Forngrekisk religion och mytologi
628 produkter
628 produkter
- Nyhet
242 kr
De undervisar i spådomskonst på Hogwarts, krigar i Narnia och dyker upp i konsten sedan tusentals år. Hälften människa, hälften häst är de uppkallade efter den allra första – Kentauros – som föddes i antikens Grekland. De väckte starka känslor och åsikter redan när ett gäng av dem, fulla och bråkiga, dundrade in på ett fett grekiskt bröllop för 2500 år sedan och ställde till med ett rejält slagsmål. Sedan dess har dessa mytomspunna fabeldjur fortsatt att fascinera, roa och provocera.
De lånar fortfarande sitt namn till vitt skilda sammanhang: Diktsamlingar, konstverk, spel, företag och musik. Sökningar på nätet visar hur brett de engagerar: Där ställs frågor om vad kentaurer äter, hur gamla de kan bli, hur de fortplantar sig – och om vem av dem, som är världens mest kända.
Här får vi följa kentaurens hovspår genom historien: Hjälten Akilles vise mentor Chiron (som lärde sin adept att jaga, tyda stjärnorna, rida och bota sjukdomar) är ett tidigt, klassiskt exempel. Men Kentauros ättlingar, som fick en ny storhetstid under renässansen, är favoriter än idag, inte minst inom populärkulturen. Vår ciceron i boken är forskaren Anna Carlstedt, författare till ett tiotal böcker. Hon hörs ofta som expert i P3 Historia och skriver Under strecket i Svenska Dagbladet. Boken är rikt illustrerad.
122 kr
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AN EPIC BATTLE THAT LASTED TEN YEARS. A LEGENDARY STORY THAT HAS SURVIVED THOUSANDS.'An inimitable retelling of the siege of Troy . . . Fry's narrative, artfully humorous and rich in detail, breathes life and contemporary relevance into these ancient tales' OBSERVER'Stephen Fry has done it again. Well written and super storytelling' 5***** READER REVIEW________'Troy. The most marvellous kingdom in all the world. The Jewel of the Aegean. Glittering Ilion, the city that rose and fell not once but twice . . .'When Helen, the beautiful Greek queen, is kidnapped by the Trojan prince Paris, the most legendary war of all time begins.Watch in awe as a thousand ships are launched against the great city of Troy.Feel the fury of the battleground as the Trojans stand resolutely against Greek might for an entire decade.And witness the epic climax - the wooden horse, delivered to the city of Troy in a masterclass of deception by the Greeks . . .In Stephen Fry's exceptional retelling of our greatest story, TROY will transport you to the depths of ancient Greece and beyond.________'A fun romp through the world's greatest story. Fry's knowledge of the world - ancient and modern - bursts through' Daily Telegraph'An excellent retelling . . . told with compassion and wit' 5***** Reader Review'Hugely successful, graceful' The Times'If you want to read about TROY, this book is a must over any other' 5***** Reader Review'Fluent, crisp, nuanced, begins with a bang' The Times Literary Supplement'The characters . . . are brilliantly brought to life' 5***** Reader ReviewPRAISE FOR STEPHEN FRY'S GREEK SERIES:'A romp through the lives of ancient Greek gods. Fry is at his story-telling best . . . the gods will be pleased' Times'A head-spinning marathon of legends' Guardian'An Olympian feat. The gods seem to be smiling on Fry - his myths are definitely a hit' Evening Standard'An odyssey through Greek mythology. Brilliant . . . all hail Stephen Fry' Daily Mail'A rollicking good read' Independent
307 kr
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A solo/cooperative skirmish wargame of heroism and adventure in the realms of Greek myth.In an age of monsters, humanity is besieged, sheltering in isolated city states as the forces of destruction ravage the land. There is a spark of hope, however – the demigods. These heroes, born of the gods and granted some of the power of their divine parents, stand fast against the chaos. Explorers, warriors, and diplomats, they sail the wine-dark sea, seeking adventure, battling horrific creatures, and protecting the helpless.Warriors of Athena can be played in three ways: solo, with one brave hero leading their crew into the unknown; cooperatively, with heroes banding together for a great expedition; or with one player taking on the role of Oracle, scripting scenarios and presenting challenges for the heroes to overcome.This Quests book contains the rules needed to adventure in the world of Warriors of Athena, including an extensive bestiary of gods, monsters, and other adversaries. Advice for players looking to build their own solo, cooperative, or Oracle-plotted adventures is also provided, while four multi-scenario campaigns allow them to dive straight into the action!Players will also need the rules for play, creating Heroes, and assembling warbands found in Warriors of Athena: Heroes to make full use of this book.
