July 1, 1896.] 



KNOWLEDGE 



155 



preserved the old style of painting through the fifth 

 century has come to light in recent years, on the site of 

 the temple of the Cabeiri at Thebes. The Cabeiri were 

 mystical deities about whom very little is known ; but it 

 appears that ribaldry and grotesque caricature played a 

 considerable part in their religion, and probably burlesque 

 representations of myths were performed as part of the 

 rites, and were further depicted on the vases dedicated in 

 the temple, as on most of these vases we find caricatures 

 of mythological scenes, such as Circe offering the magic 

 potion to Odysseus. 



A new development of technique towards the end of the 

 sixth century is seen in a class of vases with white ground 

 instead of red — a method which is supposed to have been 



In the next paper we shall see how the humble eiibrts of 

 the "minor artists " led by degrees to the beautiful creations 

 of their successors. In the present stage we find the 

 decoration limited to one or two small figures on either 

 side of the exterior, or a single figure, while many bear 

 nothing but the signature of the artist or some appro- 

 priate motto, such as " Welcome and drink deep," or 

 " So-and-so is fair." On the later unsigned kyhkes the 

 decoration becomes very rude and careless, although more 

 attention is paid to choice of figure-subjecta than by the 

 " minor artists." 



The artists of the " affected " style appear to be descen- 

 dants of those who produced the so-caUed Peloponnesian 

 vases, to which we have referred in connection with the 

 Francois Vase. The same tendency to minuteness and 

 richness of detail, to tapering extremities of human figures, 

 and delicacy of form and outline, is here visible, in con- 

 junction with more advanced power of drawing and 

 knowledge of technique. Still, the result is quaint rather 

 than pleasing, iilthough it must be remembered that this 

 tendency to over-refinement and richness is characteristic 

 of the end of the archaic period in all branches of Greek 

 art, and the result of a tendency which is swept away by 

 the wave of athleticism and simple idealism which spread 

 over the cultured Greek world in the fifth century. 



It must, however, be reserved for the next article to 

 treat of the causes which led to the change of artistic 

 methods under Nikosthenes and his contemporaries, and 

 the results which were brought about by that development. 



FlO. 5. — Atlienian Hvclria (Pitclier), witli Girls drawing AVater 

 at the Fountaiu of C'alUiThoe ; about one-fifth original. 



introduced by the artist Nikosthenes, a man of con- 

 siderable fertility of mvention, who also introduced a new 

 form of amphora. In several vases signed by him the 

 clay is covered with the creamy white slip which is 

 characteristic of the class of which we are speaking. 

 Some specimens of this group are very effective, but they 

 are generally of small size. 



It will be necessary to add a few words on the other 

 Athenian artists who during this period left their signa- 

 tures on their productions. They fall roughly into three or 

 four classes : (1) the earliest group, at the head of which 

 stand the artists of the Francois Vase described in a previous 

 page, Klitias and Ergotimos ; (2) the so-called minor 

 artists, the chief names being Glaukytes, Tlesou, and 

 Xenocles ; (3) the artists of the " affected " or " minute " 

 style, such as Exekias and Amasis ; (-1) the artists who 

 combine the black-figure and red-figure methods, 

 Pamphaios, Nikosthenes, and Andokidcs. This classifi- 

 cation is roughly chronological. 



The " minor artists " in a way may be regarded as the 

 forerunners of the great vase paintei's of the succeeding 

 period, as they turned their attention almost exclusively 

 to the decoration of the kyUs. 



COMETS OF SHORT PERIOD. 



By W. E. Plummer, M.A., F.R.A.S. 



WE have now to consider that large class of 

 interesting comets which, moving as they 

 undoubtedly do in elliptic paths of compara- 

 tively short period, have been seen once and 

 then disappeared as completely as if their 

 paths had been parabolic. Evidently this class of objects 

 oflers two riddles for solution. Why were they not seen 

 before '? And why have they never been seen since "? The 

 latter question does not, however, apply with the same 

 force to those recently discovered comets which have not 

 yet completed one revolution since they were first seen. 

 It will be desirable to put these new comets in a class by 

 themselves, and trust that time will prove them to be well- 

 regulated members of the solar system. They cannot be 

 said to have discredited themselves as yet, and the only 

 suspicious circumstance connected with some of the 

 members is, that they bear, in some of the elements of 

 their orbits, a great family likeness to others that have 

 had their chance of being repeatedly visible in our tele- 

 scopes, and have not availed themselves of their full 

 opportunities. We will give this list first, and make a few 

 comments upon the more suspicious, and for this reason, 

 possibly, the more interesting members of the group. 

 The order of arrangement is again that of increasing mean 

 distance from the sun. 



