Page:History of Art in Primitive Greece - Mycenian Art Vol 2.djvu/458

Pottery. 401 seems traced by a hand utterly devoid of practice in geometric drawing. The body of the bird is a mere round ball. The design is more correct on the handle of a Mycenze vase (Fig. 489). Quadrupeds are seldom found, except on vases of the decadence. A fragment shows us oxen feeding, and flowers scattered in the field {Fig. 486). The drawing is mediocre, and scarcely better on another sherd, on which are figured a hare chased by a dog (Fig. 487). The bodies are elongated, as on the daggers. As to the human figure, it is only seen on vases of the latest style of this art ; such would be a fragment picked up at Mycenas. The head and feet are gone, and the body is apparently covered with a cuirass, or close-fitting coat of mail. The legs, from the Fid. 483.— Goblet from lalysos. Height, 85 c. knees downwards, are protected by leggings and thongs. The costume is known to us from mural paintings (Fig. 430). The same style of dress occurs on the body of a crater, whose fragments were found at Mycense, in the ruins of a house south of the slab- circle (Fig. 488). This vase deserves special attention as the only representative of its class. The design is painted with pigments varying from yellowish-brown to dark red, with dashes of dull tones to indicate the dress and armour. The shields are light brown, in imitation of leather. The head is covered by a helmet with two projecting horns in front, and a plume hanging down behind. White dots are sprinkled over helmets and girdles. The exposed parts are merely outlined and not coloured. The