The “Prince of the Lilies” is a famous Minoan fresco, essentially a 100-piece fabrication, depicting a young man in high plaster relief against a red ground. The life-size male figure, comprised of three non-joining pieces, is believed to symbolize beauty and possibly divinity. The fresco was discovered on the Greek island of Crete around 1550 BC during the new palace period between 1700 and 1550 BC.
The Prince of the Lilies, also known as the Lily Prince or Priest-King Fresco, is a celebrated Minoan painting excavated in pieces from the palace of Knossos, the capital of Crete. The figure’s stance appears to indicate that he is pulling an animal or imaginary creature (sphinx or griffin) with his left hand. The figure was named “prince” because it was thought to be a complete fabrication.
Despite being a relatively harmless fabrication, the “Prince of the Lilies” may have some positive effects on the balance of history. It is part of a more extensive high-relief mural and is considered one of the most famous of all the Minoan frescoes. The fresco was placed in the south-wing of the palace of Knossos during the reconstruction of the area.
In summary, the “Prince of the Lilies” is a celebrated Minoan fresco from the Greek island of Crete, showcasing a young man in high relief against a red ground. The fresco is part of a more extensive high-relief mural and is considered one of the most famous Minoan frescoes.
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What are the frescoes in the Palace of Knossos?
The palace of Knossos showcases the full range of Minoan civilisation’s fresco styles, showcasing religious festivals, rituals, sports, and decorative patterns. These frescos provide insight into Minoan fashions and the Minoan people’s appearance, and have helped archaeologists recreate parts of the palace by preserving details of its architecture. The west wing of the palace was dedicated to public receptions and religious ceremonies, with frescos preserving details of events in the palace’s courtyards, corridors, and rooms.
The Corridor of the Procession features a colorful fresco depicting life-sized figures bearing gifts to a goddess or queen. The Propylaeum, the entrance to the palace’s sacred enclosure, features a procession of young men and women, culminating in a sacrifice to the deity. The Throne Room depicts Minoan festival celebrations, with scenes of women dancing in a sacred grove while male spectators applaud them.
How were Minoan frescoes made?
Minoan fresco painting techniques involve applying a rough plaster layer, followed by thin layers of refined plaster made from lime and animal hair. The final layer is undiluted lime, and paint is applied. The main parts of the fresco are applied to wet plaster, with compositions outlined in orange or yellow. Borders are marked with string and compasses, and pre-prepared patterns may be used. Color is applied using sponges for backgrounds and color blocks, and brushes for more detailed work. After the plaster has dried, the painting is preserved with an egg tempera glaze, which is then rubbed to a high gloss.
What destroyed the palace of Knossos?
The Knossos palace, built around 1350 BC, was destroyed by a fire, leading to the collapse of the upper stories. The destruction is unknown whether intentional or natural. The town reemerged around 1200 BC, but the palace and its institutions were never restored. After the Bronze Age, Knossos continued to be occupied and by 1000 BC, it had reemerged as a significant center of Crete. The city had two ports, one at Amnisos and another at Heraklion. The Knossians colonized Brundisium in Italy, and in 343 BC, they allied with Philip II of Macedon.
In Hellenistic times, Knossos came under Egyptian influence, but despite military efforts during the Chremonidean War, the Ptolemies were unable to unify the city states. In the third century BC, Knossos expanded its power to dominate almost the entire island, but was checked during the Lyttian War in 220 BC by a coalition led by the Polyrrhenians and Macedonian king Philip V.
What technique was applied in the frescoes?
Frescos or frescoes is a technique of mural painting executed on freshly laid lime plaster. The dry-powder pigment is mixed with water to merge with the plaster, and with the plaster setting, the painting becomes an integral part of the wall. The term fresco is derived from the Italian adjective fresco meaning “fresh”, and is closely associated with Italian Renaissance painting. The word fresco is often used inaccurately in English to refer to any wall painting, regardless of the plaster technology or binding medium.
Buon fresco pigment is mixed with room temperature water and used on a thin layer of wet, fresh plaster called the intonaco. The pigment sinks into the intonaco, which becomes the medium holding the pigment. After a few hours, the plaster dries in reaction to air, fixing the pigment particles in the plaster. The chemical processes involved in frescos include:
- The pigment is absorbed by the wet plaster, which then dries in reaction to air. This process is crucial in the creation of frescos, which have been used since antiquity and are closely associated with Italian Renaissance painting.
What is the story behind lilies?
