Ancient Greek Pottery

The Ancient Greek civilization ranged from 1200 B.C. to around 600 A.D. in the area surrounding the Mediterranean Sea.

The earliest Greek pottery was black and white, and had designs based around animals from the sea.

Around 800 B.C., Greek pottery started using REGISTERS, or horizontal stripes, filled with pictures and designs.

Greek potters used a pottery wheel, and usually made their pots in different parts. They would make the body, or  main part of the pot, then connect the rim and handles later using slip.

The Greeks also used teamwork to make their pottery. One artist who was good at clay would build the pot, then fire it in a kiln. An artist who was good at painting would then add the glaze decoration. These artists usually shared a studio, or workshop.

This teamwork allowed them to start making very detailed and realistic glaze decorations. Popular glaze colors were orange and black, and the images usually showed stories and scenes from their religion and mythology.