p. 157]

A potter is sitting on a stool and throwing a vase on a wheel which is being propelled by a boy; another man sits behind him with a krater on his lap.

_4. Interior of a black-figured kylix in the British Museum._

British Museum, Guide to Greek and Roman Life (2d edition),
1920, p. 182, fig. 218.

Walters, Catalogue of the Greek and Etruscan Vases, II, B.432.

British Museum, _Guide to Greek and Roman Life_ (2d Edition), p. 182, fig. 218]

A potter is sitting in front of his wheel on which a kylix is standing. He is apparently engaged in attaching the handles. On a shelf above are piled some more kylikes and a jug. The whole is very roughly painted.

_5. Corinthian black-figured pinax in the Museum of the Louvre._

Gazette archéologique, VI, 1880, p. 106, 3a.

_Gazette archéologique_, 1880, p. 106 (3a)]

A potter is sitting before his wheel propelling it with one hand. He is working on what appears to be a one-handled jug. He is not “throwing” or “turning” it, since it already has its handle attached. Perhaps he is incising horizontal lines on it, for which process he could easily propel his own wheel. On the wall hang two other jugs (with similar incised lines), and some plates (?) are stacked on the floor.

_6. Corinthian pinax in the Berlin Museum._

Antike Denkmäler, I, 1886, pl. 8, 14b.

Furtwängler, Beschreibung der Vasensammlung in Berlin, I, No.
885.

_Antike Denkmäler_, I, pl. 8, No. 14b]

A man is sitting in front of a tall globular vase on a high foot. He is not throwing it, for there is no indication of a wheel. Perhaps he is joining the sections of a tall vase, some of which are already in place, while one part lies on the floor waiting to be attached. But the whole scene is so roughly painted that it is impossible even to know definitely that a potter is represented.

_7. Interior of a red-figured kylix, Berlin Museum No. 2542._

Rayet et Collignon, Histoire de la céramique grecque, p. XVII,
fig. 7.

Rayet et Collignon, _Histoire de la Céramique grecque_ p. XVII, fig. 7]

A boy is sitting with a cup (kotyle) in one hand and an implement in the other, evidently engaged in a finishing process. Perhaps he is removing the surplus clay after the handles have been attached; for the vase is as yet unglazed and is left in the red color of the clay, in contrast to the black kotyle and oinochoë on the stand close by.

_8. Terracotta statuette of a potter in the British Museum._

British Museum, Guide to Greek and Roman Life (2d edition),
1920, p. 181, fig. 216.

British Museum, _Guide to Greek and Roman Life_ (2d Edition), p. 181, fig. 216]

A man is represented in a crouching attitude apparently engaged in building a pot.

DECORATING THE VASES

_1. Red-figured hydria in Ruvo._

Annali dell’Instituto, 1876, pl. DE.

_Annali dell’Instituto_, 1876, pl. DE]

Athena and two Victories crowning potters at work. To the left is a potter sitting on a low stool and engaged in decorating a volute krater; he is holding a brush in his closed fist in Japanese fashion, and is looking in surprise at the Nike who is crowning him; by his side are two paint pots. In front of him another workman, comfortably seated on a chair, is busily painting a kantharos which he holds tipped on his lap. He also holds the brush in his fist downwards. Another kantharos and an oinochoë stand on the floor, awaiting their turn to be decorated; on a low stand close by are two paint pots, one with its lid tipped against the side. The artist is completely absorbed in his work and has not yet discovered Athena, the patron of arts and crafts, approaching him with a wreath. Behind Athena a third workman is seated on a low stool, decorating a bell krater with a palmette design. He tips up the vase with one hand, holds the brush firmly in his fist, and has his paint pot within easy reach on the floor. A Nike is about to crown him with a wreath; but he, too, is entirely engrossed in his work and quite unconscious of the honor to be conferred on him. Completing the scene on the right is a girl on a low platform painting the handle of a large volute krater. The figure is of special interest today, for it shows that there were women potters then as now. Above her on the wall are suspended a kantharos and a lekythos. The whole scene is of great importance as the most representative we possess of ancient vase painters at work.

_2. Red-figured kylix in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston._

Hartwig, Jahrbuch des Instituts, XIV, 1899, pl. 4.