The lily has a plethora of mythological associations, with its most prevalent meaning being the tale of Zeus and Hera, which symbolizes rebirth and fertility. Zeus desired for Hera’s milk to be consumed by the infant Hercules, thereby reframing the significance of the lily.
What is the myth of lily?
The lily flower, created from Hera’s breast milk, is a symbol of purity in Greek mythology. Venus, jealous of its white purity, caused the pistil to grow from the flower’s center. The first picture of a lily appeared in Crete around 1580 BC, and it became a symbol of fertility for pagans and Christians. The Old and New Testaments mention lilies, and they still represent purity and abundance in Greece. In some cultures, lilies symbolize death, with brides wearing crowns made of lilies and wheat.
European explorers, like Augustine Henry, discovered lilies during the Victorian era, leading to the development of the orange Lilium henryii and the magnificent white Lilium regale. The lily remains a symbol of purity and abundance in various cultures throughout history.
Where is the Priest-King now?
The Priest-King, a small male figure sculpted in steatite, was found during the excavation of Mohenjo-daro in Sindh, Pakistan, in 1925-26. It is considered the most famous stone sculpture of the Indus Valley civilization (IVC) and is now in the National Museum of Pakistan’s collection. The sculpture features a neatly bearded man with a fillet around his head, possibly a once-elaborate hairstyle or headdress. He wears an armband and a cloak with drilled trefoil, single circle and double circle motifs, which show traces of red.
His eyes might have originally been inlaid. The sculpture is incomplete, broken off at the bottom, and possibly unfinished. Originally, it was presumably larger and probably was a full-length seated or kneeling figure. As it is now, it is 17. 5 centimeters (6. 9 in) high.
The name Priest-King is highly speculative and “without foundation”. Archaeologists Ernest J. H. Mackay, Sir John Marshall, and Sir Mortimer Wheeler were the first to use the term, but it is now generally used to describe the sculpture as commemorative figures of clan leaders or ancestral figures. The sculpture is now in the collection of the National Museum of Pakistan.
Where was fresco developed?
Fresco painting, a technique dating back to the Minoan civilization and ancient Romans, was a significant art form during the Italian Renaissance. It featured works by artists like Cimabue, Giotto, Masaccio, Fra Angelico, Correggio, and others. The most famous frescoes are Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel paintings and Raphael’s Stanza murals in the Vatican. However, by the mid-16th century, fresco was largely replaced by oil painting. The technique was briefly revived in the 20th century by Mexican muralists Diego Rivera and Francesco Clemente.
How were frescoes made?
Fresco painting is a method of applying water-based pigments to freshly applied plaster, typically on wall surfaces. The pigments are made by grinding dry-powder pigments in pure water, which dry and set with the plaster to become a permanent part of the wall. This technique is ideal for creating murals due to its monumental style, durability, and matte surface. The “true” fresco technique involves three successive coats of plaster, sand, and marble dust, each of which is allowed to dry and harden.
The artist transfers the outlines of the design onto the wall from a tracing made of the cartoon. The final, smooth coat of plaster is troweled onto as much of the wall as can be painted in one session, confined along contour lines to make the edges of each section imperceptible. The tracing is then held against the fresh intonaco and lined up with the adjacent sections of painted wall, serving as a guide for painting the image in color.
What are the most famous Minoan frescoes?
The Minoan Bull Jumpers fresco, a famous painting from ancient Crete, depicts a priestess vaulting head-first over a charging bull. The original painting was removed from the Palace of Knossos and is now housed in the Heraklion Museum. Replicas of Minoan art are rare in the US, but a collection of them is available from a store. If you know of more Minoan art frescoes and replicas for sale, please share.
Where was priest-King Fresco found?
The Palace of Knossos restoration, discovered in 1901, features a crowned figure designated as the “Priest-King,” which was rendered on a plaster of Paris panel. The restoration, which was frequently interrupted, constituted a notable accomplishment for Sir Arthur Evans.
📹 Why Porcelain Is So Expensive | So Expensive | Business Insider
Handmade ceramics aren’t cheap, but porcelain is often even more expensive. Compared to other ceramics, porcelain is …
I appreciate this series, but I’d also like to see a “Why is X so cheap?” Because I definitely think when perusal this, “wow, but I see similar pieces sold for a lot less money” – probably a mix of worse quality, poor labor practices,and factory production. I’m sure that it would be an eye-opening look into the less-artisan, less-sustainable kind of products that we are much more likely to buy than a handmade piece of porcelain. Not because I think this porcelain isn’t worth the money, but because it makes me think that the cheap products are probably worth more than they’re charging us too.
