Geometric art is a phase of Greek art, characterized largely by geometric motifs in vase painting, that flourished towards the end of the Greek Dark Ages, . Its center was in Athens, and from there the style spread among the trading cities of the Aegean. The Greek Dark Ages lasted from and include two periods, the Protogeometric period and the Geometric period, in reference to the characteristic pottery style. The vases had various uses or purposes within Greek society, including, but not limited to, funerary vases and symposium vases.
Funerary context
Funerary vases not only depicted funerary scenes, but they also had practical purposes, either holding the ashes or being used as grave markers. Relatives of the deceased conducted burial rituals that included three parts: the prothesis ('laying out of the body'), the ekphora ('funeral procession'), and the interment of the body or cremated remains of the body.
To the Greeks, an omission of a proper burial was an insult to proper dignity. The mythological context of a proper burial relates to the Greeks' belief in a continued existence in the underworld that will disallow the dead to maintain peace in the absence of a proper burial ritual.
Aside from its funerary use, the Greeks also utilized various vessels during symposiums. The Greek symposium was a social gathering that only aristocratic males were allowed to attend. Vessels, such as wine coolers, jugs, various drinking cups, and mixing vessels, were decorated with Greek, geometric scenes. Some of the scenes depicted drinking parties or Dionysus and his followers. The symposia were held in the andron, which was a men's-only room. The only women allowed into this room were called "hetaera", or female sex-workers, who required payment from their regular, male companions.
Pottery in protogeometric and geometric styles
Protogeometric period
During the protogeometric period (1030–900 BC), the shapes of the vessels have eliminated the fluid nature of the Mycenaean; creating a more strict and simple design. There are horizontal, decorative bands that feature geometric shapes, including concentric circles or semicircles. Technological developments caused a new relationship between ornament and structure; causing differing stylistic choice from its Mycenaean influences. The protogeometric period did not yet feature human figures within its art, but horses were pictured during this time period.
Common vase shapes of the period include amphorae with the handles on both the belly and the neck, hydriai (water jars), oinochoai (lit. 'wine jugs'), lekythoi, and skyphoi (stemless cups).
Early geometric period
In the early geometric period (900–850 BC), the height of the vessels had been increased, while the decoration was limited around the neck down to the middle of the body of the vessel. The remaining surface is covered by a thin layer of clay, which during the firing takes a dark, shiny, metallic color. This was the period when the decorative theme of the meander was added to the pottery design, the most characteristic element of geometric art.
During this period, a broader repertoire of vessel shapes was initiated. Specifically, amphorae were used to hold cremation ashes. The amphorae featured handles on the neck or shoulder for males, while they feature handles on the "belly" of the vase for women.
Middle geometric period
By the middle geometric period (850–760 BC), the decorative zones appear multiplied due to the creation of a laced mesh, while the meander dominates and is placed in the most important area, in the metope, which is arranged between the handles.
Late Geometric period
Late Geometric period lasted from 750 to 700/650 BC. While the technique from the middle geometric period was still continued at the beginning of the 8th century BC, some potters enriched again the decorative organization of the vases, stabilized the forms of the animals in the areas of the neck and the base of the vase, and introduced between the handles, the human form. The late geometric period was marked by a 1.62 meter amphora that was made by the Dipylon painter in around 760-750 BC. The vase was a grave marker to an aristocratic woman in the Dipylon cemetery. This was the first phase of the late geometric period (760–700 BC), in which the great vessels of Dipylon ware placed on the graves as funeral monuments, and represent with their height (often at a height of 1.50 m) and the perfection of their execution, the highest expression of the Greek geometric art.