The Dark Age Pottery of Sparta, II: Vrondama

Abstract

Two vases reputedly from the village of Vrondama, located some 7km. SW of Geraki in Central Laconia, add significantly to the corpus of Laconian Dark Age pottery, since they represent both ends of the chronological spectrum. The vases are an askos and oinochoe. The askos can be dated to the very early Dark Ages, perhaps even to the transition from LH IIIC to DA, and does much to narrow the gap in Laconia between the end of IIIC and the beginning of DA. The oinochoe, on the other hand, may serve as a transition between the end of DA and the beginning of Laconian LG, for parallels, primarily from Argos, provide a general chronological framework of MG II. The oinochoe is, therefore, as important a transtitional piece for the end of Laconian DA as the askos is for the beginning.