Depositional Processes on the Piano del Tamburino - Himera (20 min)

Presenters

Marcella Boglione, University of Bern

Abstracts

My research has been focused on the discovery of two new sacred areas placed on the Piano del Tamburino, an important component of the Greek colony of Himera (648–409 B.C.E.), located on the northern coast of Sicily. These two areas offer a good case study for making observations in the studies on ancient ritual and depositional practices in a Greek colony.

The results presented are an analysis of the first ten excavation campaigns carried out, starting in 2012, by the University of Bern (Switzerland) on the plateau under the direction of the Prof. Elena Mango.

Many offerings have been made, in a variety of forms and typologies, and even if we imagine a predefined infrastructure made of a sequence of procession, hymns, prayers, sacrifice, competitions, and communal banquet, the offering will also have depended on the context and situation where it occurred. Moreover, through votive offerings the reciprocal relationship between the physical aspects of the sacred areas and their daily life can be better understood. The sacred precincts were filled with objects dedicated to the deity; they could be protected from the open air indoors in an enclosed environment, displayed for the worshippers to look at, or be out in the open. Old or damaged objects were often buried in depositions or could even be melted down and remelted into new cult instruments (IG ii2 839; LSCG 41). Furthermore, the materials revealed their mainly primary depositional character and the fragmentation (ritual?) of the objects found within the deposits. The sacred areas were the opposite of a serene, empty, or static space.

This paper will attempt to consider the several aspects of these depositions (morphology, occurrence, ritual associations, different ways of presentation, findings, etc.) in order to contribute to the reconstruction of the ritual performance and worship of the Himera colony and the possible actors involved in the celebrations.

  AIA-3E