The handbook of religions in ancient Europe / edited by Lisbeth Bredholt Christensen, Olav Hammer and David A. Warburton.

Contributor(s):

Series: European history of religionsPublisher: Durham : Acumen Publishing, 2013Description: 1 online resource (xiii, 456 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)Content type:

text

Media type:

computer

Carrier type:

online resource

ISBN:

9781844657100 (ebook)

Subject(s):

Genre/Form:

Electronic books.

Additional physical formats: Print version: : No titleDDC classification:

200.936 23

LOC classification:

BL690 .H35 2013

Online resources:

Click here to access online

Contents:

Introduction / Lisbeth Bredholt Christensen, Olav Hammer and David A. Warburton -- Prehistoric religions. Studying prehistoric religions / Lisbeth Bredholt Christensen and David A. Warburton ; Prehistoric material and religion : a personal odyssey / Jarl Nordbladh ; Francesco d'Errico and the origins of religion / David A. Warburton ; On Paleolithic religion / Emmanuel Anati ; Ian Hodder and the Neolithic / Lisbeth Bredholt Christensen and David A. Warburton ; Neolithic cult images? The testimony of figurines for Neolithic religion / Jörg Petrasch ; Religious practices in northern Europe, 4000-2000 BCE / Charlotte Damm ; Mythological aspects of Nordic Bronze Age religion / Flemming Kaul ; Religion and society in the Bronze Age / Kristian Kristiansen ; The religions of prehistoric Europe and the study of prehistoric religion / Lisbeth Bredholt Christensen and David A. Warburton -- Ancient Europe in the historical period. Minoan and Mycenaean religion / David A. Warburton ; Etruscan religion / Jean M. Turfa ; The religions of the Iberian peninsula / F. Marco Simón ; Italic religion / Guy Bradley and Fay Glinister ; Roman religion / Susanne William Rasmussen ; Ancient Greek religion / Lars Albinus ; The Graeco-Roman cult of Isis / Birgitte Bøgh ; The cult of Mithras / Manfred Clauss ; Religious Platonism : philosophy and religion in the Platonic tradition / Kevin Corrigan and Michael Harrington ; Insular Celtic religion / Karen Bek-Pedersen ; Continental Germanic religion / Rudolf Simek ; Pre-Christian Anglo-Saxon religion / John D. Niles ; Old Norse religion / Britt-Mari Näsström ; Slavic religion / Leszek Słupecki ; Baltic religion / Sigma Ankrava ; Religion in prehistoric Finland / Veikko Anttonen ; Sami religion / Håkan Rydving.

Summary: The Handbook of Religions in Ancient Europe surveys the major religious currents of Europe before Christianity - the first continental religion with hegemonic ambition - wiped out most local religions. The evidence - whether archaeological or written - is notoriously difficult to interpret, and the variety of religions documented by the sources and the range of languages used are bewildering. The Handbook brings together leading authorities on pre-Christian religious history to provide a state-of-the-art survey. The first section of the book covers the Prehistoric period, from the Paleolithic to the Bronze Age. The second section covers the period since writing systems began. Ranging across the Mediterranean and Northern, Celtic and Slavic Europe, the essays assess the archaeological and textual evidence. Dispersed archaeological remains and biased outside sources constitute our main sources of information, so the complex task of interpreting these traces is explained for each case. The Handbook also aims to highlight the plurality of religion in ancient Europe: the many ways in which it is expressed, notably in discourse, action, organization, and material culture; how it is produced and maintained by different people with different interests; how communities always connect with or disassociate from adjunct communities and how their beliefs and rituals are shaped by these relationships. The Handbook will be invaluable to anyone interested in ancient history and also to scholars and students of religion, anthropology, archaeology, and classical studies.

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eBooks

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Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 02 Oct 2015).

The Handbook of Religions in Ancient Europe surveys the major religious currents of Europe before Christianity - the first continental religion with hegemonic ambition - wiped out most local religions. The evidence - whether archaeological or written - is notoriously difficult to interpret, and the variety of religions documented by the sources and the range of languages used are bewildering. The Handbook brings together leading authorities on pre-Christian religious history to provide a state-of-the-art survey. The first section of the book covers the Prehistoric period, from the Paleolithic to the Bronze Age. The second section covers the period since writing systems began. Ranging across the Mediterranean and Northern, Celtic and Slavic Europe, the essays assess the archaeological and textual evidence. Dispersed archaeological remains and biased outside sources constitute our main sources of information, so the complex task of interpreting these traces is explained for each case. The Handbook also aims to highlight the plurality of religion in ancient Europe: the many ways in which it is expressed, notably in discourse, action, organization, and material culture; how it is produced and maintained by different people with different interests; how communities always connect with or disassociate from adjunct communities and how their beliefs and rituals are shaped by these relationships. The Handbook will be invaluable to anyone interested in ancient history and also to scholars and students of religion, anthropology, archaeology, and classical studies.