The History of the Oracle at Delphi

Delphi and her cults that resided there spark a fascination which is not matched at any other Hellenistic site. The towering precipices, the dark deep crevice ravines, the enigmatic caves, and the bubbling springs of water combined, bestows a romantic allure and a feeling of awe of which no portrayal can satisfactorily describe.

The temple at Delphi was the home of the Pythia, the priestess of Apollo who interpreted visions for visitors. However, in the beginning it was the home of the worship of Gaia and her children before she appointed Themis to be the guardian. After this, Apollo came to Delphi and slew the Python, a gigantic serpent appointed by Gaia to guard the site. According to one ancient author, “[Apollon] made his way to Delphoi, where Themis gave the oracles at that time. When the serpent Python, which guarded the oracle, moved to prevent Apollon from approaching the oracular opening, he slew it and thus took command of the oracle”. Another version claims that Apollo slew the serpent in order to avenge his mother, the Titan Leto, who had been pursued by Python during her pregnancy.

Slaying Python gained Apollo the possession of the temple. The gigantic serpent rotted away (there are sources which claim that Python was created out of the slime left behind after the Great Deluge) and Apollo named the oracle and the festival of the god the Pythia and Pythian in its honour.

Apollo then brought his twin sister, Artemis, and his mother to the site and later Athena, who were all placed with the Chthonians, and were all worshipped here to various degrees. Apollo was the deity that took the foremost position in the religious concepts at Delphi.

The slaying of the Python has been suggested that it may reflect the Greek conquest of the region after 2000 BCE. The establishment of the Pythia and her priests may have simply taken over a pre-existing religious institution.

The Pythia was the oracle who could tell the future. Anyone wanting to know their destiny made their way to the sacred temple and made offerings of a sacred cake and a goat or sheep before consulting the Pythia.

The Pythia would sit on a tripod, a bowl on three legs and burn bay-leaves and barley-meal (instead of fragment incense as what is commonly believed). After this she descended into a vault, drank of the holy spring, chewed some bay-leaves, and mounted on to the tripod, holding in her hand a branch of bay leaves. She then fell into a deep trance-like state in which she received answers from Apollo. According to Aristophanes, “the voice of the Pythia, concentrated by the curved vault of the oracular cell, would rise into the adytum through an opening in its floor, and there would be heard by the priests”.

As she spoke, her words were written down by a group of priests who then interpreted them and the relayed the answer to the supplicant. If the messages that the Pythia received were negative, then she would refuse to speak.

Sometimes the answers the Pythia gave were ambiguous. For example, when Croesus, the emperor of Lydia consulted the oracle in regards to campaigning against Persia, was told that he would defeat a great empire. Croesus went to war and, unfortunately, destroyed his own kingdom. More often than not, the answers the Pythia gave were extremely obscure and open to any meaning.

The importance of the site can hardly be exaggerated. From as early as the third millennium BCE, Delphi was considered a sacred site and drew visitors, many of them rulers, from all over the Mediterranean and the Middle East.

The Pythia was mostly depicted in art as beautiful young women. In later times, due to the seduction of the Pythias, no woman was appointed to this position until she had reached 50 years old. In the early years of the temple there was only one oracle but during the Classical period, the height of its importance, there were three Pythias. One scholar states that “she was probably chosen for her susceptibility to possession, and even if the fumes that surrounded her were non-hallucinogenic, they might well have served to trigger an ecstatic state, in combination with her chewing of equally "harmless" laurel and bay leaves”.

However, her importance, both as an oracle and as a social focus, began to wane in the third century BCE, due to the Greek civilization expansion and outside influence. During the time when Xerxes was invading Greece “the Pythia committed the fatal blunder of advising the Greeks to submit to Persia - a mistake which cost the oracle very dear”. There are two instances that Herodotus claims that the Pythia was bribed.

In later decades, Emperor Theodosius closed all of the oracles in the name of Christianity. Indeed, according to Lucan and several other Roman writers, the oracle stopped continuous functions from approximately 50 BCE on, as she had long since lost the status it had held from the 6^th through the 4^th centuries BCE.

Bibliography:

Fairbanks, Arthur (1906) Herodotus and the Oracle at Delphi, The Journal of Hellenic Studies, the Society for the promotion of Hellenic Studies.

Littleton, C. Scott (1986) The Pneuma Enthusiastikon: On the Possibility of Hallucinogenic “Vapors” at Delphi and Dodona, Ethos, Blackwell Publishing on behalf of the American Anthropological association.

Maurizio, L. (1995) Anthropology and spirit Possession: A Reconsideration of the Pythia’s Role at Delphi, the Journal of Hellenic Studies, the Society for the promotion of Hellenic Studies.

