Orientalizing denotes Greek vases and other arts produced ca. 700-600 BCE. It thus falls between the Geometric (ca. 900-700
BCE) and Archaic (ca. 600-480 BCE) stylistic periods. It is divided into phases, according to region and stylistic development.
The term derives from discernible changes in the techniques and appearance of pottery, sculpture, and architecture based on
Greek contact with the Near East and Egypt. Chief stylistic trends in vase-painting include the use of animal friezes, hybrid
creatures, and rosettes. The term Orientalizing is applied to Athens (where it is also called Protoattic) and other regions,
such as Corinth (where it is also called Protocorinthian), East Greece, Crete, and the Cycladic islands. The main vase-painting
techniques in Athens and Attica are silhouette, outline, some incision, and the Black and White Style, and major painters
include the Analatos Painter, Nettos (Nessos) Painter, and Ram Jug Painter.
Classical denotes Greek vases and other arts produced from ca. 480-323 BCE. It thus falls between the Archaic (ca. 600-480
BCE) and Hellenistic (323-31 BCE) stylistic periods. These dates are based on two historical events: the Persian invasion
of Athens in 480 BCE and the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE. Classical is often divided into the three phases of
Early, High, and Late, based on stylistic development. The main vase-painting techniques in Athens are red-figure and white-ground,
with black-figure still in use for the Panathenaic amphora. Major Athenian vase-painters from this time include the Pan Painter,
Niobid Painter, Achilles Painter, Polygnotos, and Eretria Painter.
Geometric denotes Greek vases and other arts produced ca. 900-700 BCE. It thus falls between the so-called “Dark Ages” (ca.
1100-900 BCE), a time of limited production in figure-decorated vases, and the Orientalizing stylistic period (ca. 700-600
BCE). The Geometric is usually divided into the following phases: Protogeometric (ca. 1050/1000-900 BCE); Early (ca. 900-850
BCE); Middle (ca. 850-750 BCE); and Late (ca. 750-700 BCE). The term Geometric derives from a discernible development in the
techniques and appearance of pottery, sculpture, and architecture. Chief stylistic trends in vase-painting include the use
of horror vacui (“fear of empty space”), Greek key patterns and other geometric motifs, compass-drawn concentric circles and
semi-circles, and limited representation of figural forms. It applies to the decorated vases of Athens and Attica, and of
other regions of ancient Greece such as Crete, Euboea, Boeotia, Corinth and the Argolid, and East Greece. The main vase-painting
technique in Athens and Attica is silhouette, and in the Late Geometric silhouette is sometimes combined with cross-hatching
and outline. Major Athenian painters include the Dipylon Master and the Hirschfeld Painter, both of whom specialized in decorating
large vessels associated with funerary rites.
Archaic denotes Greek vases and other arts produced from ca. 600-480 BCE. It thus falls between the Orientalizing (ca. 700-600
BCE) and Classical (ca. 480-323 BCE) stylistic periods. The Archaic is sometimes divided into Early and Late (or “Ripe”) phases
according to region, and its date range is sometimes pushed back to ca. 700 BCE based on certain archaeological factors. The
term applies to the decorated vases of Athens, Corinth, Laconia, Boeotia, and other regions of ancient Greece. The main vase-painting
technique in Athens is black-figure (invented in Corinth late 7th c. BCE), followed by red-figure (invented in Athens ca.
530-520 BCE). Major Athenian vase-painters from the time include Lydos, Amasis Painter, Exekias, Euphronios, Brygos Painter,
and Berlin Painter.
