A CERAMIC DEFINITION OF LATE HELLADIC I FROM

TSOUNGIZAl
Excavations in 1981 and 1984-6 on the hill of Tsoungiza have exposed, in an
area now designated EU7 (Fig.l), an architectural complex consisting of what are in
effect twin rectangular buildings, built side by side and sharing a long party wall (Fig.2:
Walls 14-15). The southwestern building was destroyed by fire early in the Late
Helladic (LH) I period and was never rebuilt. Whether its northeastern counterpart was
first constructed as a replacement for its neighbor or was already in existence when
the adjoining structure fell victim to fire is at present uncertain, but the northeastern
building itself endured several episodes of modification prior to its abandonment,
which can be dated sometime before pits were dug into its ruins during the LH IIA
period.
No less than nineteen whole or largely restorable vases were found smashed
on the floors of the three rooms of the southwestern building. All were found deeply
buried under, and hence well sealed by, burnt destruction debris. From the back room,
defined by Walls 5, 6, 13, and 1 4 and by the robbing trench which is all that marks the

Excavations at Tsoungiza have been a part of the Nemea Valley Archaeological Project
sponsored by Bryn Mawr College and conducted under the auspices of the American School of
Classical Studies at Athens with permission from the Greek Ministry of Culture and Sciences.
The project has been funded by grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities (RO-
20731, RO-21715), the Institute for Aegean Prehistory (1984-87), and the National
Geographic Society (2971-84, 3265-86). The project is directed by James C. Wright, to
whom I am very grateful for permission to present this preliminary report. My thanks are also
due to Julia E. Pfaff for both her patience and her great success in producing a series of first-
rate illustrations of what were often highly fragmentary and heavily worn vessels. Credit for
the skillful restoration of these vessels which made the drawings possible goes to John Maseman
and Sasha Trone.
The following abbreviations are used in ensuing footnotes:
Blegen 1921 C. W. Blegen, Korakou: A prehistoric Settlement near Corinth
(BostonINew York 1921)
Davis 1979 J. L. Davis, "Late Helladic I Pottery from Korakou," Hesoeria 48(1979)
234-263
Dickinson 1974 0. T. P. K. Dickinson, "The Definition of Late Helladic I," BSA 69(1974)
1 0 9 - 12 0
Graziadio 1988 G. Graziadio, "The Chronology of the Graves of Circle B at Mycenae: A New
Hypothesis," AJA 92(1988) 343-372
Marthari 1982 M. Marthari, "Akrotiri, Kerameike Mesoelladikes Paradoses sto Strorna
tes Hephaisteiakes Katastrophes," AE 1980 (1982) 182-210
Mylonas 1973 G. E. Mylonas, 0 Ta~hikosKvklos B ton Mvkenon (Athens 1972-73)
Nordquist 1987 G. Nordquist, A Middle Helladic Villaae: Asine in the Araolid (Uppsala
1987)
Rutter 1976 J. B. and S. H. Rutter, The Transition to Mvcenaean: A Stratified Middle
j-lelladic II to Late Helladic IIA Pottery S u e n c e from Avios Stephanos in
Lakonia (Los Angeles 1976)
Wright 1982 J. C. Wright, "Excavations at Tsoungiza (Archaia Nemea) 1981,"
Hesperia 51 (1 982) 375-397
Zerner 1986 C. Zerner, "Middle Helladic and Late Helladic I Pottery from Lerna,"
H v d r a 2(1986) 58-74
Zerner I 9 8 8 C. Zerner, "Middle Helladic and Late Helladic I Pottery from Lerna: Part
II: Shapes," Hvdra 4(1988) 1-10
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 2

position of the original northwest wall, came a two-handled cooking pot (19). In the
southwestern annex enclosed by Walls 3, 5, 11, and 12 were found four matt-painted
vases (1-4) and five unpainted vessels, both fine (10-11, 16) and medium coarse (6,
13) in fabric. An additional nine unpainted vases were found in the northwestern half f

of the main room between Walls 5, 6, 13, and 15: two one-handled cooking pots (17-
18), two beaked jugs in the same fine fabric (14-IS), a series of four two-handled
drinking vessels (5, 7-9) in medium coarse fabrics, and a fine ladle (12).
The principal purposes of this brief note are to present descriptions and line
drawings of the nineteen vessels which constitute this sealed LH I destruction deposit
and to outline, as much as possible through them, the major changes in decoratipn,
shapes, fabrics, and technology of production which distinguish the LH I pottery of
Tsoungiza from that of the preceding late and final Middle Helladic (MH) phases
represented on the site.' Coming from a non-funerary context, these nineteen vases,
probably constituting the complete ceramic inventory of an ordinary Greek household
of ca. 1600 B.C., provide a welcome array of Mainland Greek settlement pottery from a
period which has, since the birth of Aegean prehistory as a discipline, been dominated
by tomb assemblages.3 Moreover, the total absence from this group of vases
decorated in a dark-on-light style with lustrous paint, whether these be termed Minoan,
Minoanizing (= Lustrous Decorated), or Mycenaean, highlights the rarity of such
pottery in the LH I period even at sites within a few hours' walk of Mycenae itself and
provides strong support for the contention that the ceramics of this period should be
defined in terms quite different from those conventionally employed to categorize the
pottery of subsequent phases of Mycenaean culture, namely Furumark Shape and
Furumark Motif numbers.4

