The art of Homeric Greece. Culture of Ancient Greece: briefly. Features of the culture of Ancient Greece Features of the art of ancient Greece Homeric

04.03.2020

The oldest initial period of development Greek art is called Homeric (12th - 8th centuries BC). This time was reflected in the epic poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey”, the author of which the ancient Greeks considered the legendary poet Homer. Although Homer's poems developed in their final form later (in the 8th - 7th centuries BC) - they tell about more ancient public relations, characteristic of the time of decomposition of the primitive communal system and the emergence of a slave society.

During the Homeric period, Greek society as a whole still retained the tribal system. Ordinary members of the tribe and clan were free farmers, partly shepherds. Crafts that were predominantly rural in nature received some development.

But the gradual transition to iron tools and improved agricultural methods increased labor productivity and created conditions for the accumulation of wealth, the development of property inequality and slavery. However, slavery in this era was still episodic and patriarchal in nature; slave labor was used (especially at the beginning) mainly in the household of the tribal leader and military leader - the basileus.

Basileus was the head of the tribe; he united in his person judicial, military and priestly power. The basileus ruled the community together with a council of tribal elders, called the boule. In the most important cases, a national assembly was convened - the agora, consisting of all free members of the community.

Tribes that settled at the end of the 2nd millennium BC on the territory modern Greece, were then still at a late stage of development of pre-class society. Therefore, the art and culture of the Homeric period took shape in the process of processing and developing those essentially still primitive skills and ideas that the Greek tribes brought with them, having only to a small extent assimilated the traditions of a higher and more mature artistic culture Aegean world.

However, some legends and mythological images that developed in the culture of the Aegean world entered the circle of mythological and poetic ideas of the ancient Greeks, just as various events in the history of the Aegean world received figurative and mythological translation in the legends and epics of the ancient Greeks (the myth of the Minotaur, the Trojan epic cycle, etc.). The monumental architecture of ancient Greek temples, which originated in the Homeric period, used and in its own way reworked the type of megaron that had developed in Mycenae and Tiryns - a hall with a vestibule and a portico. Some of the technical skills and experience of Mycenaean architects were also used by Greek craftsmen. But in general, the entire aesthetic and figurative structure of the art of the Aegean world, its picturesque, exquisitely expressive character and ornamental, patterned forms were alien to the artistic consciousness of the ancient Greeks, who initially stood at an earlier stage of social development than the states of the Aegean world that switched to slavery.

12th - 8th centuries BC were the era of addition Greek mythology. During this period, the mythological character of the consciousness of the ancient Greeks received its most complete and consistent expression in epic poetry. Large cycles of epic songs reflected the people's ideas about their life in the past and present, about gods and heroes, about the origin of earth and sky, as well as people's ideals of valor and nobility. Later, already in the archaic period, these oral songs were compiled into large, artistically completed poems.

Ancient epic along with the mythology inextricably linked with him, he expressed in his images the life of the people and their spiritual aspirations, having a huge influence on the subsequent development of Greek culture. His themes and plots, reinterpreted in accordance with the spirit of the times, were developed in drama and poetry, reflected in sculpture, painting, and drawings on vases.

The fine arts and architecture of Homeric Greece, with all their directly popular origins, did not reach any breadth of coverage public life, nor the artistic perfection of epic poetry.

112. Dipylon amphora. 9-8 centuries BC e. Athens. National Museum.

The earliest works of art (that have come down to us) are vases of the “geometric style”, decorated with geometric patterns applied brown paint on the pale yellowish background of the clay vessel. The ornament usually covered the vase in its upper part with a series of ring belts, sometimes filling its entire surface. The most complete picture of the “geometric style” is given by the so-called Dipylon vases dating back to the 9th - 8th centuries. BC and found by archaeologists in an ancient cemetery near the Dipylon Gate in Athens. These very large vessels, sometimes almost as tall as a person, had a funerary and cult purpose, repeating in shape clay vessels that were used to store large quantities of grain or vegetable oil. On the Dipylonian amphorae the ornamentation is especially abundant: the pattern most often consists of purely geometric motifs, in particular meander braiding (the meander ornament remained as an ornamental motif throughout the development of Greek art). In addition to geometric patterns, schematized plant and animal patterns were widely used. Animal figures (birds, animals, such as deer, etc.) are repeated many times throughout individual stripes of the ornament, giving the image a clear, albeit monotonous, rhythmic structure.

Important feature later Dipylon vases (8th century BC) is the introduction into the pattern of primitive plot images with schematized figures of people, reduced almost to a geometric sign. These plot motifs are very diverse (the ritual of mourning the deceased, a chariot race, sailing ships, etc.). For all their sketchiness and primitiveness, the figures of people and especially animals have a certain expressiveness in rendering general movement and clarity of the story. If, in comparison with the paintings of Cretan-Mycenaean vases, the images on the Dipylonian vases are more crude and primitive, then in relation to the art of pre-class society they certainly mark a step forward.

