Submycenaean pottery is a style ofAncient Greek pottery that is transitional between the precedingMycenaean pottery and the subsequent styles ofGreek vase painting, particularly theProtogeometric style. The vases from this period date between 1030 and 1000 BC.
Submycenaean pottery is not extensively researched due to the limited number of discovered sites. The style was first identified in 1939 byWilhelm Kraiker andKarl Kübler, based on finds from theKerameikos and Pompeion cemeteries inAthens andSalamis. The existence of the style was initially disputed among archaeologists until later discoveries inMycenae confirmed distinct Late Mycenaean and Submycenaeanstrata.[1]
Submycenaean pottery occurs primarily in contexts such asinhumations and stone-builtcist graves. The distribution of finds suggests a settlement pattern consisting of hamlets and villages. In addition to Athens and Salamis, Submycenaean pottery has been discovered inCorinth,Asine,Kalapodi,Lefkandi, andTiryns.
The quality of Submycenaean vases varies widely. Only a few shapes were produced, includingstirrup jars with a pierced shoulder,belly amphorae,neck amphorae,lekythoi, and jars, some with trefoil-shaped mouths. By the end of the Submycenaean period, the stirrup jar was replaced by thelekythos. The decoration on Submycenaean pottery is simple; motifs are limited to horizontal or vertical wavy lines, single or double hatched and overlapping triangles, and single or multiple concentric semicircles. Ornamental decoration is found on the shoulders oflekythoi, amphorae, and stirrup jars. Amphorae,amphoriskoi, and jugs typically feature one or several thick wavy lines. The overall style is less refined and carefully made compared to earlier pottery, leading one art historian to describe it as "rather unlovable".[2]