CATALOGUE
INTRODUCTION
Details of shape and decoration are described verbally only when they are not
immediately apparent in the drawings.
Clay and paint colors have been recorded with the aid of the Munsell Soil Color
Charts (Baltimore 1971). With the exception of vases used primarily for cooking (i.e.
17-19), only the colors of pots as they were originally fired, unaltered by subsequent
burning, have been so recorded.
The sizes of non-plastic inclusions are characterized according to the
terminology of the Wentworth scale [A. 0 Shepard, Ceramics for the ArchaeologlSt
(Washington D.C. 1965) 1181. No mineralogical identifications of these inclusions are
suggested, but their colors are described and their approximate frequencies recorded
in terms of a four-point scale ("occasional", "some", "many", "massive amounts"). Fine

2 The Middle Helladic pottery from Tsoungiza will be presented in an article soon to be
submitted to Hemeria. For a preliminary report on this material based principally on the
discoveries of the 1984 season of excavations, see J. Rutter, "Middle Helladic Pottery from
Tsoungiza (Archaia Nemea): A Brief Report," Hvdra l(1985) 34-37.
3 For the most recent and thoroughgoing analysis of the pottery of this period, see Graziadio
1988.
4 For forceful statements on the relative unimportance of dark-on-light lustrous-painted
pottery within the overall ceramic repertoire of the Greek Mainland during the LH I period, see
Davis 1979: 252-4, 259 and Graziadio 1988: 350 and ns.29-31. For recent versions of the
standard Furumarkian approach to pottery of the LH I period, see Dickinson 1974 and P. A.
Mountjoy, Mvcenaean Decorated Potterv: A Guide to Identification (Goteborg 1986) 9-16.
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 3

fabrics normally include no grits larger than "very coarse" (maximum dimension of 2
mms.); medium coarse fabrics include grits through the size of "granules" (maximum
dimension of 4 mms.); only fabrics with appreciable numbers of grits larger than
"granules" are described as coarse. I am grateful to my colleague Pat Thomas for
suggesting use of the term "sparkling inclusions", instead of the more commonly but
often erroneously employed term "mica", for mineral particles which reflect light. None
of the vases described here were made from pastes tempered with either vegetable
matter or shell.
The term "wiped" is used to describe a finishing treatment which produces an
even but non-lustrous surface marked by groups of very fine, parallel striations. Such
striations, usually several centimeters in length, are quite different from the lustrous,
more pronounced troughs imparted to a surface by what is here called a "burnish".
Measurements are in meters unless otherwise specified. The following
abbreviations have been used:

D. diameter
est. estimated (used for any dimension which is not actually
preserved)
H. height
max. maximum
pres. preserved

The doubly hyphenated number in parentheses in the first line of each

catalogue entry is the excavation inventory number of the vessel in question.

PAINTED POTTERY

A. Light on Dark-slipped-and-burnished5

1 . Juglet or alabastron. (1 155-2-1) Fig. 3:1.

Base and body fragment. Mended from 4 sherds. Preserved: ca. 50% of base,
25% of body, none of neck, rim, or handle(s). Very heavily worn over all
surfaces; especially heavy wear at edge of base probably due to use; lower
body on one side burnt.
Max. pres. H. 0.040. Max. D. (est.) 0.098. D. Base (est.) 0.038.
Fine fabric containing occasional fine to medium white grits. Fracture: 5 YR 616
(reddish yellow). Interior (unpainted) surface: 5 YR 6.516 (reddish yellow). Dark
paint: mottled, 2.5 YR 518 (red) to 5 YR 312 (dark reddish brown). Light paint: 10
YR 7.513 (very pale brown). Interior finely wiped; exterior burnished so as to
make dark paint highly lustrous; light paint, applied subsequent to burnishing, is
matt.
Flattened base slightly convex. Handmade.

5 Also termed "White-on-Lustrous-Dark" or "Lustrous Light-on-Dark" (Davis 1979: 240

n.20, 254 and n.74), such pottery owes the luster of its solid coat of dark paint (or slip) to the
burnish applied to it prior to the addition of decoration in a matt light paint. For this reason, the
word "burnish" should become part of the nomenclature applied to this distinctive ceramic
class. I am grateful to C. W. Zerner for drawing my attention to this point and convincing me of
its importance.
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 4

Blegen 1921: 32-33, Figs.47, 48:l; Mylonas 1973: 25-27 A-6, A-8, Pls.l3d, 15b-
c; Rutter 1976: 39 n.28, no.295, P1.V; Davis 1979: 240 nos.13-16, Figs.3-4,
P1.73b-c; Graziadio 1988: 371 n.18.

