Evidence for an Early Date for the Cult of Cretan Zeus
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Minoan Religion
MINOAN RELIGION Ritual, Image, and Symbol NANNO MARINATOS MINOAN RELIGION STUDIES IN COMPARATIVE RELIGION Frederick M. Denny, Editor The Holy Book in Comparative Perspective Arjuna in the Mahabharata: Edited by Frederick M. Denny and Where Krishna Is, There Is Victory Rodney L. Taylor By Ruth Cecily Katz Dr. Strangegod: Ethics, Wealth, and Salvation: On the Symbolic Meaning of Nuclear Weapons A Study in Buddhist Social Ethics By Ira Chernus Edited by Russell F. Sizemore and Donald K. Swearer Native American Religious Action: A Performance Approach to Religion By Ritual Criticism: Sam Gill Case Studies in Its Practice, Essays on Its Theory By Ronald L. Grimes The Confucian Way of Contemplation: Okada Takehiko and the Tradition of The Dragons of Tiananmen: Quiet-Sitting Beijing as a Sacred City By By Rodney L. Taylor Jeffrey F. Meyer Human Rights and the Conflict of Cultures: The Other Sides of Paradise: Western and Islamic Perspectives Explorations into the Religious Meanings on Religious Liberty of Domestic Space in Islam By David Little, John Kelsay, By Juan Eduardo Campo and Abdulaziz A. Sachedina Sacred Masks: Deceptions and Revelations By Henry Pernet The Munshidin of Egypt: Their World and Their Song The Third Disestablishment: By Earle H. Waugh Regional Difference in Religion and Personal Autonomy 77u' Buddhist Revival in Sri Lanka: By Phillip E. Hammond Religious Tradition, Reinterpretation and Response Minoan Religion: Ritual, Image, and Symbol By By George D. Bond Nanno Marinatos A History of the Jews of Arabia: From Ancient Times to Their Eclipse Under Islam By Gordon Darnell Newby MINOAN RELIGION Ritual, Image, and Symbol NANNO MARINATOS University of South Carolina Press Copyright © 1993 University of South Carolina Published in Columbia, South Carolina, by the University of South Carolina Press Manufactured in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Marinatos, Nanno. -
Ekaterina Avaliani (Tbilisi) *
Phasis 2-3, 2000 Ekaterina Avaliani (Tbilisi) ORIGINS OF THE GREEK RELIGION: MINOAN AND MYCENAEAN CULTURAL CONVERGENCE Natw"ally, the convergence of Minoan and Mycenaean ethno-cultures would cause certain changes in religious consciousness. The metamorphosis in religion and mentality are hard to explain from the present perspective. During this process, the orientation of Minoan religion might have totally changed (the "victorious gods" of Achaeans might have eclipsed the older ones ofMinoans).1 On the other hand, the evidence of religious syncretism should by no means be ignored. Thus, based on the materials avail able, we may lead our investigation in the following directions: I. While identifying Minoan religious concepts and cults, we should operate with: a) scenes depicted on a11ifacts; b) antique written sources and mythopoetics, which have preserved certain information on Minoan religious concepts and rituals.2 2. To identify gods of the Mycenaean period, we use linear B texts and artifacts. It is evident that the Mycenaean period has the group of gods that are directly related to Minoan world, and on the other hand, the group of gods that is unknown to pre-Hellenic religious tradition. And, finally, 3.We identify another group of gods that reveal their syncretic nature already in the Mycenaean period. * * * Minoan cult rituals were tightly linked to nature. Cave dwellings, mountains and grottos were the charismatic spaces where the rituals were held.3 One of such grottos near Candia was related to the name of Minoan goddess Eileithyia.4 Homer also mentions Eileithyia. The goddess was believed to protect pregnant women and women in childbirth.5 Also, there might have been another sacred place, the top of a hill - Dikte, which was associated with Minoan goddess Diktunna (Dikte - "Sacred Mountain").6 Later in Greek mythology, the goddess assimilated to Artemis ("huntress") (Solinus II . -
Kretan Cult and Customs, Especially in the Classical and Hellenistic Periods: a Religious, Social, and Political Study
