Designs from Greek Vases in the British Museum (Classic Reprint)

Bücher

Angebote / Angebote:

Excerpt from Designs From Greek Vases in the British MuseumAmong ancient nations the Greeks alone Cultivated the art of pottery with brilliant success. Neither in Egypt nor in Assyria do we find painted vases which have any claim to be works of fine art. In Persia it was a mark of royal disfavour to be made to drink from earthenware.Among the Greeks, no doubt, there were rich men who had a passion for vases of silver or of gold. The inventories of the treasures stored on the Acropolis of Athens - fragmentary-as they are - tell us of the extent to which wealthy Athenians made gifts of silver vessels to the goddess Athene. Still the truth remains that the number of Greek painted vases now to be seen in the museums of Europe is almost past reckoning, and that among them the element of artistic beauty, alike in quality and quantity, defies estimate.But 'while the Greeks throughout their history were skilled in this art, it is remarkable that the period in which the general level of their work manship reached its highest point was the period immediately preceding the full maturity of the art. Lvhat they were capable of achieving in the brief age when their powers were at their best may be seen on some of the Athenian vases which have drawings in outline on a white ground, as also on not a few of the red figured vases. Yet it is a fact that these splendid specimens of a perfected art stand out as exceptions among a large number of contemporary vases where carelessness is far too often a provoking element.About the PublisherForgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.comThis book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully, any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.