I took ceramics in high school and found it moderately enjoyable. When I went off to college and needed some electives (still no clue why colleges require electives, money probably) I took up ceramics again. On my 2nd year we worked with porcelain. Let me tell you it is an understatement the difference in feel when molding the clay. I was use to a certain type of brown clay (I dont remember clay names im no expert haha) when we moved to porcelain I felt like I had to relearn everything. Took me a whole year to make a functioning, well balanced bowl. I still have it and love it.
Something I particularly appreciate here is how they are taking their craftsmanship and a very old skill set, then updating it and applying it to keep it up to date. The traditional designs and colors are beautiful, iconic, and have a real place in the right decor. But actually following the market and producing the quality along with designs that will fit into a modern home is going to be their real success, I suspect, and will be what lets them stay a full-scale production place, as opposed to making low-production, bespoke products for only a niche market. Both are valuable, but keeping abreast of the trends without sacrificing quality is going to take them a lot farther, I suspect!
I work for a pottery studio and yeah! this stuff takes a ton of work. We make stoneware and, every so often, porcelain too. Underglazing and carving designs into the clay is almost always the reason its gets expensive. Fine detail work takes a lot of time, especially if you need to replicate it over and over with a high degree of accuracy.
When I had my kitchen gutted and redone by a home construction guy, I went to an area in NYC close to an area called “College Point” that has many Chinese owned Businesses that specialized in selling wall tiles and floor tiles and real wood kitchen cabinets and I went to Home Depot and Lowes. The best floor tiles I brought were the “Porcelain Floor Tiles” durable and beautiful with a nice light tan color and to this day they have kept up with all the wear and tear a kitchen floor normally receives. The sales lady that I brought them from could hardly speak a word of English, But by the look at the number of invoices sitting on her desk, I would say she is doing just fine. A quality product will sell itself.
So beautiful to see the finished pieces, especially the intricately painted ones! I had no idea porcelain was fired three times and for a few days instead of like overnight. No wonder it costs more. The firing time, time to set everything for the kiln, the painting time, it all adds up. Great article, very clean shop, nice employees. Thank you.
Thank you for that look into how porcelain tableware is made . When people buy from a retail store they can’t see first hand the artisanry and skill required to produce such beautiful porcelain wares. Knowing its history and provenance make it that much more valuable to collectors and consumers alike .
I fully appreciate the work that goes into creating these beautiful pieces. Many many years of experience in each artist, Many ears ago I owned a beautiful porcelain large cup, I used it daily and loved it so much. One day a person visited our house to carry out a repair to something. When he finished and left I discovered my beautiful drinking vessel in the bin, he had broken it beyond repair. I am now in my senior years but still remember that beautiful porcelain drinking vessel. Now you know why I appreciate the art of creating beautiful items in ceramic. Thank you for reading/
i miss this so much…the connection to the past… i miss the hours at the wheel … end of the day looking at the racks you have filled, the daily feeling of accomplishment was bliss… the emotion of loosing a piece in the kiln that you put yourself into and worked so hard on made it very interesting.
My great grandma was a porcelain doll maker. My grandma (who I lived with) had a turret in her house with a spiral staircase up it, and at the top was about a hundred of these dolls. Honestly, they were extremely creepy and made everyone uneasy LMAO. I always wanted one though, cause this grandma is where I got my name. I was always promised I’d get to choose one someday. They’re all gone now, but sometimes I hope I’ll find one in a thrift store or something.
I disagree with trying to make their pieces more modern, not with the company but with the people wanting plain old black and white pieces. If your house is modern and sleek, the best thing you could do to compliment the atmosphere is some colorful china. A centerpiece maybe of golds and reds on your dining table, intricate plates displayed on your counters. Makes your space pop.
5:23 It’s not crucial. Traditional Chinese ceramics were glazed before being fired, (so usually just one firing, but technically two in cases with an enamel “overglaze”, like these) but it meant being very careful for the whole decorating process. It also meant a lot of work went into decorating items before the most hazardous part of the firing sequence, instead of after. Even though it wastes fuel and takes longer to split the firing into smaller parts, it’s much easier and unless the process is performed perfectly, saves labour and ceramic materials. Now it’s become the normal procedure, even in China, where the more skillful alternative was practiced for thousands of years (with wood fires and no tools for measuring the heat – quite amazing).