i Kretan cult and customs, especially in the Classical and Hellenistic periods: a religious, social, and political study Thesis submitted for degree of MPhil Carolyn Schofield University College London ii Declaration I, Carolyn Schofield, confirm that the work presented in this thesis is my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been acknowledged in the thesis. iii Abstract Ancient Krete perceived itself, and was perceived from outside, as rather different from the rest of Greece, particularly with respect to religion, social structure, and laws. The purpose of the thesis is to explore the bases for these perceptions and their accuracy. Krete’s self-perception is examined in the light of the account of Diodoros Siculus (Book 5, 64-80, allegedly based on Kretan sources), backed up by inscriptions and archaeology, while outside perceptions are derived mainly from other literary sources, including, inter alia, Homer, Strabo, Plato and Aristotle, Herodotos and Polybios; in both cases making reference also to the fragments and testimonia of ancient historians of Krete. While the main cult-epithets of Zeus on Krete – Diktaios, associated with pre-Greek inhabitants of eastern Krete, Idatas, associated with Dorian settlers, and Kretagenes, the symbol of the Hellenistic koinon - are almost unique to the island, those of Apollo are not, but there is good reason to believe that both Delphinios and Pythios originated on Krete, and evidence too that the Eleusinian Mysteries and Orphic and Dionysiac rites had much in common with early Kretan practice. The early institutionalization of pederasty, and the abduction of boys described by Ephoros, are unique to Krete, but the latter is distinct from rites of initiation to manhood, which continued later on Krete than elsewhere, and were associated with different gods. -
Prof. Vincenzo La Rosa and Dr. Luca Girella
Kamilari – a historical statement by Prof. Vincenzo La Rosa and Dr. Luca Girella The earliest signs of human habitation within the area of Kamilari are traces of settlement datable to Final Neolithic period (4000-3300 BC). Phaistos was probably the largest settlement in the region, however smaller sites are traceable westward situated close to perennial water source, like spring, and to productive soils. Two possible settlements have been located 350 m NW and 600 m NW of modern Kamilari in the proximity of the church of Zoodochos Pigi, whereas a larger site has been identified 1,200 m NNE of Kamilari, where a small natural source of chert was used as a habitation and knapping site. This site was still in use at the beginning of Early Bronze Age (Early Minoan I-II, 3300-2300 BC) together with another one, located 800 m NNW of Kamilari and 150 S of a smaller tholos tomb (Kamilari C) dug by Alexiou and explored by Branigan. The phase preceding the construction of the first palace at Phaistos (Early Minoan III-Middle Minoan IA, 2300- 1900 BC), although quite long, was apparently poor settled. The main settlement was enucleated at Phaistos, other traces of habitation are at Haghia Triada and Patrikies, however the number of MM IA settlements in this area dropped radically. Worth of noting is the identification of Prepalatial ceramic material on the Grygori Koryphi hill preceding the construction of the big tholos tomb (Kamilari A). The Middle Minoan IB-II (1900-1700 BC), known also as Protopalatial era, was a watershed period for this area. -
The Higher Aspects of Greek Religion. Lectures Delivered at Oxford and In
BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME FROM THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIET OF Henirg m. Sage 1891 .A^^^ffM3. islm^lix.. 5931 CornelJ University Library BL 25.H621911 The higher aspects of Greek religion.Lec 3 1924 007 845 450 The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924007845450 THE HIBBERT LECTURES SECOND SERIES 1911 THE HIBBERT LECTURES SECOND SERIES THE HIGHER ASPECTS OF GREEK RELIGION LECTURES DELIVERED AT OXFORD AND IN LONDON IN APRIL AND MAY igii BY L. R. FARNELL, D.Litt. WILDE LECTURER IN THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD LONDON WILLIAMS AND NORGATE GARDEN, W.C. 14 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT 1912 CONTENTS Lecture I GENERAL FEATURES AND ORIGINS OF GREEK RELIGION Greek religion mainly a social-political system, 1. In its earliest " period a " theistic creed, that is^ a worship of personal individual deities, ethical personalities rather than mere nature forces, 2. Anthrqgomorphism its predominant bias, 2-3. Yet preserving many primitive features of " animism " or " animatism," 3-5. Its progress gradual without violent break with its distant past, 5-6. The ele- ment of magic fused with the religion but not predominant, 6-7. Hellenism and Hellenic religion a blend of two ethnic strains, one North-Aryan, the other Mediterranean, mainly Minoan-Mycenaean, 7-9. Criteria by which we can distinguish the various influences of these two, 9-1 6. The value of Homeric evidence, 18-20. Sum- mary of results, 21-24. Lecture II THE RELIGIOUS BOND AND MORALITY OF THE FAMILY The earliest type of family in Hellenic society patrilinear, 25-27. -