Teacup. (1173-2-1) Fig. 3:2.

Complete profile. Mended from 13 sherds. Preserved: all of base and handle,
95% of body, 85% of rim. Heavy wear from use apparent on resting surface of
base, top of rim, and sides of handle but surfaces otherwise moderately w c y ;
fragments differentially burnt after vase had been broken.
H. to Rim 0.051 -0.054. D. Rim 0.076-0.089. D. Base 0.039-0.040.
Fine fabric containing occasional fine to coarse, and one or two very Coarse
(max. dimension 1.5 mms.), white and dark grits as well as some silt-sized to
very fine sparkling inclusions. Fracture: 7.5 YR 7.514 (pink). Unpainted surfaces:
10 YR 7.514 (very pale brown). Matt paint: normally 2.5 YR 312 (dusky red), 2.5
YR 314 (dark reddish brown) where thinned. Interior finely wiped; exterior
burnished to moderate luster before paint added.
Flattened base slightly convex; everted rim hollowed on interior, sometimes
bevelled and sloping down toward outside on exterior; handle of uniform width
decorated with two small imitations of rivets (D. 4-5 mms.) at upper attachment
to exterior face of rim. Handmade.
Decoration of double pendent semicircles arranged in six pairs.
Graziadio 1988: 366 and ns.143-144.

3. ?Miniature jar. (1165-2-1) Fig. 3:3.

Body fragments. Mended from 5 sherds into 3 non-joining fragments.
Preserved: none of rim, handle(s), or base, ca. 10°/o or less of body. Light to
moderate wear; fragments differentially burnt after vase had been broken.
Max. pres. H. (composite) 0.041. Max. D. (est.) 0.070.
Fine fabric containing occasional fine to medium white grits and an occasional
coarse dark grit. Fracture: 2.5 YR 614 (light reddish brown). Unpainted surfaces:
5 YR 716 (reddish yellow) on interior, 7.5 YR 714 (pink) on exterior. Darker matt
paint: 5 YR 312 (dark reddish brown). Lighter matt paint (indicated by hatching in
drawing): 2.5 YR 516 (red) where thin, 2.5 YR 4.512 (weak red) where thick.
Burnished to high luster on exterior and to base of rim on interior before
addition of paint; interior body left unfinished after removal from wheel.
Wheelmade.
All painted decoration executed in dark matt paint except for wide red band,
framed by thin dark lines, at base of shoulder zone.
Graziadio 1988: 351-352 ns. 35-38.

4. Four-handled jar. (1104-2-1 ) Fig. 4:4.

Base, handle, and body fragments. Mended from 218 s herds into 87 fragments,
the largest itself consisting of 87 sherds. including both preserved handles.
Preserved: ca. 30% of base, 40% of body, all of one large horizontal loop
handle and one smaller vertical loop handle but none of a second of either type,
none of neck or rim. Surfaces heavily worn all over; fragments differentially
burnt after vase had been broken.
Max. pres. H. (restored) 0.445. Max. D. (est.) 0.40. D. Base (est.) 0.075.
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 5

Fine to medium coarse fabric containing occasional fine to coarse rounded

white and angular black grits, rarer very coarse to granule-sized (max.
dimension 4 mms.) rounded white grits exploded at the surfaces, and
occasional medium to coarse sparkling gold platelets; some of the black grits
also sparkle. Fracture: 2.5 Y 712 (light gray) at core, becoming 6.25 YR 616
(reddish yellow) toward surfaces. Unpainted surfaces: 7.5 YR 714 (pink) on
interior, 5 Y 7.512 (light graylwhite) on exterior. Darker matt paint (indicated by
hatching in drawing): 2.5 Y 3.512 (very dark gray). Lighter matt paint: 10 R 3.512
(dusky redlweak red). Finely wiped over all surfaces, after which exterior was
lightly and streakily burnished to a low, uneven luster.
Flattened base slightly convex; a second example of each type of loop handle is
to be restored, the vertical handles on the shoulder alternating at ninety-degree
intervals with the horizontal ones. Handmade.
All painted decoration executed in dusky to weak red except for the single black
horizontal band at the center of each of the three triple-band groups on the
upper body.
Zerner 1986: 64-66 [for fabric]; Zerner 1988: 4 no.46, Fig.16 [for shape];
Mylonas 1973: 165 N-160, P1.140~;Marthari 1982: 192 no.2599, Fig.5bI P1.70d
[for comparable bichrome decoration at level of lower handles, although here
on four-handled jars having horizontal rather than vertical upper handles].