Middleton, J. Henry (1888) The Temple of Apollo at Delphi, the Journal of Hellenic Studies, the Society for the promotion of Hellenic Studies.

The Varna Cemetery

The accidental discovery of the Varna Cemetery (otherwise known as the Varna Necropolis) on the Black Sea coast of modern day Bulgaria has shed light onto the lives of the people in the vicinity and the burial customs they practiced.

When it was discovered in 1972, a mass of gold and other metals were uncovered, dating back to the 5^th and 4^th millennium BCE, and this was one of the many reasons why archaeologists flocked to the area to study the area. The majority of the gold discovered was in the form of gold beads, but other forms were discovered. One of the more famous items found was the penis sheath. Other items found included hammered sheet pectorals, and “the gold appliqués (often zoomorphic in form) with perforated edges for sewing onto the clothing of the deceased” (Scarre, p.403). According to scholars, many of the discoveries were decorations; some worn around the wrists or upper arms, pushed through holes in the lips or ears or sewn onto their clothing.

The fact that many of these items were highly prized decorative objects is particularly interesting. It has led to the theory that they were specially made for the purpose of burial and not for use while the person was alive. It indicates the method of how societies in this time were able to show the differences in social status.

It has been suggested by scholars that due to the richness of its treasures, especially the considerable quantity of gold jewellery, that these were the tombs of rulers. However, it should be stressed that there is no evidence at this time to back up this hypothesis.

Not all the graves contained a rich amount of grave goods. Indeed, while the majority have up to 10 items placed in the graves, there were 23 graves that contained none at all. Most interestingly, was the discovery of no skeletons in some of the graves, even though these were handsomely furnished with objects. These have been classed as ‘cenotaphs’ – a memorial to those whose body could not be found or buried in another location.

The Varna Cemetery offers us great insight to the growing complexity of communities in southeast Europe during the 5^th millennium BCE. While certain questions cannot be answered at this present time, the continual study of the Varna Cemetery will continue to provide unknown aspects of the Black Sea societies in the future.

Bibliography:

Scarre, Chris (2005) The Human past – Holocene Europe, Thames & Hudson, London.

The History of African Red Slip Ware

Studying the history of African Red Slip ware allows us insight into the culture of North African Roman society as well as the industrial history of the period. It is my intention to look at the history and the significance of African Red Slips Ware through the archaeological and literary records available.

African Red Slip Ware (henceforth ARS) is named so by archaeologists since there is no name for this type of pottery in the historical record. Archaeologists coined this phrase due to the red glaze or slip, which was applied on top. The production of ARS is of importance to the history of North Africa, since it was a local production which went on to supply Roman citizens throughout the Empire.

The production and trade of ARS can be seen as a mechanism for both spreading and defining a ‘Roman’ material culture and, indeed, a Roman identity. This is due to the fact that ARS was a product that developed in North African long after the Roman occupation and archaeological evidence has not unearthed any pottery similar to ARS with pre-Roman characteristics.

Italian sigillata was the main imported fine-ware in the 1st century CE. In the first half of the 2nd century, however, as Italy became a mass consumer of merchandise, Italian sigillata disappears from the Corinthian market. Throughout the 2nd and most of the 3rd century, Eastern Sigillata B (ESB) and Candarli ware from Asia Minor were important imports. But Candarli ware nearly disappears from Corinth in the early 4th century and is replaced by ARS, which forms at least 30 percent of all fine-wares in both the 4th and 5th centuries (Slane, p.331).

ARS was manufactured in several distinct areas of Tunisia, in the North near Carthage and Cap Bon, in the Sahel, and on the high steppe near Sbeitla. Despite the immense interest in ARS, some type remain rather vaguely dated, particularly those of the later second and early third century and those of the fifth century (Mattingly & Hitchner, p.201)

The lack of information regarding ARS has led to difficulties in understanding the ‘material culture’ of the Romans identity. Nevertheless, the study of ARS will continue to shed light on the Roman industrial history and on the people themselves.

Bibliography:

Mattingly, David J. & Hitchner, R. Bruce (1995) Roman Africa: An Archaeological Review, The Journal of Roman Studies, Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies.

Slane, Kathleen Warner (2003) Corinth’s Roman Pottery: Quantification and Meaning, Corinth, American School of Classical Studies at Athens.

The Origin of the Name Horus

Horus is one of the most famous and iconic gods from ancient Egypt; the falcon-headed god born from Osiris and Isis after his father had been murdered and cut into pieces by his brother Set (Seth). The pieces of Osiris’ body was scattered throughout Egypt and Isis gathered them all and brought him back to life again to create their son.

