Rituels sacrificiels et offrandes animales dans le Sarapieion C de Délos

In 2001, 2002 and 2004 two hearth altars (escharones) were excavated in the Sarapieion C on the island of Delos in Greece. They contained remains of sacrifices, notably rich zooarchaeological evidence, which has thrown light on the rituals practised in this sanctuary. The inscriptions are silent on this matter and the study of the bone assemblage thus constitutes important evidence. The rituals involved sacrifices of poultry (Gallus domesticus), making up 90% and 70% of the bone material collected in each hearth altar deposit, respectively. These poultry sacrifices were combined with those of small ruminants and pigs. The handling of the victims differed according to the species: the cocks and hens were consecrated whole while only parts of the sheep and the pigs were offered. The two altars excavated in the Sarapieion C do not belong to the same period and a study of the bone evidence brings out distinctions between them. The oldest altar was no doubt abandoned when the younger one was brought into use, probably at the end of the 2nd century BC. It is interesting to note such differences that perhaps are to be explained by the development of the ritual practices in the sanctuary during the 2nd century BC. The zooarchaeological material also gives information on the performance of the sacrifices, which differed in accordance with the animal species involved. All the bones from gallinaceous birds show traces of carbonization and these burnt bones indicate sacrifices of entire animals, of the holocaustic kind. The bone evidence from the small ruminants and pigs are partially burnt and some bones are even unburnt, which indicates only a selective burning of the bodies. One can of course compare the sacrificial practices identified in the Sarapieion C on Delos with those studied at other sanctuaries dedicated to the same divinities and thus demonstrate the presence of a possible “koine” in Isis worship. However, similar sacrifices were also performed in cults of healing deities (foremost in sanctuaries of Asklepios). Historical interpretation should thus proceed with caution.