UNPAINTED POTTERY

5. Goblet. (9-2-3) Fig. 3:5.

Complete profile. Mended from 51 sherds. Complete except for a half-dozen
small chips (ca. 1%) of body. Unevenly discolored by secondary burning.
H. to Rim 0.1 535-0.161. D. Rim 0.1 62-0.1785. D. Foot 0.093-0.095.
Medium coarse fabric containing many fine to granule-sized (max. dimension
2.5 mms.) yellowish red angular grits, some fine to granule-sized rounded white
grits, and occasional silt-sized to very fine sparkling inclusions. Fracture: 6.25
YR 716 (reddish yellow). Surfaces: 8.75 YR 716 (reddish yellowlyellow).
Burnished to moderate luster all over exterior except for underside of foot, which
has been simply smoothed; interior burnished less carefully than exterior, and
top of foot on exterior likewise patchily burnished.
Handmade.
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 P7l6, Pls.91a, 92.
Graziadio 1988: 354-355 and ns.57-63.

6. Goblet. (1155-2-2) Fig. 3:6.

Rim, lug, foot, and body fragments. Mended from 36 sherds into 12 non-joining
fragments. Preserved: ca. 55% of foot, 20% of body, 10% of rim, all of one
crescentic lug and ca. 25% of second, none of either vertical strap handle.
Extremely worn over all surfaces; fragments differentially burnt after vase had
been broken.
H. (restored) 0.18. D. Rim (est.) 0.22. D. Base 0.1 10.
Medium coarse fabric containing many fine to granule-sized (max. dimension
3.5 mms.) angular and rounded black, dark red, yellowish red, and gray grits as
well as occasional fine to very coarse rounded white grits. Fracture: variable;
where thick-walled, 5 YR 614 (light reddish brown) at core, becoming 7.5 YR 714
(pink) near surfaces. Surfaces: 10 YR 813 (very pale brown). Burnished to
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 6

moderate luster on exterior, and probably on interior too, although none of

original interior surface has survived.
Single low rib at junction of foot and body; the two preserved crescentic lugs
probably alternated at ninety-degree intervals with two vertical strap handles of
the type occurring on 5 above. Handmade.
Mylonas 1973: 66 Gamma-51, 196 0-209, Pls.51c:2, 174a, 214, 216.

Kantharos. (9-2-4) Fig. 5:7.

Complete profile. Mended from 14 sherds. Complete except for ca. 10% of rim
and a couple of small chips in foot. Unevenly discolored by secondary burning.
H. to Rim 0.084. D. Rim 0.089-0.1 07. D. Foot 0.047-0.048.
Medium coarse fabric identical to that of 5. Fracture: 7.5 YR 716 (reddish yellow).
Surfaces: 8.75 YR 716 (reddish yellowlyellow). Burnished to moderate and
occasionally rather patchy luster all over exterior except for foot, both top and
bottom, which has been simply smoothed; interior less carefully burnished.
Handmade.
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 P722, Pls.91a, 92.
Graziadio 1988: 364 and ns.127-128.

Kantharos. (1-2-1) Fig. 5:8.

Rim, handle, and body fragment. Mended from 18 sherds. Preserved: none of
base, ca. 50% of body, 70% of rim, all of one handle and 60% of second.
Heavily worn over all surfaces, but especially so on interior, at rim, and on sides
of handles, in all cases probably due to use. Unevenly discolored by secondary
burning.
Max. pres. H. to Rim 0.072. D. Rim 0.1 14-0.128.
Medium coarse fabric containing many fine to granule-sized angular dark red,
gray, and black grits as well as rounded white grits of the same sizes. Fracture:
7.5 YR 610 (grayllight gray) at core, becoming 2.5 YR 514 (reddish brown) toward
surfaces and 5 YR 6.516 (reddish yellow) just beneath them. Surfaces: mottled,
7.5 YR 6-714 (light brown to pink) where preserved. Well-preserved original
surfaces burnished to high luster.
Handles pinched in markedly at apices and broadly flaring in width toward both
upper and lower points of attachment. Handmade.
Graziadio 1988: 364 and ns.127-128. I

Kantharos. (9-2-2) Fig. 5:9.

Complete profile. Mended from 42 sherds. Complete except for some tiny chips
from rim, foot, handles, and body. Unevenly discolored by secondary burning.
H. to Rim 0.1 0.75-0.115. D. Rim 0.1215-0.161. D. Foot 0.0695-0.070.
Medium coarse fabric identical to that of 5. Fracture: 5 YR 7/6 (reddish yellow).
Surfaces: 7.5 YR 714 (pink). Burnished to moderate luster all over exterior
except for top of foot, which has been simply smoothed; handles and interior
more summarily burnished.
Handmade.
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 k708, PIS. 91a, 92.
Graziadio 1988: 364 and ns. 127-128.

Miniature kantharos. (1155-2-3) Fig. 5:lO.

