DOCSLIB.ORG

The Last Coin of Taras? a Study of a Late Tarentine Coin in the Collections of the Uppsala University Coin Cabinet

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
The Last Coin of Taras? a Study of a Late Tarentine Coin in the Collections of the Uppsala University Coin Cabinet Department of Archaeology and Ancient History The last coin of Taras? A study of a late Tarentine coin in the collections of the Uppsala University Coin Cabinet Karl Appelgren BA thesis 15 credits in Classical archaeology and ancient history Spring term 2021 Supervisors: Filmo Verhagen & Ragnar Hedlund Abstract Appelgren K. 2021. The last coin of Taras? A study of a late Tarentine coin in the collections of the Uppsala University Coin Cabinet. Appelgren K. 2021. Taras’ sista mynt? En undersökning av ett sent tarentinskt mynt i Uppsala universitets myntkabinetts samlingar. In this thesis, a coin from the Hannibalic occupation of Taras is analysed and discussed. The method applied in the analysis is Panofsky’s iconological method, and the theoretical framework has been derived from the research questions themselves in dialogue with modern numismatic research. The focus of the discussion is on the relationship between the coin and its historical context. In the thesis, it is argued that the coin is a didrachm with heavily reduced weight, and that the weight reduction is a result of the financial difficulties caused by the Second Punic War. Denna uppsats är en analys av ett mynt from Hannibals ockupation av Taras. Den metod som tillämpas i analysdelen är Panofskys ikonologiska metod. Det teoretiska ramverket har sin utgångspunkt i uppsatsens frågeställning, och har utarbetats i dialog med modern numismatisk forskning. Diskussionsdelen fokuserar på förhållandet mellan myntet och dess historiska kontext. I uppsatsen framförs argument för att myntet är en didrachm med kraftigt reducerad vikt, och att viktreduktionen är en följd av de finansiella svårigheter som orsakades av Andra puniska kriget. Keywords: Tarentine coinage, Second Punic War, Hannibalic occupation of Taras, Carthaginian influence, Roman conquest of Italy. BA thesis in Classical archaeology and ancient history 15 hp. Supervisors: Filmo Verhagen & Ragnar Hedlund. Defended and passed 2021-06-15. © Karl Appelgren Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, Box 626, 75126 Uppsala, Sweden Front cover. Silver coin from the Hannibalic occupation of Taras, ca. 212–209 BC (the coin discussed in this thesis). Uppsala University Coin Cabinet. Inventory number: 400871. https://www.alvin- portal.org/alvin/attachment/download/alvin-record:190910/ATTACHMENT-0001.tiff Contents 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1. Aim, goal, and research questions ............................................................................................. 1 1.2. Material ...................................................................................................................................... 2 1.3. Structure ..................................................................................................................................... 3 1.4. Historical background ................................................................................................................ 3 1.5. Theory ........................................................................................................................................ 4 1.6. Method ....................................................................................................................................... 5 1.7. Source criticism ......................................................................................................................... 5 2. Previous scholarship .......................................................................................................................... 7 3. Analysis ............................................................................................................................................. 9 3.1. Pre-iconographical description .................................................................................................. 9 3.1.1. The obverse ........................................................................................................................ 9 3.1.2. The reverse ....................................................................................................................... 10 3.2. Iconographical analysis ........................................................................................................... 10 3.2.1. The obverse ...................................................................................................................... 10 3.2.2. The reverse ....................................................................................................................... 12 3.2.3. Weight standard ............................................................................................................... 13 3.2.4. Denomination ................................................................................................................... 14 3.3. Iconological interpretation ....................................................................................................... 15 4. Discussion ....................................................................................................................................... 18 5. Conclusion ....................................................................................................................................... 21 6. Bibliography .................................................................................................................................... 22 6.1. Ancient sources ........................................................................................................................ 