The Emigration of Potters from Athens in the Late Fifth Century B.C. and Its Effect on the Attic Pottery Industry

Abstract

Although pottery schools that imitated Attic pottery were established during the sixth and fifth centuries B.C., few successfully challenged the productive Attic workshops. In the second half of the fifth century, however, schools that had an impact on Attic pottery distribution were begun at Thurii, Taras, Falerii, Syracuse, Lipari, Olympia, Corinth, Smyrna, and Olynthos. Most appear to have been founded by Attic-trained potters who decided to leave Athens at this time. Their emigration caused a reduction in personnel in the Attic pottery industry that resulted in an increased reliance on cheaper, mass-produced pots. With the exception of the two earliest schools, the majority were founded during or immediately after the Peloponnesian War. Potters would not have left Athens because of lack of markets abroad, since the war did not adversely affect the distribution of Attic pottery. While wartime conditions, especially the plague, depleted the general work force, the protracted war may have also prompted some craftsmen to abandon Athens, especially metics who had previously considered permanent residency; in addition, slaves could have escaped more easily during wartime. Both groups combined to form a large segment of skilled craftsmen; still the number of émigrés need not be large since the pottery industry was relatively small. The artistic decline that resulted from the emigration of potters from Athens permitted the continued development of the new local schools during the late fifth and early fourth centuries. As the fourth century progressed, the importance of Attic pottery as an export ware gradually declined.

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