Hartwig, _Jahrbuch des Instituts_, 1899, pl. IV]

A youth is sitting on a stool, holding a kylix by the foot and decorating the outside of it with what looks like a brush with long bristles, though it has also been identified as a feather (by Hartwig). In the hand that grasps the kylix is a pointed instrument which has been identified by Hartwig as the implement with which the preliminary sketch was drawn. The attitude of the painter suggests the quiet absorption required by a delicate task. Behind the youth is his knotted staff, and on the wall hang his oil flask and strigil.

_3. Fragment of a red-figured kylix, found on the Akropolis,
Athens._

Hartwig, Jahrbuch des Instituts, XIV, 1899, p. 154, fig. 2.

Hartwig, _Jahrbuch des Instituts_, 1899, pl. 154, fig. 2]

A potter glazing the inside of a kylix as it rotates on the wheel. A woman appears to be crowning him with a wreath.

_4. Corinthian pinax in the Berlin Museum._

Antike Denkmäler, I, pl. 8, No. 18.

Furtwängler, Beschreibung der Vasensammlung zu Berlin, I, No.
868.

Antike Denkmäler, I, pl. 8, No. 18]

A potter is sitting on a stool before his wheel, apparently in the act of painting broad black bands on a column krater while the vase is revolving.

_5. Red-figured bell-krater in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford._

Beazley, Journal of Hellenic Studies, XXVIII, 1908, pl. XXXII,
A.

Beazley, _Journal of Hellenic Studies_, XXVIII (1908), pl. XXXII, A.]

To the left a youth is sitting on a stool painting the outside of a bell krater. He is steadying the vase with his left arm placed inside the krater, while he lets the rim rest on his lap. By his side is a low stand with a skyphos evidently containing the paint. A second workman is carrying off another krater to the right. He may be going to fetch some water or wine in it, for it is evidently a completed, fired vase, otherwise he would not be carrying it by the handles. A third workman is moving in the same direction holding up a skyphos, perhaps to get more paint or some water or wine to drink. A krater standing on the ground completes the scene. On the wall hang some implements of the potter’s trade, identified by Beazley from the original as (1) a kylix for drinking, (2) a mortar for grinding the ingredients of the glaze, (3) a brush case, (4) a bowl to contain liquid glaze, (5) a strainer for sieving the glaze.

_6. Bœotian black-figured skyphos in the Polytechnion in
Athens._

Found in Lokris.

Blümner, _Athenische Mittheilungen_, XIV, 1889, p. 151.

Blümner, _Athenische Mittheilungen_, XIV, 1889, p. 151]

The master of the pottery is sitting with a kylix in one hand, while with the other he is trying to beat a slave who is running off with three skyphoi. Three other skyphoi are on the ground, while a kantharos and a skyphos are near by on a shelf. Another workman is inspecting a skyphos he has just glazed; a paint pot and brush are on a low stand by his side. He takes no notice of a scene which is taking place close by, a man beating a slave suspended from the ceiling. The workmanship is very crude, and if it is a product of the pottery establishment which it depicts, it is a fair sample of the work we might expect from a place run on such methods!

FIRING THE VASES

_1-10 Votive tablets or pinakes found at Penteskuphia near
Corinth, dating 650-550 B.C. (figs. 72-80). Nos. 73-78, 80 are
in the Berlin Museum; Nos. 72, 79 in the Museum of the Louvre._

Antike Denkmäler, I, 1886, pl. 8, Nos. 1, 4, 12, 15, 19b,
21, 22, 26 (Furtwängler, Beschreibung der Vasensammlung zu
Berlin, I, Nos. 608, 802, 616, 893, 909, 827, 611). Gazette
archéologique, VI, 1880, p. 105 (1), p. 106 (1).

_Antike Denkmäler_, I, pl. 8, 26.

_Gazette archéologique_, VI, p. 105.]