22 6.2. Modern literature ..................................................................................................................... 22 7. List of illustrations .......................................................................................................................... 24 1. Introduction Between 218 and 201 BC, the Second Punic War raged in the Mediterranean. In the opening year of the war, Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca took the Romans by surprise by crossing the Alps into Italy. After the crushing defeat of the Romans at Cannae in 216 BC, Hannibal’s campaign settled in the southern part of the Italian peninsula, where it was to remain until 203 BC, when Hannibal was recalled to Africa by the Carthaginian senate.1 It has been argued that Hannibal invaded Italy with the hope of detaching Rome from its subordinate Italian allies.2 This strategy was only partly successful; whereas some Roman allies rebelled, others remained loyal to Rome. One city that did revolt was Taras, known to the Romans as Tarentum, the old Spartan colony that had formerly been one of the most influential powers in Italy. Interestingly, the revolt did not take place immediately after Cannae, but three and a half years later. In the winter of 213/12 BC, the city defected from Rome and joined forces with Hannibal. The Carthaginian takeover of the city was only partial, however, since the citadel remained in Roman hands throughout the war.3 Under these peculiar circumstances, coins were struck in the Tarentine mint. 1.1. Aim, goal, and research questions Even though the scholarship on the coinage of the Hannibalic occupation of Taras can be traced as far as to the latter half of the 19th century, the discussion has been limited to numismatic details. No study has yet given due notice to the relationship between the coinage and its historical context, which is in this case unusually complex. In this Greek city, coins were struck while the city was being occupied by Punic forces, although the Roman enemy was still in control of the citadel. Given these circumstances, it is astounding that the only comprehensive account of the coinage was given by Sir Arthur Evans in 1889.4 Later publications rely on him, often without adding much of their own. Whatever the merits of Evans’ work, it has a certain tinge of connoisseurship and is mainly focused on chronology and categorisation. The aim of this thesis is to contribute to the understanding of how ancient coinage and economy were affected by crises. The goal of the thesis is to fill the gap outlined above and add numismatic evidence to the knowledge of the Hannibalic occupation of Taras. In the thesis, this is achieved through a qualitative analysis of a single Tarentine coin from the Uppsala University Coin Cabinet. To facilitate the fulfilment of the aim and the goal, the following research questions have been devised: • Why was the coin produced? • What impact did the Second Punic War and the Hannibalic occupation have on the shaping and production of the coin? There are, of course, no simple answers to such questions, which by nature call for discussion rather than a straightforward reply. For this reason, the following subset of questions have been 1 Livy 30.19.12. 2 Fronda 2010, 37. 3 Lomas 1993, 59–76. 4 Evans 1889. 1 added, whose specific character will facilitate the achievement of a tangible result and guide the analysis: • What is the coin’s denomination? • What weight standard underlies it? • Who was responsible for its production? • Who was the issuing authority? • Is there a Carthaginian influence on the coin? • Does the coin signal financial desperation? • Is it reasonable to interpret the coin as a sign of political independence? By this arrangement, the subordinate questions will function as a foundation for the discussion of the two main research
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Urban Planning in the Greek Colonies in Sicily and Magna Graecia
    Urban Planning in the Greek Colonies in Sicily and Magna Graecia (8th – 6th centuries BCE) An honors thesis for the Department of Classics Olivia E. Hayden Tufts University, 2013 Abstract: Although ancient Greeks were traversing the western Mediterranean as early as the Mycenaean Period, the end of the “Dark Age” saw a surge of Greek colonial activity throughout the Mediterranean. Contemporary cities of the Greek homeland were in the process of growing from small, irregularly planned settlements into organized urban spaces. By contrast, the colonies founded overseas in the 8th and 6th centuries BCE lacked any pre-existing structures or spatial organization, allowing the inhabitants to closely approximate their conceptual ideals. For this reason the Greek colonies in Sicily and Magna Graecia, known for their extensive use of gridded urban planning, exemplified the overarching trajectory of urban planning in this period. Over the course of the 8th to 6th centuries BCE the Greek cities in Sicily and Magna Graecia developed many common features, including the zoning of domestic, religious, and political space and the implementation of a gridded street plan in the domestic sector. Each city, however, had its own peculiarities and experimental design elements. I will argue that the interplay between standardization and idiosyncrasy in each city developed as a result of vying for recognition within this tight-knit network of affluent Sicilian and South Italian cities. This competition both stimulated the widespread adoption of popular ideas and encouraged the continuous initiation of new trends. ii Table of Contents: Abstract. …………………….………………………………………………………………….... ii Table of Contents …………………………………….………………………………….…….... iii 1. Introduction …………………………………………………………………………..……….. 1 2.
