Βαφειό | |
 | |
  Vapheio Shown within Greece | |
| Location | Laconia, Greece |
|---|---|
| Region | Peloponnese |
| Type | Settlement andtholos tomb |
| Part of | Mycenaean Greece |
| History | |
| Founded | c. 16th century BCE |
| Periods | Late Bronze Age |
| Cultures | Mycenaean/Minoan influence |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1889 |
| Archaeologists | Christos Tsountas |
| Management | Greek Ministry of Culture |
| Public access | Yes |
Vaphio, Vafio orVapheio is an ancient site inLaconia,Greece, on the right bank of theEurotas, some 5 mi (8.0 km) south ofSparta. It is famous for itstholos or beehive tomb, excavated in 1889 byChristos Tsountas. This consists of a walled approach, about 97 ft (30 m) long, leading to a vaulted chamber some 33 ft (10 m) in diameter, in the floor of which the actual grave was cut.[1] The tomb suffered considerable damage in the decades following its excavation.[1] During conservation work in 1962 the walls were restored to a height of about 6 m (20 ft).[2]
The main objects found there were transferred to theNational Archaeological Museum of Athens, where many remain on display. Many are regarded asMinoan art, while others are thought to have been made on mainland Greece. The pottery in the tomb dates to around 1500 to 1450 BC, but the gold andcarved gem seals might have been old when buried. The Cretan one of the famous pair of goldVaphio Cups perhaps dates to the previous century.[3]
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The objects include a large number ofcarved gem seals andamethyst beads, together with articles in gold, silver,bronze,iron,lead,amber andcrystal. Many of the seals and rings found in thetholos have such strong affinities in style and subject matter with contemporaryMinoan seals that archaeologists find it impossible to determine whether they were locally made or imported fromCrete.[4]Sinclair Hood believed that at this date "it was broadly speaking possible to classify the finer seals as being of Cretan, the more crudely engraved of mainland manufacture", but that "this criterion no longer applies after the mainland conquest of Crete c. 1450".[5]
Vaphio is the largest find in the Aegean of Mycenaen andMinoan seals (as opposed to "sealings" - impressions on clay). LikeGrave Circle A atMycenae, the group has generated much discussion as to the origin of many pieces. The 43 seals in the tomb include a variety of fine stones, and gold, and several have parallels in Cretan finds. The princely figure buried there seems to have worn them on his wrists, like a moderncharm bracelet.[6]
By far the finest of thegrave goods are a pair of golden cups decorated with scenes in relief, showing two different methods of capturing bulls, perhaps for thebull-leaping activities practised by theMinoan civilization ofCrete, or for sacrifice. On one, with three scenes, a cow is used to lure a bull; they mate, and a rear leg is then roped; this is sometimes called the "Peaceful Cup" or the "Quiet Cup". In the other, the "Violent Cup", bulls are stampeded into nets, although one seems to escape, shoving catchers aside.[7] The so-called "Violent Cup", showing netting of bulls, bears a remarkable resemblance to the description of the beginning of the ritual of consecration for the laws ofAtlantis described in Plato's dialogueCritias, where bulls are captured for sacrifice, using no iron tools or weapons.[8]
These "form perhaps the most perfect works of Mycenaean or Minoan art which have survived", according toMarcus Niebuhr Tod.[9]Sir Kenneth Clark observed that even on such evolved works "the men are insignificant compared to the stupendous bulls".[10] It seems likely that these Vaphio Cups do not represent a local art but that at least one was imported from Crete, which at that early period was far ahead of mainland Greece in artistic development.[11] As further support for the connection to Crete, C. Michael Hogan notes that a charging bull painting is evocative of an image extant at thePalace of Knossos on Crete.[12]
It had long been recognised that the cups were probably not by the same artist, and had stylistic differences. Ellen Davis suggested that at least one of the cups was produced in mainland Greece. Davis illustrates both the compositional and stylistic differences between the cups, demonstrating that one appears to be Minoan and the other Mycenaean.[13] Hood agreed, and this is now the usual view. There is a difference in quality, the Cretan "seduction" cup being finer, and in the treatment of the tops and bottoms of the scenes.[14]
Rather confusingly, "Vapheio cup" is now used as a term for the shape of the gold cups in Aegean archaeology, which is found in pottery as well as metalwork.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Vaphio".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 27 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 897.37°01′20″N22°27′39″E / 37.02222°N 22.46083°E /37.02222; 22.46083