Comparison between two piece of art work

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Comparing the Dolphin Vase with Kamares Ware
The Dolphin Vase
Title Dolphin Vase
Date 1921
Period 1979-1908 B.C.
Style of art Pottery Vase
Country of origin Egypt
The Iconography and Style of the Dolphin Vase
The Dolphin Vase is a pottery jug that makes use of the naturalistic show of dolphins and wading birds. There are three dolphins across the face of the jug that are drawn to appear in a motion form. Moreover, two of the dolphins have three birds drawn on top of it, and another dolphin has four birds. The use of black and white colors to draw the animals on an orange background gives the design pattern a Polychromic design. Also, the drawing of the birds and the dolphins gives geometric patterns with simple linear patterns and simple dots in its complex ornament design.
Harmony is achieved from the repetitive pattern of the single dolphin and several birds on top given in three groups to give a relatively simpler syntax. The dolphin jug, therefore, unlike the Kamares vase offers simplicity, with richness and value in the drawing of the designs.
The Design of Dolphin Vase
The dolphin jug design can be grouped into two, the upper section containing ten birds and the lower section that has three dolphins. The striking feature of the drawings is that the dolphins and the birds are presented to appear in motion, with the feet of the birds webbed out for balance and the fins of the dolphins having waves around them to suggest movement.

The tails of the dolphins and the dorsal fins are not aligned with the body this suggesting search for balance in motion. The general design of the animals and the shape of the jug gives a complete perspective design of the jug.
Research Work on the Dolphin Vase
There has been an intense interaction between Egypt and Levantine regions that the dolphin vessel is highly believed to have been made in the middle Bronze Age periods. However, the interactions can still not be clearly understood through archeological research works (Aruz, Benzel and Evans 61). Though the design and syntax of the patterns are highly believed to be the original view of the Levantines, the dolphin jug is a development with Egyptian origin. According to McGovern, the verse originated in the southern Palestine, Gaza region as was confirmed through the use of Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA) (35). However, it was first discovered in 1921 by Metropolitan Museum of Art expedition from one of the most famous pharaohs tombs 879 located at Lisht. Notably, Lisht was the capital Middle Egyptian Kingdom. According to metmuseum.org, the combined artifact on the Minoan dolphin style and Levantine shape in the vessel shows a close intermarrying of cultural values between Levantine and Egypt. McGovern suggested that the exchange must have taken place across the delta region in the 1700 and 1550 B.CC through the development of Hyksos (37).
Kamares Ware
Title Kamares Ware
Date 1800–1700 BCE
Period MM I period- MM II B (Mycenaean Era)
Style of art Polychrome design of pottery
Country of origin Aegean Islands Greece, Cyprus, Egypt and Syria
The Iconography and Style of the Kamares Ware
Kamares ware is a vase with rich drawing work that falls under the category of pottery. It was first discovered in the Kamares caves on the slopes of Mount Ida, Greece, hence the name (Walberg 9). The making of the art deployed the use of full polychromatic style with the use of a many choice of colors including orange and white on the black clay background.
Also, the verse is rich in the patterned design of fauna and flora motifs as it has the images of fish and flowers decorated on its face. Notably, the Kamares wares were the first piece of art to have been identified with the richness of such motif. Kamares ware is also deploying the use of complex ornaments with its set of wavy lines making a complete design look. Straight geometric lines enclosing the wavy lines around the verse gives the design a harmonious appearance that is valuable enough to depict a rich pattern.
The Design of Kamares Ware
The top and the bottom patterns on the face of the verse are connected through the fish design; sometimes it is called the fish vase. A set of flowers that are drawn to hang from above fills in the void left by the fish. The flowers that seem to be an extension of the top floral part creates a complete and rich work on the face of the vase. They have a unique repetitive pattern that is drawn to scale and proportion. The geometric lines are drawn across the verse as well as the floral patterns from the top to the bottom of the verse as well as the fish on the face a complex syntax of pattern rhyme.
Research Work on the Kamares Ware
The verse is strongly believed to have been developed during the Middle Minoan period (2000 until about 1700 BCE) when the invention of the porter’s the wheel played a significant part in the design of the pattern of the art. Artists were also influenced by the love of nature to include the drawing of plant and animals on their pottery. During the MM II B, the making of the Kamares Ware reached its peak, and eventually disintegrated in the last pages of the Middle Minoan period (MM III). During this time, its use had spread to many other places like Cyprus, Egypt, and Syria.
Conclusion
Art and culture are closely connected. Looking at the two pieces of art, the dolphin jug and the Kamares Vase, cultural perspective and love for the environment among the two artists can be seen. The culture of the people during the times of the designs was lived near water bodies and thus the development of water related features. It was a rich way to appreciate their natural environments, a factor that informs even the modern arts. People still copy the traditions in the modern artistry and focus on the environment in the development of their art materials.

Works Cited
BIBLIOGRAPHY l 1033 Aruz, Joan, Kim Benzel, and Jean M Evans. Beyond Babylon: Art, Trade, and Diplomacy in the Second Millennium B.C. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2008. Print.
McGovern, Patrick E. and et al. “The Archaeological Origin and Significance of the Dolphin Vase as Determined by Neutron.” The American Schools of Oriental Research Journal (1994): 31-43. Print.
metmuseum.org. Jug Decorated with Dolphins and Birds. 2000-2016. Web. 25 November 2016.
Walberg, Gisela. “The Role and Individuality of Kamares Ware.” Aegean Archaelogy (2001): 9-18. Print.

Appendix

Dolphin Jug Kamares Ware