    [Show full text]
  • Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 1996
    Kernos Revue internationale et pluridisciplinaire de religion grecque antique 12 | 1999 Varia Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 1996 Angelos Chaniotis, Joannis Mylonopoulos and Eftychia Stavrianopoulou Electronic version URL: http://journals.openedition.org/kernos/724 DOI: 10.4000/kernos.724 ISSN: 2034-7871 Publisher Centre international d'étude de la religion grecque antique Printed version Date of publication: 1 January 1999 Number of pages: 207-292 ISSN: 0776-3824 Electronic reference Angelos Chaniotis, Joannis Mylonopoulos and Eftychia Stavrianopoulou, « Epigraphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 1996 », Kernos [Online], 12 | 1999, Online since 13 April 2011, connection on 15 September 2020. URL : http://journals.openedition.org/kernos/724 Kernos Kemos, 12 (1999), p. 207-292. Epigtoaphic Bulletin for Greek Religion 1996 (EBGR 1996) The ninth issue of the BEGR contains only part of the epigraphie harvest of 1996; unforeseen circumstances have prevented me and my collaborators from covering all the publications of 1996, but we hope to close the gaps next year. We have also made several additions to previous issues. In the past years the BEGR had often summarized publications which were not primarily of epigraphie nature, thus tending to expand into an unavoidably incomplete bibliography of Greek religion. From this issue on we return to the original scope of this bulletin, whieh is to provide information on new epigraphie finds, new interpretations of inscriptions, epigraphieal corpora, and studies based p;imarily on the epigraphie material. Only if we focus on these types of books and articles, will we be able to present the newpublications without delays and, hopefully, without too many omissions.
    [Show full text]
  • THE DIONYSIAN PARADE and the POETICS of PLENITUDE by Professor Eric Csapo 20 February 2013 ERIC CSAPO
    UCL DEPARTMENT OF GREEK AND LATIN HOUSMAN LECTURE UCL Housman Lecture THE DIONYSIAN PARADE AND THE POETICS OF PLENITUDE by Professor Eric Csapo 20 February 2013 ERIC CSAPO A.E. Housman (1859–1936) Born in Worcestershire in 1859, Alfred Edward Housman was a gifted classical scholar and poet. After studying in Oxford, Housman worked for ten years as a clerk, while publishing and writing scholarly articles on Horace, Propertius, Ovid, Aeschylus, Euripides and Sophocles. He gradually acquired such a high reputation that in 1892 he returned to the academic world as Professor of Classics at University College London (1892–1911) and then as Kennedy Professor of Latin at Trinity College, Cambridge (1911–1936). Housman Lectures at UCL The Department of Greek and Latin at University College London organizes regular Housman Lectures, named after its illustrious former colleague (with support from UCL Alumni). Housman Lectures, delivered by a scholar of international distinction, originally took place every second year and now happen every year, alternating between Greek and Roman topics (Greek lectures being funded by the A.G. Leventis Foundation). The fifth Housman lecture, which was given by Professor Eric Csapo (Professor of Classics, University of Sydney) on 20 February 2013, is here reproduced with minor adjustments. This lecture and its publication were generously supported by the A.G. Leventis Foundation. 2 HOUSMAN LECTURE The Dionysian Parade and the Poetics of Plenitude Scholarship has treated our two greatest Athenian festivals very differently.1 The literature on the procession of the Panathenaea is vast. The literature on the Parade (pompe) of the Great Dionysia is miniscule.
    [Show full text]
  • ANCIENT TERRACOTTAS from SOUTH ITALY and SICILY in the J
    ANCIENT TERRACOTTAS FROM SOUTH ITALY AND SICILY in the j. paul getty museum The free, online edition of this catalogue, available at http://www.getty.edu/publications/terracottas, includes zoomable high-resolution photography and a select number of 360° rotations; the ability to filter the catalogue by location, typology, and date; and an interactive map drawn from the Ancient World Mapping Center and linked to the Getty’s Thesaurus of Geographic Names and Pleiades. Also available are free PDF, EPUB, and MOBI downloads of the book; CSV and JSON downloads of the object data from the catalogue and the accompanying Guide to the Collection; and JPG and PPT downloads of the main catalogue images. © 2016 J. Paul Getty Trust This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042. First edition, 2016 Last updated, December 19, 2017 https://www.github.com/gettypubs/terracottas Published by the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles Getty Publications 1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 500 Los Angeles, California 90049-1682 www.getty.edu/publications Ruth Evans Lane, Benedicte Gilman, and Marina Belozerskaya, Project Editors Robin H. Ray and Mary Christian, Copy Editors Antony Shugaar, Translator Elizabeth Chapin Kahn, Production Stephanie Grimes, Digital Researcher Eric Gardner, Designer & Developer Greg Albers, Project Manager Distributed in the United States and Canada by the University of Chicago Press Distributed outside the United States and Canada by Yale University Press, London Printed in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: J.