A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 7

Rim, handle, and body fragments. Mended from 4 sherds into 3 non-joining
fragments. Preserved: ca. 25% of body, 50% of rim, all of one handle, none of
second. Extremely worn over all surfaces.
Max. pres. H. to Rim 0.022. D. Rim 0.057.
Fine fabric containing an occasional medium to granule-sized (max. dimension
2.5 mms.) white grit, usually exploded at the surface. Fracture: 8.75 YR 614 (light
brownllight yellowish brown). Surfaces: 10 YR 713 (very pale brown). To judge
from the small surviving patch of the original surface, burnished to moderate or
high luster over all surfaces.
Rounded bottom lacks a well-defined base; shallow groove in horizontally
bevelled, thickened upper surface of rim; handle of uniform width decorated at
upper attachment to rim with single imitation rivet (D. 7.5 mms.). Handmade.
Graziadio 1988: 364 and ns.129-131.

11. Dipper. (1 181-2-2) Fig. 5:11.

Rim, handle, and body fragments. Mended from 13 sherds into 2 non-joining
fragments. Preserved: ca. 40% of body, 25% of rim, 40% of handle. Heavily
worn over all surfaces; fragments differentially burnt after vase had been
broken.
H. to Rim 0.056. D. Rim (est.) 0.090.
Fine fabric containing many fine to medium, and occasional coarse to very
coarse, dark red, black, yellowish red, and white grits. Fracture: 5 Y 7.512 (light
graylwhite). Surfaces: 5 Y 812 (white). Burnished to moderate luster on exterior;
probably treated similarly on interior, although none of original surface survives.
Rounded bottom. Handmade.
Blegen 1921: 19, Fig.26; Davis 1979: 247 no.191, P1.75~(misnumbered 192).

12. Dipper. (9-2-1) Fig. 5:12.

Complete profile. Mended from 14 sherds. Complete except for small chip in
handle. Unevenly discolored by secondary burning.
H. to Rim 0.0525-0.062. D. Rim 0.091-0.105. D. Base 0.038-0.040.
Fine fabric containing many fine to very coarse (max. dimension 1.5 mms.)
yellowish red angular grits and occasional rounded white grits of the same
sizes. Fracture: 6.25 YR 714 (pink). Surfaces: 7.5 YR 714 (pink). Burnished to
moderate luster over all surfaces.
Handmade.
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 P685, P1.91a.
Blegen 1921: 19, Fig.26; Davis 1979: 247 no.191, P1.75~(misnumbered 192).

Krater. .. (1181-2-1 ) Fig. 6:13.

Complete profile. Mended from 56 sherds. Preserved: ca. 75% of foot, 65% of
body, 98% of rim, 90% of one handle and 50% of second. Moderate wear over
much of vase, but heavy wear at rim and bottom of interior as well as on
handles and resting surface of foot probably due to use; fragments differentially
burnt after vase had been broken.
H. 0.219-0.229. D. Rim 0.245-0.257. D. Foot 0.117-0.118.
Medium coarse fabric containing many fine to granule-sized (max. dimension 3
mms.) dark red, gray, black, and white grits. Fracture: variable, often 10 YR 6.511
(light gray) at core and 7.5 YR 714 (pink) near surfaces. Surfaces: 10 YR 814
(very pale brown). Burnished to high luster all over exterior body and to base of
rim on interior; foot (both top and bottom) and interior body finely wiped.
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 8

Low pedestal foot attached to body in form of disc with large hole at center;
shallow horizontal groove in vertically bevelled, lowermost portion of foot's
exterior profile and low rib on sloping surface just above. Handmade.
Graziadio 1988: 356-357 and n.77.

1 4. Jug with cutaway neck. (9-2-5) Fig. 6:14.

Complete profile. Mended from 52 sherds. Complete except for half of very top
of spout. Unevenly discolored by secondary burning.
H. 0.163. Max. D. 0.112. D. Base 0.047. .
Fine fabric containing some fine to medium black grits. Fracture: 5 Y 712 (light
gray). Surfaces: 5 Y 7.512 (light graylwhite). Neck pared vertically; exterior body
burnished to moderate luster.
Flattened base slightly convex; vertical strap handle, attached at bottom by
means of roughly cylindrical plug (D. 7.5 mms.) inserted through vessel wall,
decorated on back by two parallel vertical incisions beginning just below top of
handle and ending just above bottom. Handmade.
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 P724, P1.91a.
Graziadio 1988: 367 and ns.155-157.

1 5. Jug with cutaway neck. (18-2-1) Fig. 6:15.

Complete profile. Mended from 77 sherds. Complete except for ca. 60% of rim
at front of spout as well as several chips in body (less than 5%). Unevenly
discolored by secondary burning.
H. 0.1 89. Max. D. 0.1 60. D. Base 0.046-0.050.
Fine fabric identical to that of 14. Fracture: 5 Y 7.512 (light graylwhite). Surfaces:
5 Y 7.513 (pale yellow). Neck pared vertically, then cursorily burnished
horizontally; exterior body burnished to moderate luster.
Flattened base slightly convex; low central rib running down center of back of
vertical strap handle. Handmade.
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 P723, P1.91a.
Graziadio 1988: 367 and ns.155-157.