_Representations of potter’s kilns._

The kilns are domed, and have three openings, one at the bottom for the fuel, one on the side for the insertion of the ware and to act as a spy-hole, and one at the top to let out the smoke and for the regulation of the draught. On figs. 72-79, the firemen are busy stoking the fire, and climbing to the top of the kiln to manipulate the draught-hole with a hooked implement; for the flames are seen emerging at the top, which means that heat is being wasted. Fig. 80 shows the inside of a kiln, in horizontal section, with two openings for the fire, each opening having two channels into the kiln. The vases should of course stand upright, but the painter naturally found it difficult to depict them in the right perspective looking at them from the top.

_Antike Denkmäler_, I, pl. 8, Nos. 4, 12, 1, 21, 22; _Gazette archéologique_, VI, p. 106.]

Furtwängler (Beschreibung der Vasensammlung zu Berlin, I, p. 70, note) was inclined to think that these ovens are not pottery kilns, but furnaces for metal smelting. His objections, however, do not hold. The ovens are not too large for pottery, and the climbing to the top for the regulation of the draught is a well-known proceeding. Moreover, the scene (fig. 80) showing the stacked vases, the little pots painted on figs. 75 and 78 as if to indicate the purpose of the ovens, and the representations of potters at work on other tablets, make the interpretation as pottery kilns the most likely. These pictures are of special importance since no actual Greek kilns have yet been discovered, though several Etruscan and numerous Roman ones have come to light (cf. Montelius, Civilisation primitive, pl. 107, 11, and Blümner, op. cit., II, pp. 23 ff.).

_Antike Denkmäler_, I, pl. VIII, No. 19b]

MISCELLANEOUS SCENES

_1. Engraved gem, present whereabouts not known._

Millin, Peintures de vases antiques, II, title vignette.

Millin, _Peintures de vases_, II, title vignette]

A youth is sitting in front of an oven removing with two sticks a two-handled vase which has been placed there for drying. He is using the sticks instead of his fingers because the pot is too hot to touch; not in order to avoid injuring the fresh glaze on the vase, as has been suggested (cf. Blümner, Technologie u. Terminologie II, 1895, p. 52), for the sticks would mark the glaze as much as the fingers would. Modern potters often use sticks for removing hot ware from the kilns (cf. p. 36).

_2. Engraved gem, present whereabouts not known._

Millin, Peintures de vases antiques, I, vignette.

Blümner, Technologie u. Terminologie, II, p. 52, fig. 13.

Millin, _Peintures de vases_, I, vignette]

A youth is sitting on a low tripod in front of an oven. He holds a jug by the handle, and seems to be working on it with an instrument. It is not clear what he is doing; the way he holds the vase by one handle suggests that the vase has been fired. On the oven are a kylix and an oinochoë, perhaps placed there for drying.

_3. Archaic Greek stele in the Akropolis Museum, Athens._

Lechat, _La Sculpture attique avant Pheidias_, p. 367, fig. 29.

Dickins, Catalogue of the Akropolis Museum at Athens, p. 272,
No. 1332.

Lechat, _La Sculpture attique avant Phidias_, p. 367, fig. 29]

A bearded man is represented seated, holding in his left hand two kylikes, one by the handle, the other by the foot. A large part of the stele is missing. The figure has been interpreted, with some probability, as a “master potter.”

_4. Greek stele in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York._

Richter, Handbook of the Classical Collection, p. 209, fig. 125.

Met. Mus. Acc. No. 08.258.42]

A woman is represented seated with a pyxis on her lap and a lekythos in one hand. On the analogy of the Akropolis stele, it is possible that here too we have a votive offering of a potter.

_5. Interior of a kylix in the Johns Hopkins University,
Baltimore._

Hartwig, Die griechischen Meisterschalen, pl. XVII, I, and
title vignette.

Hoppin, A Handbook of Attic Red-Figured Vases, II, p. 355.

Hartwig, _Die griechischen Meisterschalen_, title vignette]

A client in a potter’s shop is examining the stacked ware, and holds his purse ready to pay for what he will select.

_6. Fragment of a Corinthian pinax in the Berlin Museum._

Antike Denkmäler, I, 1886, pl. 8, 3a.

Furtwängler, Beschreibung der Vasensammlung zu Berlin, I, No.
831b.

_Antike Denkmäler_, I, pl. 8, 3a]

Sailing-ship with a sheet wound round the mast, and a row of jugs painted in the field above. The latter apparently indicate the cargo of the ship, and the tablet is probably an offering of a merchant to the sea-god Poseidon for the safe conduct of his precious consignment to foreign lands.