    [Show full text]
  • Analyzing Two Domains of Dionysus in Greek Polytheism
    Philomathes Two Sides of the Dice: Analyzing Two Domains of Dionysus in Greek Polytheism T he study of religion in ancient Greece is complicated by the fact that, unlike modern world religions with ancient roots, there is no “holy doctrine” to which scholars can refer. Although they shared a complex pantheon of gods, ancient Greek city- states were never a unified political empire; instead of a globalized dogma, religion was localized within each polis, whose inhabitants developed their own unique variations on “Greek” religious rituals and beliefs.1 The multiplex natures of ancient Greek gods compounds the problem; it is a monumental task to study all aspects of all deities in the Greek world. As a result, scholarship often focuses solely on a single popular aspect or well-known cult of a god or goddess — such as Apollo Pythios of Delphi or Athena Parthenos of Athens, neglecting other facets of the gods’ cult and personality.2 Greek religion, 1 As Jon D. Mikalson states in Athenian Popular Religion (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1983), 4, “In varying degrees Sparta, Corinth, Thebes, Athens and the other city-states differed from one another in political, social, and economic structure, and it is only reasonable to assume that they also differed in some extent in their religion … One should be wary of assuming that a religious belief or practice must have been current in all the city-states and among all Greek simply because it is attested for one city-state.” 2 Apollo is generally remembered as the god of prophecy because of his oracle and cult in Delphi.
    [Show full text]
  • Stellar Symbols on Ancient Greek Coins (Ii)
    STELLAR SYMBOLS ON ANCIENT GREEK COINS (II) ELENI ROVITHIS-LIVANIOU1, FLORA ROVITHIS2 1Dept. of Astrophysics-Astronomy & Mechanics, Faculty of Physics, Athens University, Panepistimiopolis, Zografos 157 84, Athens, Greece 2Athens, Greece E-mail: [email protected]; [email protected] Abstract. Continuing the systematic presentation and description of some ancient Greek coins with stellar symbols we represent some with other deities, than these presented at Part I, together with semi-gods, etc. as well as those with animals and objects. Besides, information about the place they were found, the material they are made of as well as the estimated time is also given. Finally, in some cases the Museum in which they are kept is provided. Key words: Ancient Greek coins – ancient Greek cities – ancient Greek colonies – myths – stellar symbols. 1. PROLOGUE In a previous paper, (Rovithis-Livaniou & Rovithis 2011; hereafter refer as Paper I), a systematic presentation of ancient Greek coins with stellar symbols started. In that paper, the principles as well as the basic elements concerning the numismatic system of the ancient Greek cities-countries were also given. So, we do not repeat them here. In Paper I, we limited to the coins where the main gods/goddesses of the Greek Dodekatheon were presented on observe, combined with various themes on reverse, but always showing a stellar symbol on either side. Besides, in Paper I the god-Helios was included together with Apollo who took his place as god of the light. Furthermore, some coins with Dioskouroi were included in Paper I; but, as only those in which one of the main gods/goddesses was the basic subject, we shall complete their presentation here.