Cretan Sanctuaries and Cults Religions in the Graeco-Roman World
Cretan Sanctuaries and Cults Religions in the Graeco-Roman World Editors H.S. Versnel D. Frankfurter J. Hahn VOLUME 154 Cretan Sanctuaries and Cults Continuity and Change from Late Minoan IIIC to the Archaic Period by Mieke Prent BRILL LEIDEN • BOSTON 2005 This series Religions in the Graeco-Roman World presents a forum for studies in the social and cul- tural function of religions in the Greek and the Roman world, dealing with pagan religions both in their own right and in their interaction with and influence on Christianity and Judaism during a lengthy period of fundamental change. Special attention will be given to the religious history of regions and cities which illustrate the practical workings of these processes. Enquiries regarding the submission of works for publication in the series may be directed to Professor H.S. Versnel, Herenweg 88, 2361 EV Warmond, The Netherlands, [email protected]. This book is printed on acid-free paper. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Prent, Mieke. Cretan sanctuaries and cults : continuity and change from Late Minoan IIIC to the Archaic period / by Mieke Prent. p. cm. — (Religions in the Graeco-Roman world, ISSN 0927-7633 ; v. 154) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 90-04-14236-3 (alk. paper) 1. Crete (Greece)—Religion. 2. Shrines—Greece—Crete. 3. Crete (Greece)— Antiquities. I. Title. II. Series. BL793.C7P74 2005 292.3'5'09318—dc22 2004062546 ISSN 0927–7633 ISBN 90 04 14236 3 © Copyright 2005 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill Academic Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP. -
12 CONCLUSIONS the Conceptual Framework of Minoan Religion, To
12 CONCLUSIONS The conceptual framework of Minoan religion, to the extent that it can be deduced from the iconography, has certain similarities with Egyptian and Near Eastern beliefs. The emphasis on death and regeneration; the concept of a fertility goddess and the young hunter/warrior god; sacred marriage of a divine pair; the use of nature imagery as a framework for cyclical regeneration; ritual hunting and animal-based metaphors are at home in both Crete and the Orient. On the social level, the use of monumental visual art (mostly wall paintings in the case of Crete) for the propagation of official ideology is common to Crete and its neighboring civilizations. It is not my intention to oversimplify the picture and suggest that Oriental religions can be used as models for comprehending the Minoan belief system. The similarities are of a general nature and are useful only insofar as they help us place Minoan Crete within the east-ern Mediterranean context in which it belongs. It is in the sphere of ritual and social organization that the distinctiveness of Minoan Palatial religion makes itself mostly felt; here there is a notable departure from the Ancient Orient. The Minoan palaces are the case in point: neither the term palace nor temple accurately describes these buildings which were the heart of the religious and administrative life of the towns. Indeed, palace and temple make sense only in societies where kingship and priesthood are distinct and sometimes rivaling bodies. It is the complete fusion of the sacerdotal office with the ruling class in Crete which, in my view, resulted in a social system and a set of institutions peculiar to the Minoans. -
Modern Minoica As Religious Focus in Contemporary Paganism
