Maeotian Vases and Lekanes

Abstract

The paper examines a small series of two-handled gray-clay vases and lekanes from the Maeotian sites of the Kuban region. All the vessels were made on rapidly rotating pottery wheels. Greek amphorae, found together with the vessels in the same burials, allow us to determine precise chronological framework for each complex and vessel type. The main common specific feature of the vases type is two vertical arched handles located on the rim. These vessels were produced under the influence of ancient pottery and come in two types: type 1 – on a high hollow pallet; type 2 – on a low ring pallet. Vases of type 1 date back to the end of the first quarter to the second quarter of the 4th century BC. The chronology of vases of the second type is limited to the end of the first quarter – the end of the 4th century BC. The two double-handled bowls that in details repeat the exact shape of the Greek lekane of the late 5th – early 4th century BC belong to a specific type of the studied tableware. The Maeotian lekanes come from burials of the first quarter of the 4th century BC. The established time frame of the gray-clay vases and lekanes of the Maeotian culture enables their use in determining chronology of the burials which contain no amphorae or other material suitable for precise dating.

Keywords

• kuban region
• maeotians
• subsoil burial ground
• vase
• lekane
• amphora
• typology
• chronology