1 6. Alabastron. (1 173-2-2) Fig. 6:16.

Complete profile. Mended from 22 sherds. Complete except for two small
fragments missing from body and one from neck. No significant wear. Unevenly
discolored by secondary burning.
H. 0.110. D. Rim 0.086. Max. D. 0.127. D. Base 0.0485.
Fine fabric containing some fine to coarse dark red, gray, black, yellowish red,
and white grits. Fracture: 7.5 YR 714 (pink). Surfaces: mottled, 7.5 YR 7.514
(pink) through.2.5 Y 6.512 (light brownish gray/light gray) to 2.5 Y 812 (white).
Burnished to high luster all over exterior; interior below hollow in rim finely
wiped.
Flattened base slightly convex; two vestigial crescentic horizontal lugs are
unperforated, although neck directly above them is pierced by two circular
perforations (D. 7.5 mms.), presumably designed to accommodate the strings,
wires, or thongs with which a lid would have been secured. Handmade.
For the origin of the shape, occasionally found in the Light on Dark-slipped-and-
burnished class in LH I deposits at Tsoungiza, see Dickinson 1974: 114.
I
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.)

COOKING POTTERY
. 17. Cooking pot with single vertical loop handle. (9-2-9) Fig. 6:17.
Complete profile. Mended from 78 sherds. Preserved: all of foot except for one
small chip, ca. 65% of body, all of rim except for one or two chips, all of handle.
Unevenly discolored, presumably as much from use as by the fire which
destroyed the building in which it was found.
H. 0.281 -0.293. D. Rim 0.204-0.2075. Max. D. 0.250. D. Base 0.076-0.077.
Medium coarse fabric containing many fine to granule-sized (max. dimension
2.5 mms.), angular white, gray, and sparkling black grits as well as some coarse
to very coarse sparkling gold platelets. Fracture: very dark gray to black at core,
becoming 3.75 YR 516 (redlyellowish red) near surfaces. Surfaces: extensively
mottled, 2.5 YR 516 (red) through 6.25YR 616 (reddish yellow) and 10 YR 513
(brown) to black. Finely wiped over all surfaces.
Although parallel horizontal striations at rim and concentric striations on
underside of base at times resemble wheelmarks, vessel unmistakably
handmade.
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 P741.
Mylonas 1973: 195 0-205, P1.172b; Davis 1979: 252 nos.240-254, Fig.11;
Zerner 1986: 64-66; Nordquist 1987: 52, Fig.50:8; Zerner 1988: 5 nos.18-20,
Fig.23.

18. Cooking pot with single vertical strap handle. (9-2-8) Fig. 7:18.
Complete profile. Mended from 59 sherds. Preserved: all of base and handle,
95% of body and rim. Moderate to heavy wear over all surfaces; unevenly
discolored, presumably as much from use as by the fire which destroyed the
building in which it was found.
H. 0.257-0.270. D. Rim 0.1 95-0.1 96. Max. D. 0.242. D. Base 0.052;0.0545.
Coarse fabric containing massive amounts of fine to pebble-sized (max.
dimension 7 mms.) yellowish red, black, gray, and dark red angular grits and
occasional fine to granule-sized white rounded grits. Fracture: 2.5 YR 310 (very
dark gray) at core, mottled 2.5 YR 5.516 (redllight red) to black near surfaces.
Surfaces: slipped inside and out, 10 YR 713.5 (very pale brown). Interior for the
most part crudely burnished to low luster, exterior roughly wiped, but the two
treatments overlap over much of the vessel.
Sides of vertical strap handle pinched in at handle's midpoint, flaring toward
both upper and lower points of attachment. Handmade,
Directly opposite handle, at junction of shoulder and flaring rim, vertical ridge of
clay crudely defining a thin vertical lug ca. 0.055 long,
Previously published: Wright 1982: 387 P740, PI.91 a.

19. Cooking pot with two horizontal loop handles. (1 116-2-1) Fig. 7:19.
Complete profile. Mended from ca. 75 sherds. Preserved: all of foot, ca. 90% of
body, 98% of rim, all of both handles. Moderately to heavily worn over all
surfaces, but noticeably heavier wear at rim and on handles probably due to
use; unevenly discolored, presumably as much from use as by the fire which
destroyed the building in which it was found.
H. 0.347. D. Rim 0.234-0.246. Max. D. 0.275-0.283. D. Base 0.061 -0.068.
Coarse fabric identical to that of 18 but containing grits with a maximum
dimension of up to 10 mms. Fracture: 5 YR 311 (very dark gray) at core,
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 10

becoming 2.5 YR 514 (reddish brown) near surfaces. Surfaces: slipped inside
and out, mottled from 10 YR 713 (very pale brown) to 8.75 YR 714 (pinklvery pale
brown). Interior partly burnished, partly wiped, sometimes slightly lustrous;
exterior roughly wiped and normally not lustrous.
Sides of handles roughly flattened so that their sections are more rectangular
than circular. Handmade.
Evenly spaced between handles, at junction of body and flaring rim, two crudely
executed lugs, one much like that on 18 but the second (see drawing) so
roughly shaped as to resemble a lumpy knob more than a vertical ridge.