The sculpture of Homer's time has reached us only in the form of small sculptures, most of which are clearly of a cultic nature. These small figurines depicting gods or heroes were made of terracotta, ivory or bronze. Terracotta figurines found in Boeotia, completely covered with ornaments, are distinguished by their primitiveness and undifferentiated forms; Some parts of the body are barely outlined, others are excessively highlighted. Such, for example, is the figure of a sitting goddess with a child: her legs are fused with the seat (throne or bench), the nose is huge and beak-like, the master is not at all interested in conveying the anatomical structure of the body.

113 a. Horse. Hercules and the centaur. Bronze figurines from Olympia. 8th century BC e. New York. Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Along with terracotta figurines, there were also bronze ones. "Hercules and the Centaur" and "Horse", found at Olympia and dating back to the end of the Homeric period, give a very clear idea of the naive primitiveness and schematism of this small bronze sculpture, intended for dedications to the gods. The figurine of the so-called “Apollo” from Boeotia (8th century BC) with its elongated proportions and general structure of the figure resembles images of a person in Cretan-Mycenaean art, but differs sharply from them in its frontal rigidity and schematic convention of conveying the face and body.

The monumental sculpture of Homeric Greece has not reached our time. Its character can be judged from the descriptions of ancient authors. The main type of this sculpture were the so-called xoans - idols made of wood or stone and apparently representing a roughly processed tree trunk or block of stone, completed with a barely outlined image of the head and facial features. Some idea of this sculpture can be given by geometrically simplified bronze images of gods found during excavations of a temple in Dreros on Crete, built in the 8th century. BC the Dorians, who had already settled on this island long before.

113 6. Plowman. Terracotta from Boeotia. 8th century BC e. Paris. Louvre.

Features of a more lively attitude towards real world Only a few terracotta figurines from Boeotia dating back to the 8th century are possessed, such as, for example, a figurine depicting a peasant with a rogue; Despite the naivety of the solution, this group is comparatively more truthful in its motive of movement and less bound by the stillness and conventionality of the art of the Homeric period. In this kind of images one can see some parallel to the epic of Hesiod created at the same time, glorifying peasant labor, although here fine arts looks very far behind the literature.

By the 8th century, and perhaps also by the 9th century. BC, also include the oldest remains of monuments of the early greek architecture(temple of Artemis Orthia in Sparta, temple in Thermos in Aetolia, mentioned temple in Dreros in Crete). They used some traditions of Mycenaean architecture, mainly the megaron-like general plan; the hearth-altar was placed inside the temple; On the facade, as in the megaron, two columns were placed. The most ancient of these structures had walls made of mud brick and a wooden frame, placed on a stone plinth. Remains of ceramic cladding have been preserved upper parts temple. In general, the architecture of Greece in the Homeric period was at the initial stage of its development.

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About the book
« General history Arts" volume I Academy of Arts of the USSR Institute of Theor

From the editorial board
B.V. Weimarn, B.R. Vipper, A.A. Guber, M.V. Dobroklonsky, Yu.D. Kolpinsky, V.F. Levenson-Lessing, K.A. Sitnik, A.N. Tikhomirov, A.D. Chegodaev “General History of Art” prepared by the Institute of Theo

General history of art. Volume 1
Art Ancient world: primitive art, art of Western Asia, Ancient Egypt, Aegean art, ancient Greek art, Hellenistic art, art Ancient Rome, Northern

Origin of art
N. Dmitriev Art as a special area of human activity, with its own independent tasks, special qualities, served by professional artists, it became possible

The main stages in the development of primitive art
V. Shleev Primitive art, that is, the art of the era of the primitive communal system, developed over a very long time, and in some parts of the world - in Australia and Oceania, in

Aegean art
N. Britova In the development of the culture of the peoples who lived among Mediterranean Sea, Aegean culture played a big role. It developed on the islands and shores of the Aegean Sea, in the eastern part of the Mediterranean

General characteristics of the culture and art of Ancient Greece
The art of Ancient Greece, which played a crucial role in the development of culture and art of mankind, was determined by social and historical development Greece, deeply different from the development of countries and

Greek Archaic Art
During the Archaic period (7th - 6th centuries BC), Greek art moved far from the primitive art forms of the Homeric period. It has become incomparably more complex and, most importantly, has taken the path of realism.

Hellenistic Art
At the end of the 4th century. BC the slave states of the eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East entered a new period of their historical and cultural development, scientifically called ell

Art of Ancient Rome
From the end of the 1st century. BC leading value V ancient world acquires Roman art. At this time, Rome became a world power. The crisis of the slave system of the Hellenistic states ended

Etruscan art
The Etruscan country, located on the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea, extended east to the Apennine mountain range. Northern border of Etruria at the end of the 7th century. BC reached the Po River, and in the south it captured

Art of the Roman Republic
Foreign policy history of the Roman Republic since the establishment of the republican system at the end of the 6th century. BC until the beginning of the imperial period at the end of the 1st century. BC is divided into several stages. Per

Art of the Roman Empire 1st century. n. uh
By the end of the 1st century. BC The Roman state became the largest slave-owning power. Its vast size necessitated a complex government apparatus to manage the vast economy.

