1. The Geometric style in Asia Minor

The development of the Geometric style in Asia Minor is directly connected to the developments of the style in Greece. Scarce finds and their fragmentary condition do not allow the formulation of a coherent picture concerning the evolution and the distinctive characteristics of the local workshops. Scholars consider the pottery production of Asia Minor of this period as part of a wider school of eastern Greece, which comprises the islands of the north Aegean and the Dodecanese. The excavated archaeological material from these areas, mainly coming from cemeteries, is richer, but also the artistic trends are more interesting and orientated towards metropolitan Greece.

2. Early Geometric style

The Early Geometric style of Asia Minor is a natural continuation of the Protogeometric style. Chronologically speaking, vases of Protogeometric inspiration, mainly imitations of Attic prototypes, are produced during the early 9th century BC, when in mainland Greece the main schools of pottery have already entered into the Early Geometric phase. The early phase of the Geometric style in Asia Minor is scarcely documented by finds. Important sites are Miletus and Iasos in Caria.

In general, it is a period of stagnation in the development of vase painting, which places Asia Minor and eastern Greece in the periphery of the artistic developments of the Greek world.

The pottery from Miletus bears strong similarities with examples from the rich cemeteries of Kos and Rhodes. Shapes are similar to the ones of the Protogeometric style. It seems, nevertheless, that the potters of Asia Minor had some, although vague, knowledge of the developments in the rest of the Greek world. The shapes documented are the pyxis, the neck-handled amphora, the oinochoe and the hydria. The neck-handled amphora now acquires more slender proportions compared to the Protogeometric examples, with a clear resemblance to the Attic Early Geometric amphora, whereas the vessel’s neck is also taller. The decoration preserves elements of the late Protogeometric period, in a decayed style. Concerning closed shapes, the decoration consists of mainly horizontal bands around the neck of the vase, narrower than their earlier counterparts. Less frequently, as in an amphora and an oinochoe from Iasos in Caria, there is a second decorative zone, which follows the prototypes from Attica. Common decorative patterns are the concentric circles and semicircles and less frequently the straight-lined motifs. Their rendering is, however, often careless: instead of semicircles one might find shapes corresponding to ¾ of a circle. Concentric circles are less in number than in the Protogeometric period, whereas the cross-like motif in their centre is less accurate.¹

3. Middle Geometric style

The Middle Geometric style, although a natural evolution of the earlier phase concerning shapes, it is marked by a strong effort to introduce decorative types from Attica. Around the middle of the 9th century BC the first attempts to adopt the Middle Geometric style takes place, which, under the guidance of the Athenian potters, is elevated to an “international style”. This is a period of a true development of the pottery of Asia Minor, which begins to differentiate greatly from the workshops of the Dodecanese, the former remaining relatively independent from Attic influence. Important finds come again from Miletus and Caria, whereas some noteworthy examples of this style have been also found in Smyrna.

Shapes present an obvious evolution from the previous period. The amphora is now rare and, when found, seems to have preserved its old-fashioned shape with the handles on the belly of the vase.² The crater, with the high conical foot, a clearly Attic shape and diffused especially in Rhodes, is also found in Miletus, Samos and Smyrna, towards the end of the Middle Geometric period.³ The singe-handled kylix, a deep cup, with an incision under the handle and a low conical foot is known from Miletus, but it should have originated from the Dodecanese.⁴ The skyphos imitates Attic prototypes. It features a shallow body, straight walls and an out turned rim, whereas it is already found in great numbers in Miletus, Smyrna and Pygela in Caria. A similar diffusion is observed for the round kolyle, decorated with Middle Geometric motifs, though this shape is mainly found during the next period. Examples of locally made skyphoi, with a deep body and a short conical or ring base are also known from Kos, where the shape seems to be predominant, as well as from Miletus, whereas from Asarlik of Caria examples with a very deep body and one handle are known.⁵ The lekythos, very popular in the Dodecanese, is less frequent in Asia Minor, with most of the examples coming from Miletus.

The decoration follows Attic prototypes: skyphoi with panels and quadruple zig-zags are sometimes considered Milesian and imports, which can be dated to the first phase of the Middle Geometric period. From the second phase of the period onwards, imitations of Attic skyphoi are also documented, especially from Miletus. The same picture can be also observed in the Samian workshop, which follows an evolution similar to that of the Asia Minor workshop.

