Greek Foundation Rituals and the Link between Private and Public Religion (20 min)

Presenters

Hannah Smagh, Pennsylvania State University

Abstract

The consecration of sacred space was accompanied by ritual performances that often left behind material evidence identified by archaeologists as ritual foundation deposits. The foundation ritual was performed during a building’s construction or renovation when numerous vessels, figurines, and miniature vessels were burned in situ in a pit next to a wall before being buried with other sacrificial detritus underneath a new floor. Such deposits are attested across Europe and the Mediterranean and have been found in both sacred and public buildings in Greece. Foundation deposits also occur in domestic contexts, where they are essential to understanding the full picture of domestic religion, despite a general lack of scholarly attention. Intriguingly, the domestic deposits do not differ significantly in composition from those in sacred contexts within the same geographic region, suggesting an underlying similarity in ritual practice. This paper explores the ritual agency of the household and the relationship between public and private religion through the comparison of building deposits from sacred, public, and domestic buildings in case studies from regions such as Attica and the Corinthia. Although traditional models for understanding Greek religion position the polis as the structuring authority behind religious practice at all levels of society, archaeological evidence shows that the domestic ritual landscape privileged different concerns than the city-state and complemented civic religion rather than duplicating it. By studying the similar practices of foundation rituals in different contexts, this paper will illuminate the connections between public and private cult and their effects on the religious landscape of ancient Greece.