DOI Artikel:
Kapera, Zdzisław Jan: Terakotowy model barki morskiej
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.25235#0056
East civilisation. The group of objects analogous to that of Cracow come from Ama-
thus, a port situated on the south coast of Cyprus. The barge mentioned is especially
similar to the model A 205 from the British Museum, coming from the grave no. 83
at Amathus which thanks to two blaek-figured vases found there may be dated to
the second half of VI c. B.C. The model from the Czartoryski Collection may be
contemporary to that from London.
The custom of putting models of boats to the graves is rather freąuently noted
within the radius of the Mediterranean civilisation. Its introduction to Crete and
Cyprus is probably due to the influence of the Egyptian culture.
At first on Cyprus we deal not with the models of vessels sensu stricto but
vases modelled in form of a short, wide and bulgy boat like the object coming from
the cemetery at Katydhata and the other from Louvre Museum. The terracotta mo-
dals of the vessels from the second half of the second millenium come from the
cemeteries at Maroni and Kazapahani. Two terracotta rhytons and a few vases de-
corated with ships are known from the Geometrie period.
The most numerous models of terracotta boats come from the Archaic period
(700—480 B. C.). Most of them were found at Amathus in the course of research car-
ried out by A. H. Smith, J. L. Myres and P. Christian for the British Museum in
the years 1893—1894. They were discovered within the D—E necropolis situated right
at the sea coast east of the ruins of the ancient town. The cemetery is dated to the
years 650—350 B. C.
Attempts were madę by archaeologist to relate the terracotta ship models found
at Amathus to Apollodoros’s (Epitome III, 9) and Eustathios’s (Schol. Horn. II. XI,
20) references to Kinyras. Kinyras is a rather mysterious, legendary figurę in the
history of Cyprus. He was supposed to rule at Paphos in time of Trojan War. Accor-
ding to Homer (Iliad XI, 17) he gave Agamemnon a superb armour. In the commen-
tary to that fragment of Iliad referred to above. Eustathios of Constantinople (XII c.
A. D.) mentioned that Kinyras promised the Greeks at Troy 50 ships. He did not
keep the promise. He sent the Greeks only one ship carrying 49 models of the rema-
ining ones filled with figures of warriors. After the destruction of Troy Agamemnon
sailed to Cyprus and banished Kinyras from his kingdom to Amathus.
R. Wagner when publishing the Vatican manuscripts of Epitome suggested the
story about the clay models of ships discussed here might be dated to the period
of cyclics and was derived perhaps from the lost poem „Cypria” (VII c. B.C.). The
findings of the terracotta ships from the Archaic period may support Wagner’s hy-
pothesis of the origin of the reference concerning Kinyras’s ruse just at that time.
It may be supposed that the author of verses about the clay fleet knew the custom
of producing terracotta ship models and making an attempt to explain its origin
related it to the legends about Kinyras known to him.
Other aspects of the interpretation of the group of the terracotta objects discus-
sed here should be pointed as well. In the cemetery at Amathus the expedition of
the British Museum found 17 models of ships in 8 graves. The grave n° 83 contained
7 objects; three graves nos. 27, 88 and 95 two objects each; the others i. e. nos. 30, 73,
157 and 176 — one object each. The graves where terracotta models were found
are morę or less contemporary and come from the Cypro-Archaic period II B.
The analysis of the materiał from the Archaic cemetery at Amathus allows to
connect the type of objects discussed here with a certain smali group of people. In
the part of the cemetery (district D—E) investigated by the British Museum expedi-
tion circa 286 graves were found but only 8 of them so 2,8°/o contained the models
of ships. People buried there must have been in touch with the sea, morę precisely-
50
thus, a port situated on the south coast of Cyprus. The barge mentioned is especially
similar to the model A 205 from the British Museum, coming from the grave no. 83
at Amathus which thanks to two blaek-figured vases found there may be dated to
the second half of VI c. B.C. The model from the Czartoryski Collection may be
contemporary to that from London.
The custom of putting models of boats to the graves is rather freąuently noted
within the radius of the Mediterranean civilisation. Its introduction to Crete and
Cyprus is probably due to the influence of the Egyptian culture.
At first on Cyprus we deal not with the models of vessels sensu stricto but
vases modelled in form of a short, wide and bulgy boat like the object coming from
the cemetery at Katydhata and the other from Louvre Museum. The terracotta mo-
dals of the vessels from the second half of the second millenium come from the
cemeteries at Maroni and Kazapahani. Two terracotta rhytons and a few vases de-
corated with ships are known from the Geometrie period.
The most numerous models of terracotta boats come from the Archaic period
(700—480 B. C.). Most of them were found at Amathus in the course of research car-
ried out by A. H. Smith, J. L. Myres and P. Christian for the British Museum in
the years 1893—1894. They were discovered within the D—E necropolis situated right
at the sea coast east of the ruins of the ancient town. The cemetery is dated to the
years 650—350 B. C.
Attempts were madę by archaeologist to relate the terracotta ship models found
at Amathus to Apollodoros’s (Epitome III, 9) and Eustathios’s (Schol. Horn. II. XI,
20) references to Kinyras. Kinyras is a rather mysterious, legendary figurę in the
history of Cyprus. He was supposed to rule at Paphos in time of Trojan War. Accor-
ding to Homer (Iliad XI, 17) he gave Agamemnon a superb armour. In the commen-
tary to that fragment of Iliad referred to above. Eustathios of Constantinople (XII c.
A. D.) mentioned that Kinyras promised the Greeks at Troy 50 ships. He did not
keep the promise. He sent the Greeks only one ship carrying 49 models of the rema-
ining ones filled with figures of warriors. After the destruction of Troy Agamemnon
sailed to Cyprus and banished Kinyras from his kingdom to Amathus.
R. Wagner when publishing the Vatican manuscripts of Epitome suggested the
story about the clay models of ships discussed here might be dated to the period
of cyclics and was derived perhaps from the lost poem „Cypria” (VII c. B.C.). The
findings of the terracotta ships from the Archaic period may support Wagner’s hy-
pothesis of the origin of the reference concerning Kinyras’s ruse just at that time.
It may be supposed that the author of verses about the clay fleet knew the custom
of producing terracotta ship models and making an attempt to explain its origin
related it to the legends about Kinyras known to him.
Other aspects of the interpretation of the group of the terracotta objects discus-
sed here should be pointed as well. In the cemetery at Amathus the expedition of
the British Museum found 17 models of ships in 8 graves. The grave n° 83 contained
7 objects; three graves nos. 27, 88 and 95 two objects each; the others i. e. nos. 30, 73,
157 and 176 — one object each. The graves where terracotta models were found
are morę or less contemporary and come from the Cypro-Archaic period II B.
The analysis of the materiał from the Archaic cemetery at Amathus allows to
connect the type of objects discussed here with a certain smali group of people. In
the part of the cemetery (district D—E) investigated by the British Museum expedi-
tion circa 286 graves were found but only 8 of them so 2,8°/o contained the models
of ships. People buried there must have been in touch with the sea, morę precisely-
50