    [Show full text]
  • Beyond the Greek and Italiote Worlds: a Local Tarentine Perspective
    Beyond the Greek and Italiote Worlds: A Local Tarentine Perspective Alexandru Martalogu Department of History and Classical Studies McGill University, Montreal November 2017 A thesis submitted to McGill University in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of the Master’s of Arts (History and Classical Studies – Ancient History) © Alexandru Martalogu 2017 Martalogu 2 Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………. 3 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………... 6 Chapter One: Taras’ Modest Beginnings………………………………………………… 18 Chapter Two: The “World-Wide” Cultural and Economic Greek Network……………... 24 Chapter Three: The Italiote World: Between Warfare and Cooperation……………….... 36 Chapter Four: Breaking the Chains: Tarentine Emancipation and Local Identity……….. 51 Conclusion: Beyond Taras and its Golden Age………………………………………….. 74 Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………….84 APPENDIX A…………………………………………………………………………......94 APPENDIX B……………………………………………………………………………..98 Martalogu 3 Abstract From its foundation in 706 B.C., Taras took advantage of its favourable geographic location and of its region’s long history of trade and network connections. Placed within previous discussions on the importance of the seas and other interactions in network and identity formation, this thesis seeks to contextualize and reveal the evolution of a distinctly local Tarentine identity. Whereas in previous works the importance of the “local” and its influence have been studied for the purpose of broader topics, the “local” city of Taras and its citizens are the primary focus of this research in an attempt to step away from the negative connotations associated with the city-state by the surviving ancient sources. The analysis of Taras’ early history reveals that the polis was founded in a region with a long history of pre-existing network connections, as well as a tendency to depend more heavily upon long distance connections with the Greek world.
    [Show full text]
  • GREEK and ROMAN COINS GREEK COINS Technique Ancient Greek
    GREEK AND ROMAN COINS GREEK COINS Technique Ancient Greek coins were struck from blank pieces of metal first prepared by heating and casting in molds of suitable size. At the same time, the weight was adjusted. Next, the blanks were stamped with devices which had been prepared on the dies. The lower die, for the obverse, was fixed in the anvil; the reverse was attached to a punch. The metal blank, heated to soften it, was placed on the anvil and struck with the punch, thus producing a design on both sides of the blank. Weights and Values The values of Greek coins were strictly related to the weights of the coins, since the coins were struck in intrinsically valuable metals. All Greek coins were issued according to the particular weight system adopted by the issuing city-state. Each system was based on the weight of the principal coin; the weights of all other coins of that system were multiples or sub-divisions of this major denomination. There were a number of weight standards in use in the Greek world, but the basic unit of weight was the drachm (handful) which was divided into six obols (spits). The drachm, however, varied in weight. At Aigina it weighed over six grammes, at Corinth less than three. In the 6th century B.C. many cities used the standard of the island of Aegina. In the 5th century, however, the Attic standard, based on the Athenian tetradrachm of 17 grammes, prevailed in many areas of Greece, and this was the system adopted in the 4th century by Alexander the Great.
    [Show full text]
  • Greek Colonization: Small and Large Islands Mario Lombardo
    Mediterranean Historical Review Vol. 27, No. 1, June 2012, 73–85 Greek colonization: small and large islands Mario Lombardo Dipartimento di Beni Culturali, Universita` degli Studi del Salento, Lecce, Italy This article looks at the relation between insular identity and colonization, in Greek thought but also in Greek colonial practices; more precisely, it examines how islands of different sizes are perceived and presented in their role of ‘colonizing entities’, and as destinations of colonial undertakings. Size appears to play an important role: there seems to have been a tendency to settle small to medium sized islands with a single colony. Large islands too, such as Corsica and Sardinia, follow the pattern ‘one island – one polis’; the case of Sicily is very different, but even there, in a situation of crisis, a colonial island identity emerged. Similarly, a number of small to medium-sized single- polis islands of the Aegean acted as colonizing entities, although there is almost no mention of colonial undertakings by small and medium-sized Aegean islands that had more than one polis. Multi-polis islands, such as Rhodes or Crete – but not Euboea – are often presented as the ‘collective’ undertakers of significant colonial enterprises. Keywords: islands; insularity; identity; Greek colonization; Rhodes; Crete; Lesbos; Euboea; Sardinia; Corsica; Sicily 1. Islands are ubiquitous in the Mediterranean ecosystem, and particularly in the Aegean landscape; several important books have recently emphasized the important and manifold role played by insular locations in Antiquity.1 As ubiquitous presences in the Mediterranean scenery, islands also feature in the ancient Greek traditions concerning ‘colonial’ undertakings and practices.
