Table Of ContentM I N O A N
R E L I G I O N
Ritual, Image, and Symbol
NANNO MARINATOS
MINOAN RELIGION
STUDIES IN COMPARATIVE RELIGION
Frederick M. Denny, Editor
The Holy Book in Comparative Perspective Arjuna in the Mahabharata:
Edited by Frederick M. Denny and Where Krishna Is, There Is Victory
Rodney L. Taylor By Ruth Cecily Katz
Dr. Strangegod: Ethics, Wealth, and Salvation:
On the Symbolic Meaning of Nuclear Weapons A Study in Buddhist Social Ethics
By Ira Chernus Edited by Russell F. Sizemore
and Donald K. Swearer
Native American Religious Action: A
Performance Approach to Religion By Ritual Criticism:
Sam Gill Case Studies in Its Practice, Essays on Its Theory
By Ronald L. Grimes
The Confucian Way of Contemplation:
The Dragons of Tiananmen:
Okada Takehiko and the Tradition of
Beijing as a Sacred City By
Quiet-Sitting
Jeffrey F. Meyer
By Rodney L. Taylor
The Other Sides of Paradise:
Human Rights and the Conflict of Cultures:
Explorations into the Religious Meanings
Western and Islamic Perspectives
of Domestic Space in Islam
on Religious Liberty
By Juan Eduardo Campo
By David Little, John Kelsay,
and Abdulaziz A. Sachedina Sacred Masks: Deceptions and Revelations
By Henry Pernet
The Munshidin of Egypt:
Their World and Their Song The Third Disestablishment:
By Earle H. Waugh Regional Difference in Religion
and Personal Autonomy
77u' Buddhist Revival in Sri Lanka: By Phillip E. Hammond
Religious Tradition, Reinterpretation
and Response Minoan Religion: Ritual, Image, and Symbol By
By George D. Bond Nanno Marinatos
A History of the Jews of Arabia:
From Ancient Times to Their Eclipse Under Islam By
Gordon Darnell Newby
M I N O A N
R E L I G I O N
Ritual, Image, and Symbol
NANNO MARINATOS
University of South Carolina Press
Copyright © 1993 University of South Carolina
Published in Columbia, South Carolina, by the University of South Carolina Press
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Marinatos, Nanno.
Minoan religion : ritual, image, and symbol / by Nanno
Marinatos.
p. cm. - (Studies in comparative religion)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-87249-744-5 (alk. paper)
1. Minoans-Religion. 2. Crete (Greece)-Religion. I. Title.
II. Series: Studies in comparative religion (Columbia, S.C.)
BL793.C7M34 1993
299'.1-dc20 92-11628
To the memory of Sir Arthur Evans
CONTENTS
Series Editor's Preface / VIII
Preface / ix
1 Introduction / 1
2 The Cult of the Dead in Prepalatial Crete / 13
3 The Palaces as Cult Centers / 38
4 The Shrines in the Palaces / 76
5 Town Shrines and Nature Sanctuaries / 112
6 The Priesthood / 127
7 Goddesses and Gods / 147
8 Shrines and Rituals / 175
9 The World of Nature / 193
1o Ritual Contests, Hunting, and Rites of Passage / 201
11 Minoan Religion after the Fall of the Palaces / 221
12 Conclusions / 242
Abbreviations / 245
Notes / 249
Illustration Credits / 297
Glossary / 301
Index / 303
SERIES EDITOR'S PREFACE
This book represents a significant extensive experience as a field archaeol-
break-through in the analysis and ogist has prevented the project from
interpretation of Minoan religious sites, be-coming overly speculative, whereas Dr.
artifacts, and symbols. Combining Marinatos's thorough acquaintance with
archaeological, historical, semiotic, and comparative religion theory and method
cultural anthropological approaches, Dr. has lifted the project far above the merely
Marinatos has arrived at a new way of descriptive level of technical scholarship
understanding the religious world of on sanctuaries and material culture. In
Minoan civilization. short, Minoan Religion is both a technically
Perhaps the most important aspect of accomplished book and an accessible
this new synthesis is its bold venture of survey of one of the most appealing yet
attempting a reconstruction of Minoan difficult topics in the history of Minoan
ritual processes within their original studies, the beliefs and ritual practices of
contexts rather than by inference from the prehistoric Minoans in the context of
classical Greek religion of historical times. eastern Mediterranean culture of the time.
This effort would be impossible without
the balanced multidisciplinary approach Frederick Mathewson Denny
that the author has taken. Her
PREFACE
The idea of this book was conceived on a recently by eminent authorities in the
sunny day in Colorado when Frederick field, I remain unconvinced.
Denny invited me to contribute a I wish to thank the Institute for Aegean
mono-graph to his series on world Prehistory for providing me with a grant
religions. At that time I was not sure I to prepare the line drawings. These were
could accomplish the task of writing a made by Lily Papageorgiou. Photographs
book on such a large topic, but I ended were provided by the Italian
up undertaking the project. One of the Archaeological School in Athens, Mrs.
main reasons I did so is that there exists Alison Frantz, Dr. E. Hallager, Dr. A.
no other work dealing exclusively with Hirmer, and Prof. P. Warren, all of whom
Minoan material which stresses cult I thank warmly. For permission to
practice over archaeological data and reproduce illustrations I have to thank
makes use of anthropological models. Drs. Y. Tzedakis, A. Kanta, L. Morgan,
The greatest challenge has been to W.-D. Niemeier, G. Rethemiotakis, S.
present detailed information on the ma- Hood, K. Branigan, and the Managing
terial necessary for the argumentation, Committee of the British School at
and yet not to make the book incompre- Athens.
hensible or boring to historians of reli- The manuscript has profited much
gion to whom the series addresses itself. I from the support and encouragement of
am not sure I have succeeded, but the my friends and colleagues whose ad-vice
attempt to present Minoan religion from in various matters helped me improve the
the perspective of ritual process had to book. Editorial assistance was provided
be made. by Ms. B. Conrad, especially regarding
In my discussion of the iconographical the preparation of the illustrations.
sources I have deliberately omitted two Individual chapters were read and
important objects, the so-called Nestor commented upon by Drs. S. Diamant
and Minos rings, because I believe them and Ch. Sourvinou-Inwood.
to be forgeries. Although the genuineness The entire manuscript was read by
of these rings has been defended Prof. E. Davis, Prof. W.-D. Niemeier,
Ix