Art of the Roman Empire 2nd century. AD
For the Roman Empire 2nd century. AD was a period of growth of its territory, the rise of culture and art, and at the same time a period of strengthening external and internal contradictions of the Roman slave state

Art of the Roman provinces of the 2nd - 3rd centuries. AD
In the history of art of Ancient Rome, provincial art occupies a significant place, the heyday of which dates back to the 2nd - 3rd centuries. AD The western provinces - Spain, Gaul and others - were strongly

Art of the Roman Empire 3rd - 4th centuries
In the 3rd century. The crisis of Roman slave society deepened. Already in the first half of the century, during the reign of the Severan dynasty (193 - 235), the process of decomposition of the slave system intensified, expanded

Art of the Northern Black Sea Coast
N. Britova The Northern Black Sea region is a territory stretching from the mouth of the Danube through the Crimea and the shores of the Sea of Azov to the coast of the Caucasus. Pre-revolutionary Russian and Soviet archaeological research

Art of Ancient Transcaucasia
V. Shleev The formation of the culture of the tribes and peoples of Transcaucasia, who lived in the mountainous regions and valleys of the rivers Rion, Kura and Araks south of the Greater Caucasus Range, dates back to ancient times.

Art of Central Asia
M. Dyakonov Central Asia in the Soviet scientific literature it is customary to call the vast territory bounded from the west by the Caspian Sea, from the south by the Kopet-Dag mountains and the Hindu Kush mountain system, with

Art of Ancient India
N. Vinogradova, O. Prokofiev The culture of India is one of the most ancient cultures of mankind, continuously developing over several millennia. During this time, numerous

Art of Ancient China
N. Vinogradova Research by archaeologists has established that the territory of China has been inhabited since the time of the Lower Paleolithic. It was in China that the oldest remains of fossil humans were found (

Yu. Kolpinsky

The oldest initial period in the development of Greek art is called Homeric (12th - 8th centuries BC). This time was reflected in the epic poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey”, the author of which the ancient Greeks considered the legendary poet Homer. Although Homer's poems took shape in their final form later (in the 8th - 7th centuries BC), they tell about more ancient social relations characteristic of the time of the decomposition of the primitive communal system and the emergence of a slave society.

Tribes that settled at the end of the 2nd millennium BC on the territory of modern Greece, were then still at a late stage of development of pre-class society. Therefore, the art and culture of the Homeric period took shape in the process of processing and developing those essentially still primitive skills and ideas that the Greek tribes brought with them, who only to a small extent assimilated the traditions of the higher and more mature artistic culture of the Aegean world.

12th - 8th centuries BC were the era of the formation of Greek mythology. During this period, the mythological character of the consciousness of the ancient Greeks received its most complete and consistent expression in epic poetry. Large cycles of epic songs reflected the people's ideas about their life in the past and present, about gods and heroes, about the origin of earth and sky, as well as people's ideals of valor and nobility. Later, already in the archaic period, these oral songs were compiled into large, artistically completed poems.

The ancient epic, along with the mythology inextricably linked with it, expressed in its images the life of the people and their spiritual aspirations, having a huge influence on the subsequent development of Greek culture. His themes and plots, reinterpreted in accordance with the spirit of the times, were developed in drama and poetry, reflected in sculpture, painting, and drawings on vases.

The fine arts and architecture of Homeric Greece, with all their directly popular origins, did not reach either the breadth of social life or the artistic perfection of epic poetry.

The earliest works of art (that have come down to us) are “geometric style” vases, decorated with geometric designs painted with brown paint on the pale yellowish background of a clay vessel. The ornament usually covered the vase in its upper part with a series of ring belts, sometimes filling its entire surface. The most complete picture of the “geometric style” is given by the so-called Dipylon vases dating back to the 9th - 8th centuries. BC and found by archaeologists in an ancient cemetery near the Dipylon Gate in Athens (ill. 112). These very large vessels, sometimes almost as tall as a person, had a funerary and cult purpose, repeating in shape the clay vessels used to store large quantities of grain or vegetable oil. On the Dipylonian amphorae the ornamentation is especially abundant: the pattern most often consists of purely geometric motifs, in particular meander braiding (the meander ornament remained as an ornamental motif throughout the development of Greek art). In addition to geometric patterns, schematized plant and animal patterns were widely used. Animal figures (birds, animals, such as deer, etc.) are repeated many times throughout individual stripes of the ornament, giving the image a clear, albeit monotonous, rhythmic structure.