The artifice of Daidalos: Modern Minoica as religious focus in contemporary Paganism More than a century after its discovery by Sir Arthur Evans, Minoan Crete continues to be envisioned in the popular mind according to the outdated scholarship of the early twentieth century: as a peace-loving, matriarchal, Goddess-worshipping utopia. This is primarily a consequence of more up-to-date archaeological scholarship, which challenges this model of Minoan religion, not being easily accessible to a non-scholarly audience. This paper examines the use of Minoan religion by two modern Pagan groups: the Goddess Movement and the Minoan Brotherhood, both established in the late twentieth century and still active. As a consequence of their reliance upon early twentieth-century scholarship, each group interprets Minoan religion in an idealistic and romantic manner which, while suiting their religious purposes, is historically inaccurate. Beginning with some background to the Goddess Movement, its idiosyncratic version of history, and the position of Minoan Crete within that timeline, the present study will examine the interpretation of Minoan religion by two early twentieth century scholars, Jane Ellen Harrison and the aforementioned Sir Arthur Evans—both of whom directly influenced popular ideas on the Minoans. Next, a brief look at the use of Minoan religious iconography within Dianic Feminist Witchcraft, founded by Zsuzsanna Budapest, will be followed by closer focus on one of the main advocates of modern Goddess worship, thealogian Carol P. Christ, and on the founder of the Minoan Brotherhood, Eddie Buczynski. The use of Minoan religion by the Goddess Movement and the Minoan Brotherhood will be critiqued in the light of Minoan archaeology, leading to the conclusion that although it provides an empowering model upon which to base their own beliefs and practices, the versions of Minoan religion espoused by the Goddess Movement and the Minoan Brotherhood are historically inaccurate and more modern than ancient. -
Experiencing Ritual: Shamanic Elements in Minoan Religion
Experiencing ritual: Shamanic elements in Minoan religion Christine Morris and Alan Peatfield Introduction RITUAL HAS ALWAYS been a popular subject of study in archaeology and anthro pology. Early ethnographers relished the details of its drama, and early archaeolo gists found it a convenient explanation for those finds they could not explain. More sophisticated modern scholars ponder the symbolic complexity of its action, and debate its social function. And yet, in all of this, there has been relatively little focus on the experience of ritual. What was it like to do any given ritual? What sort of experience were the participants trying to elicit from themselves? How did they modify the infinite possibilities of human action to create that experience? Philosophy and the body Another fashionable subject in contemporary cultural studies, which has close affinities with ritual, is the body. Here we find many of the same problems. Though much scholarship on the body does proclaim the need to break free of Platonic and Cartesian mind/body oppositions, scholars still sustain implicitly the hierarchical dominance of the mind, in that the body is perceived of as being essentially a cultural category, constructed through language. The debate is focused on how descriptions of the body are socially and intellectually defined, and encoded. Even among those who do acknowledge the power of the body, such as Michel Foucault, a single sense, that of seeing, is typically attributed primary importance; hence the interest in the visual strategies of power, in display, in the image, in the gaze, and in the primacy given to 'viewing' the past (Porteous 1990, Tuan 1979). -
1 Name 2 Zeus in Myth
Zeus For other uses, see Zeus (disambiguation). Zeus (English pronunciation: /ˈzjuːs/[3] ZEWS); Ancient Greek Ζεύς Zeús, pronounced [zdeǔ̯s] in Classical Attic; Modern Greek: Δίας Días pronounced [ˈði.as]) is the god of sky and thunder and the ruler of the Olympians of Mount Olympus. The name Zeus is cognate with the first element of Roman Jupiter, and Zeus and Jupiter became closely identified with each other. Zeus is the child of Cronus and Rhea, and the youngest of his siblings. In most traditions he is married to Hera, although, at the oracle of Dodona, his consort The Chariot of Zeus, from an 1879 Stories from the Greek is Dione: according to the Iliad, he is the father of Tragedians by Alfred Church. Aphrodite by Dione.[4] He is known for his erotic es- capades. These resulted in many godly and heroic offspring, including Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, the Proto-Indo-European god of the daytime sky, also [10][11] Persephone (by Demeter), Dionysus, Perseus, Heracles, called *Dyeus ph2tēr (“Sky Father”). The god is Helen of Troy, Minos, and the Muses (by Mnemosyne); known under this name in the Rigveda (Vedic San- by Hera, he is usually said to have fathered Ares, Hebe skrit Dyaus/Dyaus Pita), Latin (compare Jupiter, from and Hephaestus.[5] Iuppiter, deriving from the Proto-Indo-European voca- [12] tive *dyeu-ph2tēr), deriving from the root *dyeu- As Walter Burkert points out in his book, Greek Religion, (“to shine”, and in its many derivatives, “sky, heaven, “Even the gods who are not his natural children address [10] [6] god”). -
