THE EARLY AGE OF GREECE VOL.I by W.Ridgeway 1901

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THE EARLY IRON AGE IX EL'KOPE. 449
in repousse with circles, and which in their designs show a
close affinity to the style of ornament on the Di pylon vases.
But, as almost all the Olympian bronzes of this type were
found at the same level and at one part of the Altis near the
Pelopium and Heraeum, we inferred that the Dipylon style of
decoration had come in with the Acheans.
All we now need is some proof that the culture of the early
Iron Age of northern and central Italy is part of the Hallstatt
civilization. But of this there is no lack of evidence.
At 8esto Calende near the point where the Tieino issues
from the southern extremity of Lake Maggiore was found a
tomb dating frum the tirst part of the eaily Iron Age, corresponding
to the Hallstatt In a ])ei'it)d. deep pit surmounted
by a tumulus were found a helmet made of plates of bronze
riveted together, two bronze greaves, a very short sword, a
lance-head, arrowheads, two horse-bits, two iron circles (the
tires of the chariot-wheels), two large hollow objects, and other
pieces in iron belonging to the chariot. 3Iost of the things
showed traces of the funeral pyre. There was a bronze bucket
ornamented with
horsemen, footinen, stags, birds, dotted circles
and dotted lines. The bronze helmet had two projections for
the crest, and a narrow rim like that from Hallstatt. The
short iron sword hail
a hilt of iron with antennae, and a bronze
scabbard. The imn arrowheads wei'e^ hea\ily !)arl)t'd like that
from (jlasinatz. Thei-e was a sockete(l iron spearhead, and an
iron butt-])ieco.
The hoi-sc-bits ai'e bivtuze nionntetl in iron (one
broken), 'i'hi' ])otteiT was paiiitfil
in black and I'ed bands^
Tlioui^ll the contents ol the .Scsto ('alende tomb, like those
of the Hallstatt gi'aves, diffei' in .NeNciai marked featui'es fi-om
the antiijuities of tlie ordinar}' eai'l}' Iron Age (\'illanov) of
upj)er Italy,
nc\ei-tlieless there is no breach of continuitv
between the Sesto ( "alendc-Halistatt and \'illano\a groups,
for the t\pes
(,f X'adeiia, ( ioki>ccca, h>te, and \'illano\' ai-e
found in the Hallstatt culture. I'lie connection between the
north and south nf the Alps is never intei-|-upt
ed'. The chief
Monti'lius, /,,/ (irilisiiliiiti > ii
jiriiii. Ituli,. I'l. i,\ii.. pp. 'M7 s, Ut.-rtiainl
450 THE EARLY IRON AGE IN EUROPE.
difference lies in the fact that the Celts of the Daniibian
region made greater advances in the development of armour
and weapons than their brethren in upper Italy.
The Celts,
as we have just seen, had in the same respect outstripped the
Illyrians of Carniola and Bosnia. The bucket from Sesto
Calende decorated with men, animals, and geometrical ornament
resembles closely the Dipylon style, which is seen on the
bronzes and terra-cottas found near the Pelopium at Olympia.
But the bucket of Sesto Calende is but one example of a class
of bronze objects wrought in repousse, such as buckets, cists,
girdles, shields, and the like, which are characteristic of the
culture of the early Iron Age of the Po and Danube region.
We also recognized as works of the Achean period the
Warrior Vase and Painted Stele from the upper layer at
Mycenae, and fragments of pottery from the upper sti-atum
of Tiryns. These exhibit processions of men and animals,
sometimes arranged in
pai'allel
bands corresponding to the
decoration of the buckets and cists of central Europe. In the
Warrior Vase and its fellow monuments we thought that we
could see the Mycenean craftsman workiiig
under the iuHueuce
of his Achean mastei's.
We shall presently see (p. -ITS) that in the Shield of
Achilles Homer has described for us a masterpiece of bronze
repousse work, closely analogous, not only to the buckets, cists,
and girdles, but even to circular bronze shields found in the
Danubian area and upper It^aly.
We may then conclude that the period of decadence known
as the Dipylon, which succeeded the Mycen(,'an grand style,
was due not only to the decay of art after the break-u|) of the
great Pelasgian dynasties, but also to the fact that the new
rulers had I'etained a distinct ])redilection
for the style of
ornanu'nt which they had themselves develojied in their old
home in ceiiti'al Euro)e.
Again, tibulac I'csenibling some of those at Hallstatt were
foinid at (lolasecca', and at Castelletto-' ('f icino) one was found
similar to a Hallstatt type; and tibnlae like those fi'oni
and Ut'iuacli, up. rit. {\i\k
I'.t ti;^l.
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I'.trtraiiil ami S. 1;. inach. I.rs (,'lt