An important feature of the later Dipylon vases (8th century BC) is the introduction into the pattern of primitive plot images with schematized figures of people reduced almost to a geometric sign. These plot motifs are very diverse (the ritual of mourning the deceased, a chariot race, sailing ships, etc.). Despite their sketchiness and primitiveness, the figures of people and especially animals have a certain expressiveness in conveying the general nature of the movement and the clarity of the story. If, in comparison with the paintings of Cretan-Mycenaean vases, the images on the Dipylonian vases are more crude and primitive, then in relation to the art of pre-class society they certainly mark a step forward.

Along with terracotta figurines, there were also bronze ones. “Hercules and the Centaur” and “Horse”, found at Olympia and dating back to the end of the Homeric period (ill. 113 a), give a very clear idea of the naive primitiveness and schematism of this small bronze sculpture, intended for dedications to the gods. The figurine of the so-called “Apollo” from Boeotia (8th century BC) with its elongated proportions and general structure of the figure resembles images of a person in Cretan-Mycenaean art, but differs sharply from them in its frontal rigidity and schematic convention of conveying the face and body.

Only some terracotta figurines from Boeotia dating back to the 8th century have features of a more lively relationship to the real world, such as, for example, a figurine depicting a peasant with a rogue (ill. 113 6); Despite the naivety of the solution, this group is comparatively more truthful in its motive of movement and less bound by the stillness and conventionality of the art of the Homeric period. In this kind of images one can see some parallel to the epic of Hesiod, created at the same time, glorifying peasant labor, although here too the visual arts look very far behind literature.

By the 8th century, and perhaps also by the 9th century. BC, also include the oldest remains of monuments of early Greek architecture (the temple of Artemis Orthia in Sparta, the temple in Thermos in Aetolia, the mentioned temple in Dreros in Crete). They used some traditions of Mycenaean architecture, mainly the megaron-like general plan; the hearth-altar was placed inside the temple; On the facade, as in the megaron, two columns were placed. The most ancient of these structures had walls made of mud brick and a wooden frame, placed on a stone plinth. The remains of the ceramic cladding of the upper parts of the temple have been preserved. In general, the architecture of Greece in the Homeric period was at the initial stage of its development.

Aegean culture played a major role in the development of the culture of the peoples living near the Mediterranean Sea. It developed on the islands and shores of the Aegean Sea, in the eastern Mediterranean, for almost two thousand years, from 3000 to 1200 BC.

Cretan and Mycenaean building art. Mycenaean fortresses, palaces and tombs. Architecture of Ancient Greece. Periods of development of Greek architecture.

Homeric period. Archaic. Classics: early classic, high classic, late classic. Hellenism. The originality of the historical development of Ancient Greece. The formation of medieval art in Byzantium and the countries of the Middle East.

ABSTRACT on Ancient art Orientalizing style vase painting Minsk, 2000 “... Neither deserts, nor steppes. Nothing endless, except the blue, calm sky. The land into which the sea cuts widely here and there. Transparent air and light pouring from above, penetrating and illuminating everything.

Ancient kingdom (30-24 centuries BC). Art of the middle kingdom (21-18 centuries BC). Art of the new kingdom (16-11 centuries BC).

The art of Ancient Greece, which played a crucial role in the development of the culture and art of mankind, was determined by the social and historical development of Greece, which was deeply different from the development of the countries and peoples of the Ancient East.

Stages of development of Greek culture. Mythology archaic Greece. "Golden Age" of Athens. Masterpieces of ancient Greek literature: Alcaeus, Echilus, Sophocles, Aristophanes. Greek pottery from the Archaic era. The crisis of the Greek polis, its signs. Homer "Iliad", "Odyssey".

During the Archaic period (7th - 6th centuries BC), Greek art moved far from the primitive art forms of the Homeric period. It has become incomparably more complex and, most importantly, has entered the path of realistic development.

The largest number of surviving monuments of Etruscan art dates back to the 6th - early 5th centuries. BC At this time Etruria was experiencing strong impact Greek culture, and during the same period Etruscan art experienced its heyday.

Classical Greece is separated from Mycenaean Greece by three and a half or even four centuries of the so-called. "Mycenaean regression" or "dark ages". This period is also called the "geometric style".

The so-called Aegean, or Cretan-Mycenaean art, played a huge role in the formation of the art of the peoples living in the Mediterranean basin. Aegean culture took shape and developed in the 3rd-2nd millennia BC. e.

A clearer picture of the development of art can only be outlined from the time of its formation in the territory Central Asia class society. This process began in Central Asia in the second quarter of the 1st millennium BC.

During this period of transition from the tribal system to the early slave-owning class society, Greek mythology and epic took shape. The Greeks were pagans. They worshiped many gods, led by Zeus.

Abstract Topic: The artistic culture of Ancient Greece during the archaic and early classical periods. Student of 9th grade High school No. 23 Borisov Margolin Ilya.

Traces of human activity in the Nile Valley go back to ancient times. Monuments dating back to the 5th millennium BC provide a relatively complete picture of the society that took shape here. They talk about the primitive communal nature of society.

