The Late Archaic Period, 500–480 BC

Abstract There is no real break between the writing styles of the late sixth and early fifth centuries. The lettering of the Pioneers is directly continued in the early works of such painters as Onesimos (who continues the style of Euphronios), the Kleophrades Painter (who continues that of Euthymides), the Berlin Painter, and Douris. But gradually changes begin to appear which result in a more orderly, not to say more academic, style of writing. These changes bear fruit in the second quarter of the century, when the official stone script acquires a definite character of its own. The graffito inscriptions on ostraca eventually become more regular, and the vase-inscriptions show the influence of stoichedon script and (to a lesser extent) of manuscript writing.