Towards the end of the Geometric period, Attic predominance starts to waver, to be substituted by hybrid decorative patterns, combining the Protogeometric tradition (triangles on the shoulder of cups combined with perpendicular rows of dots) with pure Attic motifs (a rosette with a dot at its centre)⁶ or Rhodian ones (square hooks). The simple meander is gradually replaced by more complex motifs, the pseudo-meander (a combination of two facing hooks) and the composite rampart-like meander. In Miletus again, survivals of the Protogeometric successive circles filled with dots or small circles are documented.

In the later phase of this period, the motifs of Attic provenance are combined in a totally different way, without the convention of the attachment to a central panel. Spirals, meanders filled with lines and hatched triangles or diamonds are combined to create a stylized tree, which will be the main decorative motif of vase painting during the next period.⁷

4. Late Geometric style

An important development during this period is the appearance of the Geometric style in more areas and the beginning of a pictorial tradition. Differences between the local centres of production can now be observed more accurately than in previous periods, although the comprehension of the evolution of every local workshop is still impossible. Miletus is the most important centre of production of Late Geometric pottery in Southern Ionia.⁸ Finds from Didyma surely belong to Milesian workshops and date to the last phase of the period.⁹ Next to the products of a clearly local character, one might see abundant imitations of Rhodian kotyles, the prototypes of which are also imported in great numbers. The system of decoration in panels is not followed systematically, in contrast to the trend followed in the workshops of the Dodecanese. Popoular motifs are the small groups of dots, rosettes and ramparts, in a loose connection between them. An important innovation during this period is the introduction of figure scenes that included dancers executed in the silhouette technique as well as birds and animals. These motifs replaced the geometric patterns, and slowly lead into the Orientalizing period.¹⁰

A Carian local style seems to have been inspired by the workshops of Rhodes and Cos; the skyphos, kotyle, and amphoriskos with thick body are the predomintat shapes, while less frequent is the appearance of a globular oinochoe and the crater. The decoration is simple with straight-lined shapes, triangles, diamonds, lozenges, zig-zag or perpendicular hatched lines and small groups of concentric circles, organized in metopes.

Towards the end of the period the borrowed tree from Rhodes as well as birds make their appearance.¹¹ In Ephesus the Geometric pottery is in general inspired by Rhodes, whereas in Aeolis most of the finds are either imports or imitations, mostly of Rhodian and Chian vases.¹²

Smyrna is the only noteworthy representative of North Ionia. The Late Geometric style in this area combines Attic and Corinthian influences in shapes and decoration, although influence from island workshops, mainly of Chios, is stronger. A very important vassel is a crater decorated with four-leaved motifs, swastikas, “butterflies” and ramparts, resembling Attic motifs but arranged in the Chian tradition, in narrow horizontal zones defined by perpendicular columns.¹³ During the end of this period, around 700 BC, Rhodian influence is more direct, as indicated by the imitation of the kolyle with birds. Corinthian influence is defined by examples of kotyles decorated with lozenges. The crater is replaced by the dinos, with a very interesting example of a sherd where a seven-chord lyre is for the first time depicted.¹⁴ Lydia and Troas do not present specimens of local production other than imitations of Rhodian workshops, before 700 BC, during the so-called Subgeometric phase.

5. Total evaluation

The Geometric style of Asia Minor seems to be imitative and conservative. The nearby islands of the northern Aegean and the Dodecanese gave the tone, when the direct influence of Attic and later Corinthian prototypes had not been adopted. Culturally, the decorated pottery does not appear to have the same important role in the artistic evolution of this region, a role well documented in mainland Greece. Monumental vessels are rare. Pictorial tradition, which, according to art historians marks the beginning of the so-called Greek Renaissance of the 8th century BC, does not seem to have rooted in Asia Minor. The general decorative trend of the Geometric pottery without great artistic qualities will survive the Subgeometric style that will be developed to an important part of the pottery of the next period, the 7th century BC. This phenomenon is also evident to other forms of art in the region under discussioon. For instance, metallurgical activity is much more inferior to similar attempts in the Peloponnese and Attica.

The world of Asia Minor, during the 9th and the 8th century BC, if regarded from the art history viewpoint, is characterized by isolation, provincialism and lack of any disposal for experiments and ambition.