I’ve always felt like you get such bang for your buck when buying porcelain and don’t often think of them as too expensive, these beauties last so long that they get passed down from generation to generation. We have a set passed down from the 70’s, and you couldn’t even really their age. They last so long, that you hardly ever get a chance to replace them to enjoy new ones. These days, I know plenty of people that prefer to use disposable plates on a daily basis and that’s what I would consider expensive.
Many pottery are actually empty,now a days because people dont buy this table style anymore since you can buy cheaper plates like ikea,zara home etc. In japan young people dont spend the money on it resulting in many empty factories. Also these factories made lot of waist because over the years mistake items you can’t be sold,so now a days you can buy those for a cheaper price. they can not re use or sell if it has a small mistake so normally it just piles up never being sold. Now a days you can buy those items for a cheaper price and enjoy the beauty of pottery for a cheaper price, re-using old or mistake items is good for making this type of pottery a trend again. This is how i started. Now i buy more expensive items step by step.
Ahhh I like that ending. Because yeah I like things black, grey, blue, dark green, and white. I’d probably buy porcelain pieces that I find interesting if they matched the colors I’m drawn to. So I’m glad to see a relationship between tradition/quality with more modern colors/paintings so it fits in our spaces. Thinking outside of the box but not straying too far from the tradition will help keep it thriving for years to come.
A few years ago, I bought two big Japanese porcelain bowls and two plates. A few weeks after, I broke the other plate as I was washing it by hand. I really cried because 22 euros is already expensive for me for a plate. But I was impressed as it only broke into 3 parts so my husband put them back together using a glue. Now, I just use it as a platter for veggies.
As a potter for over 44 years working porcelain the value of handmade has become denigrated in the USA, everyone is considered an artist anymore and the media portrays artistic persons as idiots unless your dead an actor or a musician. True craftsmanship and individuality is diminished. Etsy is the only online place to get sales and your competing with dollar store mugs with stickers or shop owners who don’t even make the ceramics, they just have them drop shipped from a mass manufacturer.
Japanese craft of every object is the best in term of quality. I believe this is because of loyalty, just like that pops has worked with porcelain for 60 years. Mastery no doubt, but what makes the quality only getting better is his lifetime knowledge will passed down to the young, and they will improve that knowledge for another lifetime.
I do appreciate the exploration of Asian artisanship, but why is it that whenever a specific topic is discussed the website tends to interview a Japanese company or master? For example, I remember perusal the brush and now porcelain, these are both common items in other Asian countries including China. It is hard to believe Business Insider cannot find a Chinese master or company just as skilled as the Japanese counterparts.
The history of pottery in the East began in China, but China’s neighboring country, Korea, also had excellent ceramic technology. Goryeo celadon, made in Korea, fascinated the Chinese and Japanese at that time and was exported to neighboring countries at a high price. In fact, Japan was the last to develop ceramic technology in the East. During the Japanese Invasion of Korea in 1592, Japan kidnapped most of the Korean ceramic engineers and made them make pottery. Most of them returned to Korea after the war ended and diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan were normalized, but a Korean named “Lee Sam-pyeong” remained in Japan and continued to make pottery. The town where he made pottery is Arita, and Arita Pottery still maintains its reputation. When he died, the local people made him the god of pottery and revered him. But the pottery in this article has nothing to do with Arita pottery.
I worked many years 30 years ago in sourcing ceramic houseware in Asia for the mass market in tht USA. So I enjoyed this article very much. Fundamentally the same processes but key differences included tunnel kiln not intermittent kilns, semi-auto jiggering not manual, dip glazing by hand no tools employed, and decoration by decal for under or over glaze pieces. We has attractive ware but not art. Thanks for the memories.
I like the very end when he accepts having to move into a more modern approach. He has a humble wag of looking at things I very much appreciate even the traditional colors, so gorgeous. People will most likely always appreciate hard work and artisan skills. The style and design may change, as Im sure it has as humankind has progressed many times.
I’m a potter and I have a home studio. Thank you for showing how lovely pottery is and how long and many steps a piece can take to make. Many people don’t understand our prices and why they are sometimes expensive . Even thu pottery as an art has not been valued as much as other arts, I love seeing people are knowing more about it now and I see a big trend of people being interested in it and its value. 🤍
This was very illuminating. It’s amazing to see the range in age of the artisans especially the older ones still being able to apply such delicate and small designs. As for the modern trends….How can people rush to enjoy the colours that nature provides (example plants in bloom or changing of leaves,) and yet, be so satisfied with the drab, dark and dull colours of so called modern anything?
