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Chapter 14 - Minoan Glyptic in the First Palace Period

from Part III - Aegean Art in the Cretan First Palace Period

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 May 2022

Jean-Claude Poursat
Translated by
Carl Knappett
Jean-Claude Poursat
Affiliation:
University of Clermont-Ferrand
Carl Knappett
Affiliation:
University of Toronto
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Summary

Throughout this period not a single seal seems to have been produced in mainland Greece or in the islands; the recent discovery of two clay cylinder seals on Aegina remains isolated and unparalleled (W. Gauss, R. Smetana, in Touchais 2010, 170–1). On Crete, on the contrary, the establishment of the palatial system brings with it, at the same time as the use of writing, a considerable resurgence of glyptic. The quantity of seals, the stylistic diversity, and the range of quality (material used, care and finesse of engraving) suggest that their users were numerous and did not come only from the elite. This could explain the diversity of local traditions, from the Mesara to east Crete.

Type
Chapter
Information
The Art and Archaeology of the Aegean Bronze Age
A History
 , pp. 95 - 100
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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References

Further Reading

Anastasiadou, 2011: Anastasiadou, M., The Middle Minoan Three-Sided Soft Stone Prism: A Study of Style and Iconography (CMS Beiheft 9), Mainz.Google Scholar
Jasink, 2009: Jasink, A. M., Cretan Hieroglyphic Seals: A New Classification of Symbols and Ornamental/Filling Motifs, Pisa and Rome.Google Scholar
Krzyszkowska, 2005: Krzyszkowska, O., Aegean Seals: An Introduction, London.Google Scholar

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