In the Archaic phase of ancient Greece, the Orientalizing period is the cultural and art historical period informed by the art of  Syria and Assyria, to a lesser extent also Phoenicia and Egypt, which started during the later part of the 8th century BCE. It encompasses a new, Orientalizing style, spurred by a period of increased cultural interchange in the Aegean world. The period is characterized by a shift from the prevailing Geometric style to a style with different sensibilities, which were inspired by the East. The intensity of the cultural interchange during this period is sometimes compared to that of the Late Bronze Age.