I like to see businesses that embrace change and modernity. So often they rely heavily on tradition, which isnt always a bad thing, but I’ve seen examples of businesses who refuse to change and are heavily stunted. As beautiful as hand painted porcelain can be, no one really justify the hefty price tag unless they are rich, or the style is really just not what people are looking for at the moment.
You omitted to say that the Chinese porcelain makers kept the secret of white porcelain to them selves for a couple of hundred years. It was Josiah Wedgewood who perfected the fine white porcelain we use today in the west. The people in England’s Stoke on Trent also improved things a lot by adding Bone ash to thee porcelain mix to improve its translucency.
1300C for 3 days is pretty intense. were hard pressed to get my friends kiln to 1150. and i advise them not to do it again… only just replaced the elements. my furnace will easily do 1800c, but its not very…ummm… controllable. would love a walk-in kiln. like a wardrobe, only toasty 🙂 i think a months production time might be an understatement on some pieces… just the drying time is a few weeks.
I don’t understand why people are so afraid of colourful things? I mean, for the past 20 years it’s been white everything, white walls, white rugs, white crockery, white floors etc, but now it’s got even worse and it’s grey everything. I live in the UK and cannot even try to understand why, in a country which is cloudy and grey for probably 70% of the time, why would you make your house grey and depressing too? In winter here we only get 6 hours of daylight and that light is grey and bleak, i think when people say they want something ‘modern’ they really mean boring and dull, after all, colour requires imagination and skill.
Handmade – that is why it is expensive. Factories could easily pump out hundreds of those plates each day, one identical to the next, with higherquality, for a fraction of the price – but only if people would actually buy that. Those handmade shops exist cause some people want something different and that is not mass-produced. If you want a dress a mass-produced one will be nice and cheap, but if you want it slightly different then you could pay a couple of wages even. it depends on what it is worth to you.
In a large house there are things made of gold and silver. But there are also things made of wood and clay. Some of these are used for special purposes, others for ordinary jobs. The Lord wants to use YOU for special purposes, so make yourself clean from all evil. Then you will be holy, and the Master can use YOU for honorable purposes…
Cheap porcelain is not only less beautiful, it is simply hazardous. I remember purchasing a cheap porcelain coffee cup set where cups just exploded in my hands!!!! One gave a crack in a week, another at once, the third exploded with a loud sound and I was lucky the coffee got on the table. They tried to imitate thin porcelain, but failed to ensure temperature resistance of the material.
If the Artist can’t afford to buy her own work what kind of people are buying all of this? I hardly ever see this kind of porcelain anymore and I hope they don’t end up having to make them look modern and not have any traditional style left. It reminds me of the beautiful architecture we used to build, now we only build ugly square buildings.
You know as an adult this triggers me for a specific reason all if not most of us as children remember the cabinet of fine China that we all had in the house that nobody used or was allowed to touch because it was expensive and “fragile”… But what this article is telling me is that those plates were the most damage resistant of all the kitchenware
This is why I like CNC machines so much. Even porcelain is be affordable when you make it using machines for every difficult part. Good machines are precise. So when you give quality input, the output is what you want. Especially if you design manufacturing machines, you can produce tons of the almost exact same product in very short amounts of time, with less input per piece. We have tons of porcelain in every home, thanks to this. Even poor people can have porcelain at home. For the artistic cratfting, AR/VR supported design softwares would make things feel better for the designers. A basic design software on flat screens is already good for many artists, but if an artist still feels the piece better in a more life-like environment, AR/VR also adds this to virtual designing. This eliminates all the difficulties of porcelain crafting while retaining the artistic feeling of the process that may be critical for an artist. After the piece is designed, just let machines and machinists and engineers get sweaty. Engineers solve problems in making, so nobody will need to care in the future. Artists should use their artistic brain time in creativity.
The best part is when I try to sell my porcelain wares in the US, and a boomer walks up and says, “Why would I buy your work when I can buy it cheaper from China?” A nation’s wealth is founded upon a manufacturing base. Our manufacturing base has been gutted by greedy fools. Is it any wonder now that handmade ceramics, that were once within the reach of even the most humble of incomes, is now so expensive? 40 years of failing economic policies that screw everyone not in the 1%. This is how idiots take a nation into ruin.