Early research literary monuments, works created by Homer and Hesiod. Historical information, features literary creativity Homer. The language of Homer's poems, Homer in antiquity, the mystery of Homer's personality. Features of Hesiod's mythology.

Consideration of the time frame of existence, features of wall painting, architecture, religious, philosophical views, monuments of crafts and arts of the ancient civilization of Ancient Greece, the Cretan-Mycenaean culture during the period of Homer, archaic, heyday.

The art of Ancient Greece played a vital role in the development of culture and art of mankind. It was determined by the social and historical development of this country, which was deeply different from the development of the countries of the Ancient East. In Greece, despite the presence of slavery, the free labor of artisans played a huge role - until the development of slavery had a destructive effect on it. In Greece, within the framework of a slave-owning society, the first principles of democracy in history developed, which made it possible to develop bold and deep ideas that affirmed the beauty and significance of man.

During the transition to a class society, a number of small city-states, the so-called policies, were formed in Ancient Greece. Despite the presence of numerous economic, political, and cultural ties, the poleis were independent states and each pursued its own policy.

Stages of development of the art of Ancient Greece:

1. Homeric Greece(12-8 centuries BC) - the time of the collapse of the tribal community and the emergence of slave relations. The appearance of the epic and the first, primitive monuments of fine art.

2. Archaic, or the period of formation of slave-owning city-states (7-6 centuries BC) - a time of struggle between ancient democratic artistic culture and the remnants and survivals of old social relations. The formation and development of Greek architecture, sculpture, crafts, the flowering of lyrical poetry.

3 Classic, or the heyday of the Greek city-states (5-4 centuries BC) - a period of high prosperity of philosophy, natural scientific discoveries, the development of poetry (especially drama), a rise in architecture and the complete victory of realism in the fine arts. At the end of this period, the first crisis of the slave society began, the development of the polis came into decline, which in the second half of the 4th century caused a crisis in the art of classics.

3. Hellenistic period(late 4th-1st centuries BC) - a period of short-term recovery from the crisis through the formation of large empires. However, very soon there came an inevitable aggravation of all the insoluble contradictions of slavery. Art is losing the spirit of citizenship and nationality. Subsequently, the Hellenistic states were conquered by Rome and included in its empire.

The poleis were constantly at enmity with each other, however, they united in the event of an attack on Greece by a common enemy (this was the case with Persia and Macedonia). Every citizen had the right to participate in government. Naturally, there were internal contradictions among free citizens, often expressed in the struggle of the demos (the people) against representatives of the aristocracy.

In Ancient Greece, physical strength and beauty were especially valued: pan-Greek competitions were organized in Olympia (Peloponnesian Peninsula). Time was kept at the Olympics, and statues were erected for the winners. Theatrical performances, initially associated with religious festivities, including those in honor of the patrons of the policies (for example, the festival of the Great Panathenaia for the Athenians), were of great importance in the development of aesthetic perception. The religious views of the Greeks retained their connection with folk mythology Thus, religion was intertwined with philosophy and history. A characteristic feature of the mythological basis of Greek art is its anthropomorphism, that is, the deep humanization of mythological images.

Monuments of ancient Greek art for the most part have not reached us in originals, many antique statues known to us from marble ancient Roman copies. During the heyday of the Roman Empire (1st-2nd centuries AD), the Romans sought to decorate their palaces and temples with copies of famous greek statues and frescoes. Since almost all large Greek bronze statues were melted down during the years of the collapse of ancient society, and marble ones were mostly destroyed, it is often only by Roman copies, usually also inaccurate, that one can judge a number of masterpieces of Greek culture. Greek painting in the originals has also hardly survived. Frescoes of a late Hellenistic nature, sometimes reproducing earlier examples, are of great importance. Some idea about monumental painting give images on Greek vases. Written evidence is also of great importance, the most famous of which are:"Description of Hellas" by Pausanias,"Natural History" by Pliny"Paintings" of Philostratos, senior and junior,"Description of Statues" by Callistratus,"Ten Books on Architecture" by Vitruvius.

Art of Homeric Greece

(12th - 8th centuries BC)

This time was reflected in epic poems -"Iliad" and The Odyssey, which is believed to have been written by Homer. During the Homeric period, Greek society as a whole still retained the tribal system. Ordinary members of the tribe and clan were free farmers, partly shepherds. Slavery had an episodic and patriarchal character; slave labor was used (especially at the beginning) mainly in the household of the tribal leader and military leader - the basileus. Basileus was the head of the tribe, and united in his person judicial, military and priestly power. He governed the community together with the council of elders - boule. On the most important occasions, a national assembly called the agora was assembled.

The monumental architecture of ancient Greek temples, which originated in the Homeric period, used and in its own way reworked the type of megaron that had developed in Mycenae and Tiryns - a hall with a vestibule and a portico. The expressive ornamental character of the Aegean world was alien to the artistic consciousness of the ancient Greeks.

