ancient writers, from
the school of Polygnotos to that of Zeuxis and Parrhasios.

The form of the vessels themselves next calls for our attention. The
vases, two-handled amphorai and krateres, found most frequently during
this period, are slender and graceful. Together with them we meet with
beautifully modeled drinking-horns, and heads or whole figures, used
to put vessels upon. The variety of forms, and the largeness of some
vessels, overloaded as they were with figures, soon led to want of
care in the composition. The moderation characteristic of the
"beautiful style" was soon relinquished for exaggerated ornamentation,
combined with a preference for representing sumptuous dresses and the
immoderate use of white, yellow, and other colors. This led gradually
to the decadence of pottery.

In some Etruscan cities earthenware was manufactured by local artists
working after Greek patterns. The figures are distinguished from
genuine Greek work by the contours being incised very deeply and
filled up with red color. The clay also is coarser. The compositions
show an admixture of local myths and usages, not to mention Etruscan
inscriptions.

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VASES.

Painted vases may be considered as the most curious, the most
graceful, and the most instructive remains that have come down to us
from ancient times. The beauty of the forms, the fineness of the
material, the perfection of the varnish, the variety of the subjects,
and their interest in an historical point of view give painted vases a
very important place among the productions of the arts of the
ancients. Painted vases have been collected with great eagerness ever
since they have been known, and the most remarkable have been engraved
by celebrated artists, and explained by profound archaeologists. Modern
art and archaeology have obtained from them beautiful models and
important information. They were known for the first time in the
seventeenth century.

Painted vases were, to a considerable extent, objects of traffic and
of export from one country to another. They may be generally traced to
Athens as the original place of exportation. Corinth also exported
vases, for the products of Corinthian potters have been found in
Sicily and Italy, and there can be no doubt that Corinth had
established an active trade in works of art with the Greek colonies
all over the Mediterranean. Athenian vases were carried by the
Phoenici