Blog Entry #2

The Minoan and Mycenaean civilizations have some very stark similarities of pictorial and sculptural styles. A prominent connection between the two cultures is the use of curvilinear forms. This is a big departure from the Egyptian style we just learned about. A good example of the similarities of the two cultures can be seen in the Crocus Gatherer, from Thera of Minos, and the “Goddess”, from the citadel of Mycenae. The crocus gatherer women is adorned with many pieces of jewelry, even though it is obvious that she is doing some sort of manual labor from the way her knees are bent and her back arched. What that also leads to is more curved lines; her right (our left) knee is a big curve and that leads into a small waist and then curves out to depict a larger chest and then goes into the curves of her arms and shoulders. All of these soft curvy lines make the women seem very delicate. The crocus gatherer also has a very light complexion along with the somewhat Egyptian frontal eye. The “Goddess” from the citadel of Mycenae shows many of the same characteristics. The woman also has many pieces of jewelry on. She also has very many curved lines composing her body, and her dress adds many more curved lines. These soft lines, and the way she holds her arms and hands, make the woman seem very relaxed, similar to the Crocus Gatherer. This “Goddess” also has the same light complexion and the Egyptian frontal eye.

Two pieces of Minoan and Mycenaean sculptural that are so similar archeologists are not completely certain which cultures they came from are the “Cups from Vapheio”. They are two gold cups almost the exactly same size and have the same style of handle. They were found with a buried king in a tholos tomb in the region of Sparta. Both depict a scene of a bull being caught. Both were made using the repousse technique, deriving from the French word pousser, which means, “to push”. The only real differences between the two pieces are that the one believed to be Minoan is articulated well and shows the sport of catching a bull, whereas the Mycenaean cup is more crudely built and violent. It is very obvious that these cultures had very large influences on each other, as seen in their artwork.