CHIAN PAINTED POTTERY FROM MYRMEKION
The regular and systematic study of the settlement of Myrmekion started in 1934. Despite the fact that initially (during the period when the excavation was directed by V. F. Gaidukevich) the main attention was paid to the Hellenistic and later layers, a considerable amount of archaic ceramics was found too, including several fragments of Chian painted kantharoi. From 1982 to 1994 the archaeological works on the settlement were carried out under the guidance of Yu. A. Vinogradov. During this time the main efforts were concentrated on the study of the oldest cultural layers. This led to the accumulation of a huge collection of pottery of the VIth and early Vth c. BC, including some two tens of fragments of Chian painted vessels. Worthy of special note are, first of all, two wall fragments of closed vessels, which should probably be attributed to the Animal Chalice style and dated to the first quarter of the VIth c. BC. In addition, Myrmikion gave fragments of Chian vessels with frieze-like paintings on the inner surface, representing flowers and buds of lotus, usually dated to the first half of the VIth c. BC, as well as fragments of more common ware, decorated only with belts of lacquer laid on white coating. Over the last years A. M. Butyagin's excavations yielded several more fragments of Chian vessels of the same groups. As can be seen from the above, the Chian painted pottery is not just present at Myrmekion, but is represented by various types of vessels and different stylistic groups, which existed during the whole of the VIth c. BC.