Marija Gimbutas Papers and Collection of Books
http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8m04b8b No online items Marija Gimubtas Papers and Collection of Books Finding aid prepared by Archives Staff Opus Archives and Research Center 801 Ladera Lane Santa Barbara, CA, 93108 805-969-5750 [email protected] http://www.opusarchives.org © 2017 Marija Gimubtas Papers and 1 Collection of Books Descriptive Summary Title: Marija Gimbutas Papers and Collection of Books Physical Description: 164 linear feet (298 boxes) and 1,100 volumes Repository: Opus Archives and Research Center Santa Barbara, CA 93108 Language of Material: English Biography/Organization History Marija Gimbutas (1921-1994) was a Lithuanian-American archeologist and archaeomythologist, and Professor Emeritus of European Archaeology and Indo-European Studies at the University of California Los Angeles from 1963-1989. Her work focused on the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of Old Europe. She was born in 1921 in Vilnius, Lithuania. At the University of Vilnius she studied archaeology, linguistics, ethnology, folklore and literature and received her MA in 1942. In 1946 she earned a PhD in archaeology at Tübingen University in Germany for her dissertation on prehistoric burial rites in Lithuania. In 1949 Gimbutas moved to the United States. She worked for Harvard University at the Peabody Museum from 1950-1963 and was made a Fellow of the Peabody in 1955. Her work included translating archeological reports from Eastern Europe, and her research focused on European prehistory. In 1963 Gimbutas became a professor at the University of California in Los Angeles in the European archeology department. Gimbutas is best known for her research into the Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures of "Old Europe," a term she introduced. -
Zeus in the Greek Mysteries) and Was Thought of As the Personification of Cyclic Law, the Causal Power of Expansion, and the Angel of Miracles
Ζεύς The Angel of Cycles and Solutions will help us get back on track. In the old schools this angel was known as Jupiter (Zeus in the Greek Mysteries) and was thought of as the personification of cyclic law, the Causal Power of expansion, and the angel of miracles. Price, John Randolph (2010-11-24). Angels Within Us: A Spiritual Guide to the Twenty-Two Angels That Govern Our Everyday Lives (p. 151). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. Zeus 1 Zeus For other uses, see Zeus (disambiguation). Zeus God of the sky, lightning, thunder, law, order, justice [1] The Jupiter de Smyrne, discovered in Smyrna in 1680 Abode Mount Olympus Symbol Thunderbolt, eagle, bull, and oak Consort Hera and various others Parents Cronus and Rhea Siblings Hestia, Hades, Hera, Poseidon, Demeter Children Aeacus, Ares, Athena, Apollo, Artemis, Aphrodite, Dardanus, Dionysus, Hebe, Hermes, Heracles, Helen of Troy, Hephaestus, Perseus, Minos, the Muses, the Graces [2] Roman equivalent Jupiter Zeus (Ancient Greek: Ζεύς, Zeús; Modern Greek: Δίας, Días; English pronunciation /ˈzjuːs/[3] or /ˈzuːs/) is the "Father of Gods and men" (πατὴρ ἀνδρῶν τε θεῶν τε, patḕr andrōn te theōn te)[4] who rules the Olympians of Mount Olympus as a father rules the family according to the ancient Greek religion. He is the god of sky and thunder in Greek mythology. Zeus is etymologically cognate with and, under Hellenic influence, became particularly closely identified with Roman Jupiter. Zeus is the child of Cronus and Rhea, and the youngest of his siblings. In most traditions he is married to Hera, although, at the oracle of Dodona, his consort is Dione: according to the Iliad, he is the father of Aphrodite by Dione.[5] He is known for his erotic escapades.