This is the only picture we have of the transport of Greek vases, which we know played so significant a part in Greek ceramic industry. Even in the seventh century B.C., when most important localities produced their own wares, such shipments must have been frequent, since, for instance, large numbers of Corinthian vases have been unearthed in Etruria, and Laconian vases are found scattered far and wide. In the sixth and fifth centuries B.C., when Athens supplied a large part of the Greek world with her pottery, the trade must have been an exceedingly active one; so that we must imagine ship after ship laden with pottery sailing from the Piraeus for distant lands.

REPRESENTATIONS WRONGLY INTERPRETED AS POTTERY SCENES

From time to time various representations have been interpreted as pottery scenes which probably have no such significance. The following are the two most important.

_1. Interior of a kylix in the Metropolitan Museum of Art._

A satyr is stoking the fire of an oven on which is a skyphos. This scene is figured in many of the books on vases (cf. e.g. Walters, History of Ancient Pottery, I, p. 216, fig. 68) and interpreted as a satyr firing pottery; probably he is simply cooking his dinner.

_2. Interior of a kylix._

Gerhard, Auserlesene Vasenbilder, pls. CLXXX-CLXXXI.

Youth holding the rim of a large krater with both hands. He is sometimes interpreted as a potter working on a vase; but there is no clear connection with pottery work.

POTTER’S IMPLEMENTS

Unfortunately very few potter’s implements of classical Greek times have survived. We have no Athenian wheel or kiln or turning tools. And even from other periods the list of such utensils is a slim one. But what has survived here and there from other periods is in line with the general trend of the evidence—that the techniques in ancient times were very similar to what they are today. Perhaps the most interesting pieces are the terracotta disks found at Gournia, Arezzo, and elsewhere,[57] which are wheel-heads[58] on which the pottery was thrown and turned. On the under side of some of these is a hole for insertion in the pivot (fig. 87).

British Museum, _Guide to Greek and Roman Life_ (2d Edition), p. 181, fig. 217]

The potter’s tools found at Arezzo (fig. 88)[59] are not unlike our modern modeling tools and were doubtless used for various finishing processes.

Daremberg et Saglio, _Dictionnaire des antiquités grecques et romaines_, p. 1122, fig. 3036]

In the British Museum (Nos. 74.7-10,302) are terracotta stilts used for supporting vases in the kilns, very like the stilts used by potters today. It is unlikely that they were used by the Athenian potters, since the Greek black glaze is so thin it would not be apt to run, but for the Roman ware with metallic glaze they were essential, and the marks they left are visible on the feet of the vases.[60] On one of the British Museum stilts (fig. 89) are remains of a greenish glaze from such a vase. No moulds for the Athenian plastic ware have to my knowledge been found. But moulds for the later wares, such as the Arretine, are of course plentiful. They are invariably made of burnt clay. The kilns which have survived all date from Roman times (cf. Blümner, op. cit., II, pp. 23 ff.).

III. REFERENCES TO THE POTTERY CRAFT IN ANCIENT LITERATURE

The information derived from ancient literature on the subject of the technique of Athenian vases is decidedly meagre; and naturally so. The only people who could have given us valuable data regarding technical questions were the potters themselves, and they were not writers. Outsiders knew as little of the technique of the craft as they do today. So we obtain from them only general remarks; and these on the whole bear out the points we have already made. Occasionally, however, they throw fresh light on a question, or give us information on some point on which the vases themselves cannot speak, such as the status of the ancient potters, the value placed on the vases, etc. It is important, therefore, to examine the chief references in Greek and Roman literature on this subject.

PREPARATION OF THE CLAY

_Geoponica_, II, 49.

3. It is most necessary for every reason to have potters (on
a farm), since we are convinced that it is possible to find
potter’s clay on any land; for either on the surface, or deep
down, or in out-of-the-way places on the land you will find
earth suitable for making pottery.

