The significant few. Miniature pottery from the Sanctuary of Zeus at Olympia

Barfoed, Signe

doi:10.1080/00438243.2014.992077

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Hammond, however, specifies that a true miniature must be less than or equal to 10 cm 3 , while Pilz does not attach any measurement requirement to his definition. Incorporating function into their definitions, Signe Barfoed (2015b, 170), Anna Simandiraki (2011, 47), and Iphiyenia Tournavitou (2009, 213) all define a miniature as a small-scale replica of a larger vessel, but that the scale must be so small that it renders the miniature non-functional. Tournavitou (2009, 213), however, argues that miniatures may not necessarily be non-functional, but that their functions differ from their prototypes, a stipulation which aligns with this study.…”

Section: Defining a Miniaturementioning

confidence: 99%

“… 1 Recent studies of miniature pottery in other areas and time periods of Greek history include investigations of miniature pottery in Archaic sanctuaries of the Argolid and Corinthia (Ekroth 2003), miniature pottery in Arcadia (Hammond 2005), scale manipulation in the pottery of early Greek sanctuaries (Gimatzidis 2011), miniature pottery in Iron Age Greek sanctuaries and graves (Luce 2011), the phenomenon of miniaturisation in ancient Greece (Pilz 2011), miniature pottery in Archaic to Hellenistic period Greek sanctuaries (Barfoed 2015a), miniature pottery from the Sanctuary of Zeus at Olympia (Barfoed 2015b), and miniature pottery of ancient Corinth (Pemberton 2020). …”

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confidence: 99%

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Two Sizes Too Small: Two Categories of Miniature Pottery in Minoan Crete

Dewan

2023

Annu. Br. Sch. Athens

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Often assumed to be ritual votives or toys for children, miniature ceramic vessels in the Bronze Age Aegean have been afforded little thorough study. Their presence at peak sanctuaries, sacred caves and shrines on Crete has led to their uncritical association with ritual activity, even outside of sacred areas. When miniature pots are found in domestic spaces, they are often dismissed as objects of household ritual or simple toys. Yet miniature vessels, diverse in form and context, are so common in archaeological investigations of Minoan settlements that they merit further comprehensive study. Considered alongside the abundance of small-scale Minoan material culture, including figurines, seals, miniature wall paintings, and models, miniature pottery appears to be one facet of a larger semiotic ideology – one well-versed in the language and power of the miniature. By analysing 504 miniature pots from 13 sites in central and east Crete, this paper explores the wide range of miniature vessel types used in the Protopalatial and Neopalatial periods and applies contextual analysis to draw out their meanings. Contextualisation and data analysis reveal two distinct categories within the corpus of miniature pots: ‘micro-miniatures’ and ‘small miniatures’. While micro-miniatures were indeed inherently cultic, small miniatures served a variety of practical functions within the world of Minoan Crete and should not be assumed to relate to ritual. To differentiate between the categories, the relationship between the miniature and its prototype, as well as its semiotic meaning are considered. By applying Peircean understandings of iconicity and indexicality to these two categories, the use and significance of Bronze Age miniature vessels are further illuminated, in ritual and beyond.

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Section: Defining a Miniaturementioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Two Sizes Too Small: Two Categories of Miniature Pottery in Minoan Crete

Dewan

2023

Annu. Br. Sch. Athens

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“…The care put into the construction of these objects has led researchers to argue for their ritual importance; however, expediently manufactured vessels or vessels appropriated from children may also serve as offerings or grave goods (e.g., Bullen 1947; Sillar 2016). Miniature vessels have been recovered in burial contexts throughout the world (e.g., Holmes 1903; Jackson 1992; Martin 1991; Park 1998) and are commonly encountered as votive offerings or dedications (e.g., Barfoed 2015; Tournavitou 2009). While quality of production may vary, their appearance in locations of particular significance strongly supports their role as ritual paraphernalia.…”

Section: Practice Approaches To Miniature Vesselsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Miniature in Everything but Meaning: A Contextual Analysis of Miniature Vessels at Homol'ovi I

Fladd

Barker

2018

Am. Antiq.

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The most common explanations for the appearance of miniatures in the archaeological record are drawn from practice theory. Two alternatives stem from learning theories, while a third is based in ritual practice and performance. First, miniatures may represent early attempts at craft production by children or novice adults. Second, they could serve as children's toys used for enculturation purposes. Third, miniatures may be produced for use in rituals or as offerings. These explanations are not mutually exclusive; all may be part of the life history of a single artifact. Previous archaeological and ethnographic work on miniature ceramic vessels in the Southwest has variously supported all three prominent explanations. In this article, we examine the miniature vessel assemblage from Homol'ovi I, a prehispanic pueblo in northern Arizona, through a synthetic analysis of craft mastery, use, and deposition. While various life history trajectories are indicated, the miniature vessels at this ancestral Hopi village appear in similar depositional contexts. Specifically, these objects serve as important components in the preparation or closure practices of ritual spaces throughout the pueblo.

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“…Also worthy of note are the recently published analyses of two distinct components of the Olympian ceramic repertoire. The first of these (Barfoed 2015) discusses the Archaic miniature assemblage from the sanctuary in the context of wider Peloponnesian practices; the second (Mommsen et al 2015) presents the results of Neutron Activation Analysis undertaken on red-figure pottery from the site, which demonstrates a distinct absence of southern Italian imports. Even those vessels made with ostensible Italian stylistic or iconographic influence are confirmed as local (northwestern Peloponnesian) products, as is a single lekythos which appears to be of the Agrinion Group.…”

Section: Hellenistic To Romanmentioning

confidence: 99%

Newsround

Smith¹

2015

Arch. Rep.

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The very positive reception granted to last year's inaugural ‘Newsround’, and the clear demand for an authoritative annual brief of current work in Greece, has ensured its return as a regular feature. As last year, this section is not intended to be exhaustive, but is designed to draw attention to those discoveries which do not appear elsewhere within Archaeological Reports but which nevertheless deserve to be highlighted in a manner which complements those more specialized contributions within the current volume and that content available digitally through AGOnline/Chronique des fouilles en ligne (www.chronique.efa.gr). Again, the very varied nature of this material has meant that, for the most part, it has proved preferable to organize this section chronologically (Palaeolithic through to Early Modern), rather than thematically.

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The significant few. Miniature pottery from the Sanctuary of Zeus at Olympia

Cited by 5 publications

References 22 publications

Two Sizes Too Small: Two Categories of Miniature Pottery in Minoan Crete

Two Sizes Too Small: Two Categories of Miniature Pottery in Minoan Crete

Miniature in Everything but Meaning: A Contextual Analysis of Miniature Vessels at Homol'ovi I

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