{"title":"ON THE STRUCTURE OF RITUAL ACTIVITY AND THE COLLECTIVE DIMENSION OF FIGURINE USE AT MINOAN PEAK SANCTUARIES","authors":"Céline Murphy","doi":"10.1111/ojoa.12304","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"SummaryDespite the regular appearance of peak sanctuaries, for over a century, in discussions on the organization of Cretan Bronze Age society, uncertainty still looms over the precise position these places of congregation held in the island’s complex network of sites. One of the causes behind this academic situation is their methodological treatment. Particularly problematic is the customary scholarly practice of defining the sites’ political affiliation, and their visitors’ economic status, according to dichotomizing and somewhat reductive criteria such as ‘palatial’/‘non‐palatial’ or ‘elite’/‘non‐elite’. Seeking to incorporate more nuance into the investigatory trajectory, this paper therefore encourages the implementation of more localized and materially‐founded analyses on the structure of the ritual activities held at these mysterious mountain‐tops. The efficiency of the proposed approach is demonstrated through a re‐examination of the ceramic figurines from Petsophas and the subsequent articulation of the existence of a communal dimension to their use and function. The study concludes that closer consideration of the simultaneously personal and collective significance of peak sanctuary ritual can yield further clues on their socio‐political role.","PeriodicalId":46185,"journal":{"name":"Oxford Journal of Archaeology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.7000,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Oxford Journal of Archaeology","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1111/ojoa.12304","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"历史学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"ARCHAEOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
SummaryDespite the regular appearance of peak sanctuaries, for over a century, in discussions on the organization of Cretan Bronze Age society, uncertainty still looms over the precise position these places of congregation held in the island’s complex network of sites. One of the causes behind this academic situation is their methodological treatment. Particularly problematic is the customary scholarly practice of defining the sites’ political affiliation, and their visitors’ economic status, according to dichotomizing and somewhat reductive criteria such as ‘palatial’/‘non‐palatial’ or ‘elite’/‘non‐elite’. Seeking to incorporate more nuance into the investigatory trajectory, this paper therefore encourages the implementation of more localized and materially‐founded analyses on the structure of the ritual activities held at these mysterious mountain‐tops. The efficiency of the proposed approach is demonstrated through a re‐examination of the ceramic figurines from Petsophas and the subsequent articulation of the existence of a communal dimension to their use and function. The study concludes that closer consideration of the simultaneously personal and collective significance of peak sanctuary ritual can yield further clues on their socio‐political role.
期刊介绍:
Covering the whole range of archaeology, from Palaeolithic to medieval times, the Oxford Journal of Archaeology is the premier English language journal of European, Mediterranean and western Asian archaeology. Publishing four issues a year, it provides topical coverage of current research in Prehistoric, Classical and later periods, with contributions from an international cast of academics and field workers. It encourages debate and is essential reading for anyone studying the archaeology of these areas. The journal does not accept or undertake book reviews.