    [Show full text]
  • Greek Colonisation in Southern Italy: a Methodological Essay*
    GREEK COLONISATION IN SOUTHERN ITALY: A METHODOLOGICAL ESSAY* Emanuele Greco Any article intending to treat the vast movement which goes under the name of Greek colonisation cannot help but begin with a series of primarily terminological clarifications concerning long-identified key notions.1 I refer principally to the term ‘colonisation’ itself, but also to the term ‘colony’, which derives from the Latin colere. This in turn relates to a phenomenon really very different from that which the Greeks intended by the term apoikia, literally ‘home away from home’. The difference between these two meanings has natural con- sequences when we are discussing the Greek phenomenon: first of all the need to avoid superimposing modern interpretations gained from wholly different types of colonisation, be it Roman or more recent, on the Greek phenomenon. The origins of the apoikiai, in effect, lie in political groupings: they often consisted of mixed groups, which, as we shall see, did not sim- ply continue to reproduce their metropoleis abroad (save for certain social and cultural aspects at the very beginning) with the aim of exploiting new territories and opening new trade routes. The apoikiai tended rather to originate from crises in their poleis of origin and create new types of communities unrelated to those of their home- land. If we also consider the time at which these events took place (the first apoikiai date back as far as the middle of the 8th century B.C.), we cannot help but notice that the colonisers move to the West from a Greek metropolitan reality where the polis was still tak- ing shape.
    [Show full text]
  • Copyright by Jonathan Maclellan 2009
    Copyright by Jonathan MacLellan 2009 A City of Laughter: Assessing Tarentine Comedy from the Fourth Century to the Roman Stage by Jonathan MacLellan, B.A. Report Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts The University of Texas at Austin May, 2009 The Report committee for Jonathan MacLellan Certifies that this is the approved version of the following report: A City of Laughter: Assessing Tarentine Comedy from the Fourth Century to the Roman Stage APPROVED BY SUPERVISING COMMITTEE: Supervisor: ___________________________________ (Thomas K. Hubbard) ___________________________________ (Timothy J. Moore) For my grandfather, Jim MacLellan A Man of Science, Skill, and Ability Acknowledgements This report is the result of wonderful support from the faculty and fellow graduate students at the Classics Department of the University of Texas at Austin. I benefitted immensely from the guidance of Thomas Hubbard, whose careful eye as my advisor helped develop this work from its initial stages in his seminar to its present form. My second reader, Timothy Moore, was equally generous with his time and advice, both of which were also pivotal to my work. I would also like to especially thank Joseph Carter and Adam Rabinowitz for their counsel and encouragement, along with the rest of the staff at the Institute for Classical Archaeology. In addition, I am deeply grateful for generous correspondences with Professors Kate Bosher, Richard Green, and Alan Sommerstein. Where my work departs or differs from theirs, it is only because their eminent work in assessing the development of ancient comedy enabled me to do so.
    [Show full text]
  • Soils and Land Use at Ancient Greek Colonial Temples of Southern Italy T G.J
    Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 24 (2019) 946–954 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jasrep Soils and land use at ancient Greek colonial temples of southern Italy T G.J. Retallack Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, United States of America ABSTRACT Soils at ancient Greek temples in Greece are distinct for each deity, reflecting an economic basis for their cults, but did this pattern also extend to classical Greek colonies? This study of 24 temples in southern Italy reveals little assimilation by Greek colonists of indigenous cults at first, because their temples are on the same kinds of soils, reflecting similar cults for each of the Olympian deities as in Greece. Worship of Hera was more widespread in Italy than in Greece and the Aegean, and also on Alfisol soils suitable for pastoralism. Temples of Demeter in contrast were on Mollisols best for grain cultivation. Rocks and grottos sacred to Persephone are comparable with those in Greece, but were popular with hellenized Sikels for an indigenous hybrid cult of Demeter and Kore. 1. Introduction Pithecoussae, but there is little comparable evidence for intermarriage in later Sicilian burials (Hodos, 1999). Sikels before colonization had The nature of western Greek colonialism has been controversial, sophisticated metal utensils and weapons, fortified villages, chamber with one extreme interpretation emphasizing the superiority of Greek tombs, longhouses, and Sant'Angelo Muxaro and Siculo-Geometric over indigenous culture, as has been assumed for British colonization of pottery (de Angelis, 1998; Antonaccio, 2001; Attema et al., 2010).
    [Show full text]