I will present, first, a series of bottles, selecting at the beginning those decorated in the more purely geometric style and gradually approaching those upon which animal forms are treated in a literal manner. The few pieces selected for illustration are totally inadequate to the proper representation of the group and must be regarded only as average specimens, more or less typical in character.
I give first a number of examples in which the decorative devices are arranged in horizontal zones. In Fig. 163 broad bands of ornament, consisting of scalloped and plain lines, encircle the neck and the body of the vessel. In finishing this piece the whole surface was painted a rich red and highly polished; then a black coat was applied, covering the body from the lip to the base of the design; and finally the delineating fluid was applied, removing the black, as shown in the narrow lines, the sharply dentate bands, and the broad, plain band between. The second example (Fig. 164) varies somewhat in shape and design, but is identical in color and manipulation. The dark figures are merely the interspaces, although they appear at first glance to have been intended for the design proper.
[Illustration: Fig. 163. Small red bottle with horizontal bands of ornament consisting of plain and scalloped lines--½.]
[Illustration: Fig. 164. Small red bottle with encircling geometric devices--½.]
In a numerous series of vessels the decorated bands are divided into compartments or panels, often four in number, which spaces are occupied by lines and figures of greatly diversified characters. In the example shown in Fig. 165 the ground color of the principal zone is in the light yellow gray tint of the slip, the remainder being red. This lends brilliancy to the effect.
[Illustration: Fig. 165. Bottle with zone occupied by geometric devices--½.]
[Illustration: Fig. 166. Bottle with broad zone containing geometric figures--½.]
In the vase shown in Fig. 166 the treatment is in a general way the same, but the compartments are triangular and are separated by lines that form a disconnected meander. An additional example is given in Fig. 167. Here the principal zone is expanded to cover the whole upper surface of the vase, which was finished in the light colored slip to receive it. The principal lines are arranged to give the effect of rays when viewed from above, but as seen in the cut they give the effect of a carelessly connected meander. The groups of lines are bordered by series of dots. A great number of pieces are painted in this style. The effect is varied by altering the shape of the interspaces or by modifying the number and relationship of the lines, dots, and figures.
