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Religion and Society in Middle Bronze Age Greece

Religion and Society in Middle Bronze Age Greece

Religion and Society in Middle Bronze Age Greece

Helène Whittaker, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
May 2014
Hardback
9781107049871
$135.00
USD
Hardback
USD
eBook

    The Middle Helladic period has received little attention, partially because of scholars' view of it as merely the prelude to the Mycenaean period and partially because of the dearth of archaeological evidence from the period. In this book, Helène Whittaker demonstrates that Middle Helladic Greece is far more interesting than its material culture might at first suggest. Whittaker comprehensively reviews and discusses the archaeological evidence for religion on the Greek mainland, focusing on the relationship between religious expression and ideology. The book argues that religious beliefs and rituals played a significant role in the social changes that were occurring at the time. The arguments and conclusions of this book will be relevant beyond the Greek Bronze Age and will contribute to the general archaeological debate on prehistoric religion.

    • Represents a different interpretation of the Greek Middle Bronze Age
    • Provides a model for understanding the changes that took place at the transition from the Middle to Late Bronze Age, which ultimately led to the development of Mycenaean palatial society
    • Stresses the role of religion in social change
    • Integrates Aegean archaeology into the general discussion of the European Bronze Age

    Reviews & endorsements

    'Whittaker's volume on Middle Bronze Age religion is a very welcome contribution to the field on two counts: it will serve as a valuable corrective to outdated views of [Middle Helladic] culture, and it will provide a foundation for our growing understanding of Helladic religion and its development.' Susan Lupack, European Journal of Archaeology

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    Product details

    May 2014
    Adobe eBook Reader
    9781139950527
    0 pages
    0kg
    14 b/w illus. 7 maps 4 tables
    This ISBN is for an eBook version which is distributed on our behalf by a third party.

    Table of Contents

    • 1. Introduction
    • 2. The formation of the Middle Helladic period
    • 3. Religion and society in the Middle Helladic period
    • 4. The transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age
    • 5. Religion and society in the Late Helladic period
    • Conclusions.
      Author
    • Helène Whittaker , University of Gothenburg, Sweden

      Helène Whittaker is Professor of Classical Archaeology and Ancient History at the University of Gothenburg. In 2009, she held the Peter M. Warren Visiting Professorship at the University of Bristol. She is author of Mycenaean Cult Buildings: A Study of their Architecture and Function in the Context of the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean (1997) and editor of The Aegean Bronze Age in Relation to the Wider European Context (2008). She has published articles on the Greek Bronze Age in the European Journal of Archaeology, Opuscula, Aegaeum, Aegean Archaeology, Bulletin de correspondence hellénique, and Studi micenei ed egeo-anatolici.