In this innovative study, James Whitley examines the relationship between the development of pot style and social changes in the Dark Age of Greece (1100-700 BC). He focuses on Athens where the Protogeometric and Geometric styles first appeared. He considers pot shape and painted decoration primarily in relation to the other relevant features - metal artefacts, grave architecture, funerary rites, and the age and sex of the deceased - and also takes into account different contexts in which these shapes and decorations appear. A computer analysis of grave assemblages supports his view that pot style is an integral part of the collective representations of Early Athenian society. It is a lens through which we can focus on the changing social circumstances of Dark Age Greece. Dr Whitley's approach to the study of style challenges many of the assumptions which have underpinned more traditional studies of Early Greek art.

List of abbreviations; List of tables; List of figures and diagrams; List of plates; Preface and acknowledgements; 1. Introduction; 2. Theoretical perspectives; 3. Athens and Attica: the historical background; 4. Methods and chronology; 5. Athens: the analysis of the grave groups; 6. The wider Dark Age world; 7. Conclusions; Bibliography; Appendices; Index of sites; General index.