3. Ἀναγκαιότατον δὲ καὶ κεραμέας ἔχειν πάντων ἕνεκα,
πεπεισμένον ὅτι ἐν πάσῃ τῇ γῇ ἔστιν εὑρεῖν κεραμικὴν γῆν, ἢ γὰρ
ἐπιπολάσιον, ἢ ἐν βάθει, ἢ ἐν ἀποκεκρυμμένοις μέρεσι καὶ τόποις
τοῦ χωρίου ἐπιτηδείαν γῆν πρὸς κατασκευὴν κεράμων εὑρήσεις.

The abundance of clay on Greek soil must have helped the manufacture of the many local varieties before Athens obtained the monopoly in the sixth century B.C.

_Geoponica_, VI, 3.

_On making pithoi_

1. Not all earth is suitable for pottery, but with regard to
potter’s clay, some prefer the yellowish red, some the white,
and others mix the two. 2. Some in judging of a well-made
pithos are satisfied if, when struck, it gives forth a sharp,
clear sound. 3. That, however, is not enough, but the person
in charge ought to be present while the work is going on, and
see to it that the clay has been well worked, and not let it be
put on the wheel before the clay shows what sort of pot it will
make when fired.

περὶ κατασκευῆς πίθων

1. Γῆ οὐ πᾶσα ἐπιτήδειος πρὸς κεραμείαν, ἀλλὰ τῆς κεραμίτιδος
γῆς οἱ μὲν προκρίνουσι τὴν πυρρὰν τὸ χρῶμα, οἱ δὲ τὴν λευκήν,
οἱ δὲ ἀμφοτέρας συμμιγνύουσι. 2. Τινὲς μὲν οὖν ἀρκοῦνται ἐν
τῇ δοκιμασίᾳ τοῦ καλῶς κεκεραμευμένου πίθου, τῷ κρουσθέντα
αὐτὸν ἀποδοῦναι ἦχόν τινα ὀξὺν καὶ πορόν. 3. Οὐκ ἔστι δὲ τοῦτο
αὔταρκες, ἀλλὰ χρῆ τὸν κατασκευάζοντα παρεῖναι τῇ κεραμείᾳ, καὶ
ὅπως ὁ πηλὸς καλῶς εἰργασμένος εἴη προνοῆσαι, καὶ μὴ πρὶν ἐᾶσαι
ἐπὶ τὸν τροχὸν ἀναβιβάσαι, πρὶν τὸν πηλὸν διαδεῖξαι ὁποῖος
ἔσται ὁ πίθος ὀπτηθείς.

Good potters were evidently well aware, then as now, of the importance of the right composition and consistency of their clay. It is also interesting to note that potters in modern Athens still regularly use a mixture of red and white clay (cf. p. 40, note 2).

_Sophokles_, _Fragments_, 438.

First begin to work the clay with your hands.

Καὶ πρῶτον ἄρχου πηλὸν ὀργάξειν χερσῖν.

_Hesychius_, _Lexicon_, _s. v._ ὀργάσαι.

ὀργάσαι: to make ready; or as is said, to knead the clay, which
is to prepare it, to mix it, to wet it, to work it into a
plastic mass.

ὀργάσαι· ἑτοιμάσαι, καὶ τὸν πηλὸν ὀργάσαι φασίν, ὅ ἐστιν
ἑτοίμασαι, φυρᾶσαι, βρέξαι, ἀνάδευσαι.

Ὀργάσαι in other words was the Greek expression for wedging the clay and getting it ready for throwing.

FASHIONING THE VASES

(1) WHEELWORK

_Diodorus Siculus_, IV, 76.

Talos, the son of Daedalus’ sister, was brought up as a child
by Daedalus, and being cleverer than his teacher, he invented
the potter’s wheel.

Τῆς ἀδελφῆς τῆς Δαιδάλου γενόμενος υἱὸς Τάλως ἐπαιδεύετο παρὰ
Δαιδάλῳ παῖς ὢν τὴν ἡλικίαν, εὐφυέστερος δ’ ὢν τοῦ διδασκάλου
τὸν κεραμευτικὸν τροχὸν εὗρε.

_Strabo_, _Geography_, VII, p. 303.