DISCUSSION
Aside from the floor deposit of the southwest building in EU7 described above,
the recent excavations at Tsoungiza have resulted in the recovery of two large, closely
contemporary dumps of LH I sherd material in area EU8 and several smaller ceramic
groups of comparable date from areas EU2, EU7, and EU10. Study of this material has
advanced far enough to allow the principal features to be enumerated whereby this
material can be distinguished from that of the preceding MH period on the site.6

Decoration
Despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of the painted pottery from LH I
strata at Tsoungiza continues to be decorated with the matt paint characteristic of the
MH ceramic tradition, a small amount is now for the first time since the end of the Early
Bronze Age either coated solidly or ornamented with dark-on-light patterns in an iron-
based paint. The color of this paint varies from red through brown to black depending
on firing conditions and the degree of its luster depends on the treatments applied to
the surface both before and after the addition of the paint. At Tsoungiza during the LH I
period, such paint is normally dull when applied as a solid coating to goblets (e.g.
Davis 1979: 241 ns.23-24), highly lustrous when used as a background for light matt- -
painted patterns on juglets, alabastra, and teacups of the Light on Dark-slipped-and-
burnished class (I), and anywhere from slightly to highly lustrous when applied in a
dark-on-light style to the earliest "Mycenaean" pattern-painted vases. These last,
which allow the deposits in which, and hence the associated pottery with which, they
were found to be termed "LH I", account for much less than 1% of the total pottery,
whether measured by sherd count or by weight. By far the commonest type within this a
ceramic category is the wheelmade teacup, usually burnished on the exterior and
unfinished on the interior.
As elsewhere in central and southern Greece, the LH I pottery at Tsoungiza is
characterized by a dramatic rise in the popularity of bichrome painted ornament.
Decoration of this kind is altogether unknown at the site in th,e later MH period, but in
LH I a number of different combinations of paints appear, each one possibly
representing a different production center. The combination of patterns in matt white
on a lustrous; dark, solidly painted and burnished ground (1) has already been
mentioned. Closely related to this in terms of the paints employed, but seemingly
different in the clay body of the vessels and certainly distinct stylistically is the addition
of matt white lines and dots to the lustrous dark-on-light decoration of the earliest
"Mycenaean" teacups. Quite different is the application of red and black matt paints

The account which follows, reflecting as it does the finds of both the 1985 and 1986 seasons
at Tsoungiza, renders out of date preliminary comments based on the finds of the 1984 season
alone and published in l(1985) 34-37, esp. 36 n.3.
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 11

over a burnished pink to reddish yellow clay ground (3) in a style usually categorized
as Mainland Polychrome Matt-painted (Davis 1979: 241-243, 256-258; Graziadio
1988: 351-352). Vases decorated in this style are clearly imports at Tsoungiza. A
related form of bichrome matt-painted decoration applied to a burnished ground with a
better claim to being a local product substitutes a paler-firing clay ground and a
reddish yellow paint for the red of Mainland Polychrome but is otherwise similar. Yet
another class of bichrome matt-painted decor, applied to large water jars with a variety
of distinct handle arrangements (4) as well as to kraters and an occasional bridge-
spouted jar (Marthari 1982: 187-189 no.3699, Figs.2b, 5c, P1.70a) - that is, exclusively
to large vessels - is restricted to vases with a highly distinctive fabric containing,
among other inclusions, gold platelets which have been identified as biotite (Zerner
1986: 64). Such vases are considered, on the basis of several convincing strands of
argument, to be Aeginetan products (Davis 1979: 241, 258-259; Zerner 1986: 64-66;
Zerner 1988: 2-4; Graziadio 1988: 357 n.78).