The earliest works of art that have come down to us are vases.“geometric style”, decorated with patterns painted with brown paint on the pale yellow background of the clay vessel. The most complete picture of this style is given by Dipylon vases. These are very large vessels, sometimes as tall as a person, and had a funeral or cult purpose. On Dipylon amphorae the ornamentation is especially abundant: the pattern most often consists of purely geometric motifs, in particular a meander braid (the meander ornament was preserved throughout the development of Greek art). Schematized plant and animal ornaments were also used.

An important feature of later Dipylon vases is the introduction of primitive plot images with schematized figures of people into the pattern. These plot motifs are very diverse: the ritual of mourning the deceased, a chariot race, sailing ships, etc.

The sculpture of this period has reached us onlybut in the form of small plastic works, mostly of a cult nature. These are small figurines depicting gods or heroes, made of terracotta, ivory or bronze.

"Horse" and " Hercules and the centaur", Olympia

"Plowman", Boeotia

Apollo, Boeotia

The monumental sculpture of Homeric Greece has not reached our time. Its character can be judged from the descriptions of ancient authors. The main type of such sculpture were the so-called xoans - idols made of wood or stone.

By the 8th century BC. include the remains of monuments of early Greek architecture.

Temple of Artemis Orthia in Sparta (reconstruction)

The ruins of the temple in Thermos in Aetolia have been preserved andframe at Dreros on Crete. They used some traditions of Mycenaean architecture, mainly a general plan similar to a megaron: the hearth-altar was placed inside the temple, and 2 columns were placed on the facade. The most ancient of these structures had walls made of mud brick and a wooden frame on a stone base.

Greek Archaic Art

(7th-6th centuries BC)

The power of the head of the tribe - the basileus - dates back to the 8th century. BC was greatly limited by the dominance of the tribal aristocracy - the eupatrids, who concentrated wealth, land, slaves in their hands - and then, in the 7th century. BC, disappeared completely. The archaic period became a time of fierce class struggle between the clan nobility and the people. The Eupatrides sought to enslave free community members, which could lead Greek society along the path of the eastern slave states. It is no coincidence that some monuments of this time resemble ancient Eastern art. The complete or partial victory of the broad mass of free peasants, artisans and merchants led to the establishment of the ancient version of a slave society.

During the 7th-6th centuries. BC Greek settlements expanded - colonies were formed along the shores of the Mediterranean and Black Sea. Settlements in southern Italy and Sicily - the so-called Magna Graecia - were especially important in the further history of ancient Greek culture.

During the archaic period, a system of architectural orders developed, which formed the basis of everything further development ancient architecture. At the same time, plot vase painting blossomed and the path to depicting a beautiful, harmoniously developed person in sculpture was gradually outlined. Also important is the composition of lyric poetry, which means interest in the world of a person’s personal feelings.

The evolution of Greek sculpture

In general, the art of the archaic period is conventional and schematic. Ancient myths and tales are widely reflected in the fine arts. Towards the end of the archaic period, themes taken from reality increasingly began to penetrate into art. By the end of the 6th century BC. classical tendencies begin to come into increasing conflict with the methods and principles of archaic art.

Even in ancient times, the art of Greece created new type building, which became a reflection of the ideas of the people - a Greek temple. The main difference from the temples of the Ancient East was that it was the center major events public life of citizens. The temple was the repository of the public treasury and artistic treasures, the square in front of it was a place of meetings and celebrations. The architectural forms of the Greek temple did not develop immediately.

Types of Greek Temples

The temple erected to God always had its main façade facing east, and temples dedicated to heroes deified after death faced west, towards the kingdom of the dead. The simplest and oldest type of stone archaic temple was temple "in the antas." It consisted of one small room - pump, open to the east. On its façade, between antami(i.e., the projections of the side walls) 2 columns were placed. It was not suitable for the main structure of the polis, so it was most often used as a small structure, for example, the treasury in Delphi:

A more advanced type of temple was prostyle, on the front facade of which 4 columns were placed. IN amphiprostyle a colonnade adorned both the front and rear facades, where there was an entrance to the treasury.The classic type of Greek temple was peripter, i.e. the temple had a rectangular shape and was surrounded on all 4 sides by a colonnade. The basic elements of the peripter design are simple and deeply folk in origin. In its origins, the design goes back to wooden architecture with adobe walls. From here comes the gable roof and beamed ceilings, the columns go back to wooden posts. The architects of Ancient Greece sought to develop the artistic possibilities hidden in the design of the building. This is how a clear and integral, artistically meaningful architectural system emerged, which later, among the Romans, received the name warrants, which means order, structure.

In the Archaic era, the Greek order developed in two versions - Doric and Ionic. This corresponded to the two main local schools of art. Doric order embodied the idea of masculinity, and ionic- femininity. Sometimes in the Ionic order the columns were replaced by caryatids - statues of dressed women.

The Greek order system was not a stencil mechanically repeated in every decision. There was a warrant common system rules, and the solution was always of a creative individual nature and was consistent not only with specific construction tasks, but also with the surrounding nature, and in the classical period - with other buildings of the architectural ensemble.