But where does the name come from? What does it mean?

Archaeologists have believed that the name Horus stemmed from the root hr, 'to be far', that is to say 'He Who Is Far Away' - an explanation that seems to correspond the original concept of Horus as a sky god. However, this is based on later sources which confuse with the verb hr, and although this may have been the original meaning, “there is no early evidence for such paronomasia with the name of Horus”.

One way of determining the origin of Horus’ name is through the Coffin Texts, where Spell 148 states that his mother Isis says to him, 'O falcon, my son Horus, dwell in this land of your father Osiris in this your name of Falcon who is on (or 'above') the battlements of the mansion of Him-whose-name-is-hidden'. His ornithological name is Bik; it is only after he has been born does she call him Horus, his divine name. She goes on to say, 'Falcon who is on (or 'above') the battlements of the mansion of Him-whose-name-is-hidden’.

The name hr (Horus) was only given to him when he took his first flight after being instructed by Isis. “Consequently, one is tempted to consider the possibility that the present text regards Bik hry znbw hwt Imn-rn as the primary name of Horus, and that Hr may have been derived from it, perhaps even being a short form or a by-name”.

No matter what, Hr became the principal name of Horus. However, there is no firm round for the accepted etymology of Hr, 'He who is far away’; despite the fact that being up and away is a feature of a flying falcon. This does not constitute a etymological value. “The late association of the name Hr in a play on words with the root hr does not actually show anything beyond the propensity of the Ancient Egyptians towards puns, and does not convey anything about the original meaning of the name”.

Bibliography:

Gilula, Mordechai (1982) An Egyptian Etymology of the Name of Horus? The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Egypt Exploration Society.

The Syro-Hittite Ritual Burial of Monuments

The Syro-Hittite cultures flourished in ancient Mesopotamia from the Late Bronze Age to the time when they were finally annexed by Assyria sometime in the eighth century BCE. One of the many features they are known for are their remarkable pieces of art and architecture, especially giant lions where they were placed in front of palaces and temples.

Many of these beautiful monuments were later burnt to the ground by invaders who conquered these areas. These gate-lions and other statues were also broken down into smaller pieces and then taken away as spoils of war, to be reused for their own monuments or simply left buried underneath the rubble for an extraordinary long period.

However, at least five locations - Alalakh, Hazor, Zincirli, and Arslantepe near Malatya – archaeologists have discovered that these monuments were carefully buried in the ground, suggesting a Syro-Hittite burial ritual.

In Alalakh, archaeologists discovered several temples that were destroyed sometime in the 13^th century BCE when they were destroyed by the Sea Peoples. They also found evidence of a short occupation in the 12^th century BCE. A large statue of the king, Idri-mi, would have been firmly fixed onto a throne in an annex.

However, Woolley remarks, “In a room in the annexe of the temple proper ... we found a hole which had been dug into the floor and filled with earth and large stones (the largest weighing nearly a ton and a half) and smoothed over; under the stones there was a broken statue; the head, which had been knocked off, was set beside the body together with two smaller fragments, one of the beard, the other of a foot; only part of one foot was missing. The statue belonged to the throne found on the temple floor.... We can be sure that the statue was on its throne when the temple was destroyed because the breaking of the feet must have resulted from its being knocked violently off its base into which the feet were socketted.... After the sack of the temple someone must have crept back and piously collected all that he could find of the figure and hidden it in a hastily-dug hole ...”. The statue of the king had clearly been collected and buried carefully under the floor.

As with Alalakh, archaeologists found other temple monuments which, after invasion by a hostile enemy, had been buried in the ground. In Zincirli, five gigantic lions were dragged from their original places and buried in a specially made pit. When taking into account how heavy and the difficulties in moving them, it is clear that this was a case of ritual burying.

For a period of at least half a millennium, the Syro-Hittite people clearly practiced a ritual of burying monuments. However, there are questions that arise when looking at the information yielded from these temples. Why were only a small number of temple monuments buried in a ritualistic manner? Why did other temples not do this as well? Although the number of cases is relatively small, the sheer extent to which these ancient people went to bury these monuments clearly shows that it is not accidental.

The burial of monuments seems to indicate their importance in the cults and the ancient beliefs of the Syro-Hittite world. “The ritual burial seems to support the view that the gate-lions were not merely decorated orthostats meant to strengthen the superstructure of the gates in which they were incorporated, but, as guardians of the gate were considered to possess godly, demonical, or punitive powers”.

Bibliography:

Ussishkin, David (1970) The Syro-Hittite Ritual Burial of Monuments, Journal of Near Eastern Studies, the University of Chicago Press.