Ephoros says that Anacharsis’ inventions were the bellows, the
double-fluked anchor, and the potter’s wheel. I repeat this
statement, although I am well aware that this writer is not
very accurate, and especially in the account of Anacharsis,
for how could the potter’s wheel be an invention of his, while
Homer[61] who was of an earlier time knew of it?

Ὁ Ἔφορος ... εὑρήματά τε αὐτοῦ λέγει τά τε ζώπυρα καὶ τὴν
ἀμφίβολον ἄγκυραν καὶ τὸν κεραμικὸν τροχόν. ταῦτα δὲ λέγω σαφῶς
μὲν εἰδὼς ὅτι καὶ οὗτος αὐτὸς οὐ τἀληθέστατα λέγει περὶ πάντων,
καὶ δὴ καὶ τὸ τοῦ Ἀναχάρσιδος. πῶς γὰρ ὁ τροχὸς εὕρημα αὐτοῦ,
ὃν οἶδεν Ὅμηρος πρεσβύτερος ὤν;

_Pliny_, _Natural History_, VII, 198.

Coroebus the Athenian invented earthen pots, and among the
inventors, the Scythian Anacharsis, or as others say, Hyperbius
the Corinthian, discovered the potter’s wheel.

... figlinas (invenit) Coroebus Atheniensis, in iis orbem
Anacharsis Scythes, ut alii, Hyperbius Corinthus.

_Critias_, _Elegies_, I, 12-14 (Bergk).

The child of the wheel and the earth and the kiln, the famous
pottery, useful house servant, that city invented which set up
the glorious trophy at Marathon.

Τὸν δὲ τροχοῦ γαίης τε καμίνου τ’ ἔκγονον εὗρεν,
κλεινότατον κέραμον, χρήσιμον οἰκονόμον,
ἡ τὸ καλὸν Μαραθῶνι καταστήσασα τρόπαιον.

It is natural that the ancients should have attributed the great invention of the potter’s wheel to various individuals or cities, but they themselves realized the anomaly of ascribing it to a comparatively recent period, when it was known to Homer (see below). Actual remains of wheel-thrown vases show that the wheel was known in Crete and Greece in the Early Minoan and Early Helladic III periods (before 2200 B.C.) and in Egypt in the third and fourth dynasties[62] (about 3000 B.C.).

_Homer_, _Iliad_, XVIII, 599-601.

And now they would run round with deft feet exceeding lightly,
as when a potter sitting by his wheel that fitteth between his
hands maketh trial of it whether it run. (Lang, Leaf and Myers.)

Οἱ δ’ ὁτὲ μὲν θρέξασκον ἐπισταμένουσι πόδεσσιν,
ῥεῖα μαλ’, ὡς ὅτε τις τροχὸν ἄρμενον ἐν παλάμῃσιν.
ἑζόμενος κεραμεὺς πειρήσεται, αἵ κε θέῃσιν.

_Plutarch_, _De genio Socratis_, p. 588f.

One ought not to be surprised at seeing the movement of large
merchant-vessels controlled by small helms, nor the whirling of
the potter’s wheel moving regularly at the mere touch of the
tips of his fingers.

Οὐ δεῖ δὲ θαυμάζειν ὁρῶντας τοῦτο μὲν ὑπὸ μικροῖς οἴαξι μεγάλων
περιαγωγὰς ὀλκάδων, τοῦτο δὲ τροχῶν κεραμεικῶν δίνησιν ἄκρας
παραψαύσει χειρὸς ὁμαλῶς περιφερομένων.

_Persius_, _Satires_, III, 23-24.

[Advice to an idle young man of good position.]

You are wet, soft clay; at this very moment you should be
hastening to shape yourself on the swift wheel.

udum et molle lutum es, nunc nunc properandus et acri fingendus
sine fine rota.

_Hippokrates_, Περὶ Διαίτης, I, _Littré_, VI, p. 494, §22.

Potters turn the wheel which moves neither backward nor forward
and at the same time imitates the rotation of the universe, and
on this same wheel as it whirls they make things of all kinds,
no one of them like another, from the same materials with the
same tools.