The Doric temple-peripterus was separated from the ground by a stone foundation - stereobat, which consisted of 3 steps. Login naos(a rectangular temple room) was located behind the colonnade on the side of the main facade and was decorated with a pronaos, reminiscent of a portico in design"Temple in Ants" Sometimes, in addition to the naos, there was also opisthodomous- a room behind the pump, with an exit towards the rear facade. Naos was surrounded on all sides by a colonnade -"pteron"(wing, peripterus - winged temple on all sides).

The column was the most important part of the order. The column of the Doric order in the archaic period was squat and powerful - the height is equal to 4-6 lower diameters. The column trunk was cut through a series of longitudinal grooves - flute. The columns of the Doric order are not geometrically precise cylinders; in addition to the general narrowing upward, they had some uniform thickening at the height of one third - entasis.

The Ionic order column is taller and thinner in proportions, its height is equal to 8-10 lower diameters. It had a base from which it seemed to grow. The flutes, which in the Doric column converged at an angle, in the Ionic column were separated by flat cuts of edges - this made the number of vertical lines seem to double, and due to the fact that the grooves in the Ionic column were cut deeper, the play of light and shadow on it was richer and more picturesque. The capital had an echinus forming 2 graceful curls.

The Doric order system in its main features developed already in the 7th century. BC (Peloponnese and Magna Graecia), the Ionic order developed towards the end of the 7th century. BC (Asia Minor and island Greece). Later, in the era of classics, the third order was developed - Corinthian - close to the Ionic and distinguished by the fact that in it the columns were more elongated in proportion (up to 12 lower diameters) and were crowned with a lush basket-shaped capital composed of floral ornament- stylized acanthus leaves - and curls (volutes).

Earlier temples often had capitals that were too heavy or column trunks that were too short; the aspect ratio of the temple was often disproportionate. Gradually all the shortcomings disappeared.

Temple of Hera (Heraion) in Olympia, 7th century. BC

Temple of Apollo in Corinth (Peloponnese), 2nd floor. 6th century BC

Coloring found its place in archaic architecture; the main colors were most often combinations of red and blue. The tympanums of the pediments and the backgrounds of the metopes, triglyphs and other parts of the entablature were painted, and the sculpture was also painted.

Temples of Ionia, i.e. cities of the coast of Asia Minor and islands, were especially distinguished large sizes and luxury of decoration. This was reflected in the connection with the culture of the East. These temples turned out to be away from the main line of development of Greek architecture. Classic architecture developed everything best sides Ionic order, but remained alien to lush luxury; this feature was developed only in the Hellenistic era. The most famous example of archaic temples in Ionia is the temple of Artemis in Ephesus (2nd half of the 6th century BC) - diptera, more than 100 m in length

Model of a temple in Istanbul in Miniaturk Park

The Archaic period was a period of flourishing of artistic crafts, especially ceramics. Usually vases were covered with artistic painting. In the 7th and especially in the 6th century. BC A system of permanent forms of vases developed that had different purposes. The amphora was intended for oil and wine, the krater was for mixing water with wine during a feast, wine was drunk from the kylix, and incense was stored in the lekythos for libations on the graves of the dead. During the early archaic period (7th century BC), Greek vase painting was dominated by a style imitating the East, a whole series ornaments were borrowed from the East. In the 6th century. BC the so-called black-figure vase painting arrived. The patterned ornament was replaced by a clear silhouette pattern.

Black-figure vase painting reached its greatest flowering in Attica. The name of one of the suburbs of Athens, famous in the 6th and 5th centuries. BC by its potters, - Keramik - turned into the name of products made from baked clay.

Crater of Clytius, made in the workshop of Ergotim (560 BC) or Vase of Francois

The most famous Attic vase painter is Exekius. Among him best works a drawing on an amphora depicting Ajax and Achilles playing dice and an image of Dionysus in a boat (bottom of the kylix):

The vase paintings of another equally famous master, Andokidas, are known for their realistic motifs, which sometimes conflict with the techniques of planar archaic vase painting: an amphora with the image of Hercules and Cerberus (Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts).

The paintings of late black-figure vases provided, for the first time in Greek art, examples of a multi-figure composition in which everything characters were in real relationship. As realism grew in Greek art, vase painting showed a tendency to overcome flatness. This led around 530. BC to a whole revolution in the technique of vase painting - to the transition to red-figure vase painting, with light figures on a black background. Excellent examples were created in Andokida's workshop, but all possibilities were fully revealed already during the period of classical art.