Shapes
Although one or two of them make a rare appearance at Tsoungiza in deposits
dating to the very end of the MH period, the teacup (2) (Graziadio 1988: 355-356 and
ns.64-65, 366 and ns.143-144), Vapheio or Keftiu cup (Graziadio 1988: 366 and
ns.139-142), and panel cup (Graziadio 1988: 356 and ns.66-76) do not appear with
any significant frequency before LH I. The teacup is a common shape in LH I in all the
ceramic classes in which it was produced [i.e. Mycenaean lustrous painted, fine Matt-
painted, Gray Minyan, fine unpainted (= "Yellow Minyan")], although the quantities of
Mycenaean lustrous painted and Gray Minyan pottery in LH I deposits at Tsoungiza
are themselves very small. The Vapheio cup is considerably rarer at Tsoungiza before
the LH IIA period, but appears sporadically in Mycenaean lustrous painted, fine Matt-
painted, and Gray Minyan. The panel cup, on the other hand, is quite common during
LH I but at Tsoungiza is seemingly restricted to the fine Matt-painted class and is the
only one of this novel triad of Aegean cup shapes to disappear after LH I.
Another distinctive new form at Tsoungiza in the LH I period, common in both
matt-painted and unpainted versions, is the krater with horizontal handles (13).
Among bichrome matt-painted examples, the Aeginetan type is the most common, but
both "Aeginetan" and "Mainland Polychrome" rim types are well attested among
unpainted specimens (Davis 1979: 247 n.56).
Perhaps the commonest unpainted open shape is the goblet. In contrast to late
MH goblets, those of the LH I period at Tsoungiza have much lower pedestal feet (5-6)
and what remains of a stem lacks the pronounced ribbing or incisions which
characterize late MH examples (Graziadio 1988: 354-355, 363-364). The crescentic
lugs serving as supplementary handles on some goblets ( 6 ) are an exclusively LH I
feature.
Indicative of the influence of metallic prototypes on ceramic forms and
unattested at Tsoungiza before LH I is the application of pellets imitating rivets at the
junction of handles and rims (2, 7). Significantly, this feature occurs both on painted
(2) and plain ( 7 )vases, whether they have Aegean [2; ultimately Minoan, but perhaps
filtered through the Cyclades (Graziadio 1988: 366)] or purely Mainland Greek (7)
ancestries.
A new and extremely common type of cooking pot with a vertical loop handle
attached on the shoulder, a sharply offset rim often markedly hollowed on the interior,
and a splaying flattened base (17) is clearly imported on the basis of its fabric (see
below). This particular shape differs in several minor respects from locally produced
types of cooking pots(18-19). The equally distinctive and clearly related fabric of
A Ceramic Definition of Late Helladic I from Tsoungiza (cont.) 12

numerous large storage jars (4) likewise reveals them to be imports (see below),
although in terms of their shapes these may differ even less from their locally made
functional equivalents.

Fabrics
At least two fabric groups appear for the first time in LH I deposits at Tsoungiza.
The first is the fired product of a very coarse paste containing dark angular inclusions
with maximum dimensions in the 6-12 mms. range, no readily detectable sparkling
grits, and relatively little in the way of rounded white grits. Utilized exclusively for
cooking pots, this fabric is sometimes, although not invariably, coated with a paler-
firing slip (18-19). The two distinct shapes so far identified in this fabric, which is
assumed to be local and probably does not survive beyond the LH I period, have
similar foot and body profiles and often exhibit vertical lugs at the junction of shoulder
and rim but vary in the number and type of their handles, one featuring a single broad
strap from shoulder to rim (18) and the other two horizontal loops set high on the
shoulder (19).
The common feature which connects the two visually distinct fabrics making up
the second new fabric category at Tsoungiza during the LH I period is the presence of
sparkling black angular grits and gold platelets. These constitute the most striking and
readily identifiable constituents of fabrics which in contemporary and earlier contexts
elsewhere have been claimed to fingerprint products of the island of Aegina (Zerner
1986: 64-66). At Tsoungiza, such inclusions occur in a fine to medium coarse, pale-
firing, and porous fabric employed for the production of large water jars (4) and also in
a strictly medium coarse, dark-firing, and seemingly rather denser fabric used for
cooking pots (17). As at Lerna and a large number of other sites, such vessels, as well
as the distinctively profiled kraters produced in the paler-firing fabric, often bear
"potters' marks" (Davis 1979: 252 nos.250-252, 254, Fig.11; Zerner 1986:65; Zerner
1988: Figs.16:47, 23:18-20). At Tsoungiza, these distinctive "gold mica" fabrics
account for between 9% and 12% of the total amount of pottery found in LH I deposits,
whether measured by total numbers of sherds or by weight.

Technology of Production
Two items are worthy of mention under this heading. First, although all the
pottery produced at Tsoungiza was probably handmade in both the MH and LH I
periods, a few wheelmade vessels produced elsewhere appear for the first time as
imports in LH I deposits at the site (3). Such vases are without exception small in size,
the single most common type being the teacup decorated with patterns in lustrous dark
paint.
Second, LH I vases tend to be produced in much more finely levigated pastes
than their late MH predecessors. Thus although beaked jugs such as 14-15 and -
dippers like 11-12 existed as forms in the latest MH ceramic repertoire, they were
being produced only in medium coarse fabrics at that time. Large shapes such as
kraters, water jars, and cooking pots continue to be produced in medium coarse
fabrics during the LH I period, but virtually all of the smaller vases, especially if they
are painted, are made from fine pastes.

Jeremy B. Rutter
Department of Classics
Dartmouth College
Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, U.S.A.
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