Κεραμέες τροχὸν δινέουσι, καὶ οὔτε ὀπίσω οὔτε πρώσω προχωρέει
καὶ ἀμφοτέρωσε ἅμα τοῦ ὅλου μιμητὴς τῆς περιφορῆς· ἐν δὲ τῷ αὐτῷ
ἐργάζονται περιφερομένῳ παντοδαπά, οὐδὲν ὅμοιον τὸ ἕτερον τῷ
ἑτέρῳ ἐκ τῶν αὐτῶν τοῖσιν αὐτοῖσιν ὀργάνουσιν.

The fascination of a pot shaped on a rapidly turning wheel appealed to the ancients as it does to us; and the parallelism between a pot in the making and man shaped by life is too obvious to have escaped them. Hippokrates’ remark that of the vases produced on the wheel no two are alike is characteristic of the Greek love of variety.

_Ecclesiasticus_, 38, 32.

So does the potter sitting at his work and turning his wheel
round with his feet, who is always painstaking with his task;
and all his work is done by number. He moulds the clay with
his arm, and his feet. [Literal translation of the Greek text
written by a Hebrew and evidently colored by his own idiom.]

Οὕτω κεραμεὺς καθήμενος ἐν ἔργῳ αὐτοῦ, καὶ συστρέφων ἐν ποσὶν
αὐτοῦ τροχόν, ὃς ἐν μερίμνῃ κεῖται διὰ παντὸς ἐπὶ τὸ ἔργον
αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἐναρίθμιος πᾶσα ἡ ἐργασία αὐτοῦ.

Ἐν βραχίονι αὐτοῦ τυπώσει πηλόν, καὶ πρὸ ποδῶν κάμψει ἰσχὺν
αὐτοῦ.

This is the only place in ancient literature in which the action of the foot in wheelwork is referred to. In the second century B.C., therefore, we might assume the knowledge of the kick-wheel, though it may well have been in use long before then, since it is a simple and obvious device. Where labor, however, was cheap and plentiful, as in fifth-century Athens, a slave boy turning the wheel for the potter, whose whole strength and attention could then be expended on his work, would be preferable; and this is the manner in which wheelwork is depicted in Athenian vase paintings (cf. pp. 64 ff).

_Athenaeus_, XI, p. 480 c.

These kylikes are clay drinking-cups, and are so called from
being turned on the wheel.

Ταῦτα δ’ ἐστὶ κεράμεα ποτήρια καὶ λέγεται ἀπὸ τοῦ κυλίεσθαι τῷ
τροχῷ.

The kylix is, of course, the wheel-made vase par excellence. Nothing so light and graceful or with such a fine flow of line could be produced by handwork.

_Plato_, _Gorgias_, p. 514 e.

Is not this, as they say, to learn the potter’s craft by
undertaking a pithos, ... and does not this seem to you a
foolish thing to do?

Τὸ λεγόμενον δὴ τοῦτο ἐν τῷ πίθῳ τὴν κεραμείαν ἐπιχειρεῖν
μανθάνειν ... οὐκ ἀνοητόν σοι δοκεῖ ἂν εἶναι οὕτω πράττειν;

_Plato_, _Laches_, p. 187 b.

For if this is your first attempt at education, you must take
care lest you try the experiment, not on a Carian slave, but on
your sons or the children of your friends, and let the proverb
fit you which says that the potter’s art is in the pithos.

Εἰ γὰρ νῦν πρῶτον ἄρξεσθε παιδεύειν, σκοπεῖν χρὴ μὴ οὐκ ἐν τῷ
Καρὶ ὑμῖν ὁ κίνδυνος κινδυνεύηται, ἀλλ’ ἐν τοῖς ὑέσι τε καὶ
ἐν τοῖς τῶν φίλων παισί, καὶ ἀτεκνῶς τὸ λεγόμενον κατὰ τὴν
παροιμίαν ὑμῖν συμβαίνῃ ἐν πίθῳ ἡ κεραμεία γιγνομένη.

_Scholiast on Plato_, _Laches_, p. 187 b.

The proverb, “in the pithos is the potter’s art,” about those
who skip the first lessons and take hold of the greatest tasks
which are properly the last.

Παροιμία, ἐν πίθῳ τὴν κεραμείαν, ἐπὶ τῶν τὰς πρώτας μαθήσεις
ὑπερβαινόντων, ἁπτομένων δὲ τῶν μειζόνων καὶ ἤδη τῶν
τελειοτέρων.