The development of archaic sculpture was contradictory. Almost until the very end of the archaic period, strictly frontal and motionless statues of gods were created. This type of statue includes:

Hera from the island of Samos andArtemis from the island of Delos

Goddess with Pomegranate, Berlin Museum

The seated figures of the rulers were distinguished by their oriental spirit ( archons) placed along the road to ancient temple Apollo (Didymeion) near Miletus (in Ionia). These schematic, geometrically simplified stone statues were made very late - in the middle of the 6th century. BC The images of the rulers are interpreted as solemn cult images. Such statues were often of colossal size, also imitating in this sense Ancient East. Particularly typical of the archaic period were upright naked statues of heroes, or, later, warriors - kouros. The appearance of the image of kouros was of great importance for the development of Greek sculpture; the image of a strong, courageous hero or warrior was associated with the development of civic consciousness and new artistic ideals. The general development of the kouros type went towards ever greater fidelity to proportions and a move away from conventional decorative ornamentation. This required radical shifts in human consciousness, which occurred after the reforms of Cleisthenes and the end of the Greco-Persian wars.

Chapter “The Art of Homeric Greece.” Section "The Art of Ancient Greece". General history of art. Volume I. Art of the Ancient World. Author: Yu.D. Kolpinsky; under the general editorship of A.D. Chegodaeva (Moscow, State Publishing House "Art", 1956)

The oldest initial period of development of Greek art is called Homeric (12-8 centuries BC). This time was reflected in the epic poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey”, the author of which the ancient Greeks considered the legendary poet Homer. Although Homer's poems took shape in their final form later (in the 8th-7th centuries BC), they tell about more ancient social relations characteristic of the time of the decomposition of the primitive communal system and the emergence of a slave society.

12th-8th centuries BC were the era of the formation of Greek mythology. During this period, the mythological character of the consciousness of the ancient Greeks received its most complete and consistent expression in epic poetry. Large cycles of epic songs reflected the people's ideas about their life in the past and present, about gods and heroes, about the origin of earth and sky, as well as people's ideals of valor and nobility. Later, already in the archaic period, these oral songs were compiled into large, artistically completed poems.

The fine arts and architecture of Homeric Greece, with all their directly popular origins, did not reach either the breadth of social life or the artistic perfection of epic poetry.

The earliest works of art (that have come down to us) are “geometric style” vases, decorated with geometric designs painted with brown paint on the pale yellowish background of a clay vessel. The ornament usually covered the vase in its upper part with a series of ring belts, sometimes filling its entire surface. The most complete picture of the “geometric style” is given by the so-called Dipylon vases dating back to the 9th-8th centuries. BC and found by archaeologists in an ancient cemetery near the Dipylon Gate in Athens. These very large vessels, sometimes almost as tall as a person, had a funerary and cult purpose, repeating in shape the clay vessels used to store large quantities of grain or vegetable oil. On the Dipylonian amphorae the ornamentation is especially abundant: the pattern most often consists of purely geometric motifs, in particular meander braiding (the meander ornament remained as an ornamental motif throughout the development of Greek art). In addition to geometric patterns, schematized plant and animal patterns were widely used. Animal figures (birds, animals, such as deer, etc.) are repeated many times throughout individual stripes of the ornament, giving the image a clear, albeit monotonous, rhythmic structure.

Only some terracotta figurines from Boeotia dating back to the 8th century have features of a more lively relationship to the real world, such as, for example, a figurine depicting a peasant with a rogue; Despite the naivety of the solution, this group is comparatively more truthful in its motive of movement and less bound by the stillness and conventionality of the art of the Homeric period. In this kind of images one can see some parallel to the epic of Hesiod, created at the same time, glorifying peasant labor, although here too the visual arts look very far behind literature.

The fine arts and architecture of Homeric Greece, with all their directly popular origins, did not reach either the breadth of social life or the artistic perfection of epic poetry.

The earliest works of art (that have come down to us) are “geometric style” vases, decorated with geometric designs painted with brown paint on the pale yellowish background of a clay vessel. The ornament usually covered the vase in its upper part with a series of ring belts, sometimes filling its entire surface. The most complete picture of the “geometric style” is given by the so-called Dipylon vases dating back to the 9th - 8th centuries. BC and found by archaeologists in an ancient cemetery near the Dipylon Gate in Athens. These very large vessels, sometimes almost as tall as a person, had a funerary and cult purpose, repeating in shape the clay vessels used to store large quantities of grain or vegetable oil. On the Dipylonian amphorae the ornamentation is especially abundant: the pattern most often consists of purely geometric motifs, in particular meander braiding (the meander ornament remained as an ornamental motif throughout the development of Greek art). In addition to geometric patterns, schematized plant and animal patterns were widely used. Animal figures (birds, animals, such as deer, etc.) are repeated many times throughout individual stripes of the ornament, giving the image a clear, albeit monotonous, rhythmic structure.

Only some terracotta figurines from Boeotia dating back to the 8th century have features of a more lively relationship to the real world, such as, for example, a figurine depicting a peasant with a rogue; Despite the naivety of the solution, this group is comparatively more truthful in its motive of movement and less bound by the stillness and conventionality of the art of the Homeric period. In this kind of images one can see some parallel to the epic of Hesiod, created at the same time, glorifying peasant labor, although here too the visual arts look very far behind literature.