Pylos Combat Agate
| Pylos Combat Agate | |
|---|---|
| File:Pylos Combat Agate Photograph.jpg | |
| Material | Agate |
| Size | 3.4 centimetres (1.3 in) |
| Created | 1450 BCE |
| Period/culture | Aegean Bronze Age |
| Discovered | Pylos, Greece 37°01′41.6″N 21°41′45.4″E / 37.028222°N 21.695944°E |
| Discovered by | Sharon Stocker and Jack Davis |
The Pylos Combat Agate is an Ancient Greek seal created by Minoan civilization during the Mycenaean era depicting a warrior engaged in hand-to-hand combat.[1][2] It was discovered near the Palace of Nestor in Pylos in the Griffin Warrior Tomb and is dated to about 1450 BCE.[3]
The seal is noted for its exceptionally fine and elaborate engraving, and considered "the single best work of glyptic art ever recovered from the Aegean Bronze Age".[4]
Background
The Pylos Combat Agate was discovered by a University of Cincinnati archaeological team directed by Sharon Stocker and Jack Davis in the Griffin Warrior Tomb near modern-day Pylos. It consists of a sealstone measuring 3.6 centimeters in length (1.4 inches)and was found alongside four gold signet rings.[5][6]
Though the site was discovered in 2015, the agate, then covered in limestone, would not be revealed until 2017 as other finds from the site were published first.[7] Afterwards, the agate underwent conservation and study for a year. Prior to conservation, the stone was believed to be a bead due to its small scale.[8] It is believed that the seal was created in Crete due to a longstanding consensus that Mycenaean civilizations imported or stole riches from Minoan Crete.[9] The fact that the stone was found in a Mycenaean tomb in mainland Greece is suggestive of cultural exchange between the Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations.[3] It is believed that this sealstone depicts the warrior it was buried with, though it remains possible that he was a priest.[10] University of Vienna archaeologist Fritz Blakolmer believes this sealstone intends to depict a larger work of art and may replicate a wall painting depicting an event that both Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations recognized.[11]
Impact
The Greek Culture Ministry refers to this find as the most significant discovery in continental Greece in the last 65 years.[1] The small scale of the intricate details prompted questions regarding the ancient Greek civilizations' ability to create such an object; some archaeologists believe that such minute details could have only been created with the help of a magnifying glass, though none dating from the stone's period have been found on the island of Crete.[12] Its co-discoverer, Dr. Jack Davis, refers to the piece as "incomprehensibly small", remarking that works of art with as much detail wouldn't be seen "for another thousand years."[1] Researchers have asserted that this discovery challenges previously established consensuses regarding the artistic development of the Minoan civilization.[3] The agate's researchers state that this discovery necessitates a reevaluation of the time-line on which Greek art developed.[13] While dated as belonging to the Aegean Bronze Age, Davis notes that it bears more resemblance to Classical period art, which developed a millennium later, due to the breadth of anatomical knowledge embodied in the stone's engravings.[10]
See also
- Ancient Greek art
- Arkalochori Axe
- Minoan Bull-leaper
- Minoan snake goddess figurines
- Phaistos Disc
- Severe style
References
- ^ a b c "Unearthing a masterpiece". University of Cincinnati. Retrieved 2017-11-07.
- ^ Pettit, Harry (8 November 2017). "Mystery of the incredibly detailed 3500-year-old sealstone that was found buried with an ancient Greek warrior - and was 1000 years ahead of its time". Daily Mail Online. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ a b c Gibbens, Sarah (7 November 2017). "Ancient Greek 'Masterpiece' Revealed on Thumb-Size Gem". National Geographic. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ UC Magazine:Unearthing a masterpiece, http://magazine.uc.edu/editors_picks/recent_features/unearthingamasterpiece.html
- ^ Goenka, Himanshu (7 November 2017). "Pylos Combat Agate, Ancient Greek Seal, Fine Specimen Of Miniature Prehistoric Art". International Business Times. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ In, Geology. ""Pylos Combat Agate' Rare Minoan Sealstone Discovered". Geology IN. Retrieved 2017-11-09.
- ^ Ne, NICHOLAS WADE New York Times (2017-11-15). "Grecian artifact evokes tales from the 'Iliad' and 'Odyssey'". The Bulletin. Retrieved 2017-12-16.
- ^ Harthorne, Michael (2017-11-07). "Epic Battle on Tiny Stone Could Change Our Knowledge of Ancient Greece". Newser. Retrieved 2017-12-16.
- ^ "Archaeologists unearth 'masterpiece' sealstone in Greek tomb". EurekAlert Science News. 6 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ a b "A treasure-filled tomb of a Bronze Age warrior may rewrite the history of Greek civilization". Newsweek. 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2017-11-08.
- ^ Saraceni, Jessica E. "Griffin Warrior's Tomb Yields Finely Carved Seal Stone - Archaeology Magazine". www.archaeology.org. Retrieved 2017-12-16.
- ^ Wade, Nicholas (6 November 2017). "A Grecian Artifact Evokes Tales From the 'Iliad' and 'Odyssey'". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
{{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Pylos Combat Agate Could Rewrite Ancient Greek Art History - Deviant World". Deviant World. 2017-11-14. Retrieved 2017-12-16.