_Corpus Paroemiographorum Graecorum_, _Zenobius_, III, 65.

“I learn the potter’s craft on the pithos”; a proverb upon
those who skip the first lessons, and immediately attempt
greater things; as if anyone who was learning to be a potter,
before learning to mould plates or any other small thing,
should undertake a pithos.

Ἐν πίθῳ τὴν κεραμείαν μανθάνω: Παροιμία ἐπὶ τῶν τὰς πρώτας
μαθήσεις ὑπερβαινόντων, ἁπτομένων δὲ εὐθέως τῶν μειζόνων. Ὡς
εἴ τις μανθάνων κεραμεύειν, πρὶν μαθεῖν πίνακας ἢ ἄλλο τι τῶν
μικρῶν πλάττειν, πίθῳ ἐγχεροίη.

The fact that there was a Greek proverb on the folly of attempting large vases before a thorough knowledge of the craft has been acquired, shows how common was the realization of the difficulty of the task.

_Plutarch_, _Quaestiones conviviales_, II, p. 636 c.

Polykleitos the modeler said that the work is most difficult
when the clay stands the test of the nail (?).

Πολύκλειτος ὁ πλάστης εἶπε χαλεπώτατον εἶναι τοὔργον, ὅταν ἐν
ὄνυχι ὁ πηλὸς γένηται.

If we interpret this passage as referring to a potter, and ὅταν ἐν ὄνυχι γένηται as meaning when the stage has been reached that the clay is hard enough to be scratched with the nail, this may possibly be an allusion to turning; which may well be called the most difficult process of pottery making. But this interpretation is very uncertain. The passage is usually taken as referring to the sculptor’s last touches on a clay model for a bronze statue.

(2) BUILDING

_Geoponica_, VI, 3 (4).

4. Potters do not use the wheel for all pithoi, but only for
the small ones. The larger ones they build up day by day,
placing them on the ground in a warm room, and thus make them
large.

4. Οὐ πάντας δὲ τοὺς πίθους ἐπὶ τὸν τροχὸν ἀναβιβάζουσιν
οἱ κεραμεῖς, ἀλλὰ τοὺς μικρούς. τοὺς μέντοι μείζους χαμαὶ
κειμένους ὁσημέραι ἐν θερμῷ οἰκήματι ἐποικοδομοῦσι, καὶ
μεγάλους ποιοῦσιν.

_Pollux_, _Onomasticon_, VII, 164.

164. That around which those who make pithoi put the clay and
shape it—this wooden core is called κάναβος.

164. Περὶ δὲ ὃ οἱ τοὺς πίθους πλάττοντες τὸν πηλὸν περιτιθέντες
πλάττουσι, τοῦτο τὸ ξυλήφιον κάναβος καλεῖται.

Such hand-built ware does not, of course, include the large painted kraters and amphorai of Athenian make; for these have all the ear-marks of wheel-thrown pottery. Wooden cores are still used today in the making of cement forms. Since the clay cement shrinks upon drying and the wood does not, care must be taken to prevent the former from cracking. The wooden core is therefore made in collapsible form. A wedge is made in the center and a core built around it. When the work is finished the wedge can be drawn out and the sides of the core will fall in.[63]

FIRING THE VASES

_Geoponica_, VI, 3 (5).

5. The firing is no small part of the potter’s craft. Not too
little or too much fire should be built under the pots, but
just enough.

Οὐ μικρὸν δὲ τῆς κεραμίας ἐστὶ μέρος ἡ ὄπτησις· δεῖ δὲ μήτε
ἔλαττον, μήτε πλέον, ἀλλὰ μεμετρημένως τὸ πῦρ ὑποβάλλειν.

_Vita Herodotea_ λβ = _Epigrammata Homerica_, 14.

(Text of T. W. Allen, in Oxford University Classical Texts.)

Some potters, seeing him [Homer] setting out the next morning
while they were building a fire in a kiln of fine pottery,
called him to them, knowing that he was a poet, and they
bade him sing, promising to give him some of the pottery and
whatever else they had, and Homer sang to them the following
poem, which is called the “Kiln”:—