By the eighth century BC the Phoenicians had established themselves throughout the Mediterranean with trading posts and colonies along the north coast of Africa, on the coast of Spain, and on the islands of Cyprus, Sicily and Sardinia. The Phoenicians were responsible for facilitating contacts at this time between the Greeks and other civilisations around the Mediterranean, particularly those of Egypt and the Near East.
Increased contact with the East brought the Greeks new ideas regarding pottery, sculpture, architecture, mythology, religion, and the use of iron and bronze. Most important of all was the introduction of writing using an alphabet derived from that of the Phoenicians. One of the very earliest inscriptions in Greek is on a vase found at the Greek trading post at Pithecusae: it dates from c.720 BC and describes the vase as belonging to Nestor, a Homeric hero.
The Orientalizing period is characterised by a shift from the prevailing Geometric to a style of pottery with different motifs and ideas inspired by Greece’s eastern neighbours. In Corinth the Orientalizing style is referred to as Protocorinthian, in Athens it is called Protoattic. By the later part of the seventh century BC Protocorinthian pottery was on the wane and Corinth’s period of prosperity was soon eclipsed by Athens.
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