307 kr
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A solo/cooperative skirmish wargame of heroism and adventure in the realms of Greek myth.In an age of monsters, humanity is besieged, sheltering in isolated city states as the forces of destruction ravage the land. There is a spark of hope, however – the demigods. These heroes, born of the gods and granted some of the power of their divine parents, stand fast against the chaos. Explorers, warriors, and diplomats, they sail the wine-dark sea, seeking adventure, battling horrific creatures, and protecting the helpless.Warriors of Athena can be played in three ways: solo, with one brave hero leading their crew into the unknown; cooperatively, with heroes banding together for a great expedition; or with one player taking on the role of Oracle, scripting scenarios and presenting challenges for the heroes to overcome.This Heroes book contains all the core rules needed to play Warriors of Athena. With simple D20-based mechanics, the rules are quick to pick up, while an extensive range of character options, from arms and armour to divine origins, abilities, and treasures to discover, makes your heroes your own. Create your demigod, assemble their loyal crew, and set out into the perilous Aegean to forge a legend!Players will also need the rules for scenarios and adversaries found in Warriors of Athena: Quests to make full use of this book.
Silent Patient
The record-breaking, multimillion copy Sunday Times bestselling thriller and TikTok sensation
Häftad, Engelska, 2019
142 kr
Skickas inom 5-8 vardagar
- THE RECORD-BREAKING, MULTIMILLION COPY GLOBAL BESTSELLER AND TIKTOK SENSATION -Discover the #1 New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling thriller with a jaw-dropping twist that everyone is talking about - as seen on TikTok. Soon to be a major film.Alicia Berenson lived a seemingly perfect life until one day six years ago.When she shot her husband in the head five times.Since then she hasn't spoken a single word.It's time to find out why.READERS LOVE THE SILENT PATIENT⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Everything you need from a psychological thriller with a killer twist that is impossible to see coming!'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Fiendishly clever ... believe the hype.'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Grabs your afternoon from the start and never lets go'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A fantastic thriller with an incredible plot twist that I really didn't see coming. I highly recommend.'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'OMG, my heart is still pounding from the final chapters of this amazing thriller.'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'I'm honestly speechless, best book I have read for a very long time'⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'The twists when they come, wow oh wow!'CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED'The perfect thriller' AJ FINN'Terrific' - THE TIMES Crime Book of the Month'Smart, sophisticated suspense' - LEE CHILD'Compelling' - OBSERVER'Absolutely brilliant' - STEPHEN FRY'A totally original psychological mystery' - DAVID BALDACCI'One of the best thrillers I've read this year' - CARA HUNTER'The pace and finesse of a master' - BBC CULTURE
227 kr
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Robert Graves's classic retelling of the Greek Myths is definitive, comprehensive and unparalleled - and available now in the Penguin Classics Deluxe series, featuring a new introduction from Rick Riordan (bestselling author of the Percy Jackson and Olympian series).Including many of the greatest stories ever told - the labours of Hercules, the voyage of the Argonauts, Theseus and the minotaur, Midas and his golden touch, the Trojan War and Odysseus's journey home - Robert Graves's superb and comprehensive retelling of the Greek myths for a modern audience has been regarded for over fifty years as the definitive version. With a novelist's skill and a poet's eye, Graves draws on the entire canon of ancient literature, bringing together all the elements of every myth into one epic and unforgettable story. Ideal for the first time reader, it can be read as a single, continuous narrative, while full commentaries, with cross-references, interpretations, variants and explanations, as well as a comprehensive index of names, make it equally valuable as a work of scholarly reference for anyone seeking an authoritative and detailed account of the gods, heroes and extraordinary events that provide the bedrock of Western literature.The result is a classic among classics, a treasure trove of extraordinary tales and a masterful work of literature in its own right.Robert Graves (1895-1985) was a novelist, poet, historian, critic and translator, author of some 140 books, and one of the greatest figures of 20th century British literature. Alongside The Greek Myths, his most famous works include the historical novels I, Claudius and Claudius the God and his First World War memoir Goodbye to All That.
238 kr
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'Fans of Anne Carson, rejoice!... Carson's depth of knowledge about Greek mythology coupled with her poetic sensibility and illustrations is sure to breathe new life into this oft-told story.' Lit HubH of H Playbook is an explosion of thought, in drawings and language, about a Greek tragedy called Herakles by the 5th-century BC poet Euripides. In myth Herakles is an embodiment of manly violence who returns home after years of making war on enemies and monsters (his famous "Labours of Herakles") to find he cannot adapt himself to a life of peacetime domesticity. He goes berserk and murders his whole family. Suicide is his next idea. Amazingly, this does not happen. Due to the intervention of his friend Theseus, Herakles comes to believe he is not, after all, indelibly stained by his own crimes, nor is his life without value. It remains for the reader to judge this redemptive outcome."I think there is no such thing as an innocent landscape," said Anselm Kiefer, painter of forests grown tall on bones.
249 kr
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Friedrich Schiller är en av världslitteraturens giganter. Genom hans dikter talar en upphöjt estetisk idealism om människans relation till frihet, sanning och skönhet, ämnen som bortom den antika prägeln knappast upphört att vara aktuella.
Schillers poesi har varit mindre uppburen under 1900-talet och ett sekel har gått sedan ett större urval gavs ut i svensk nyöversättning. Det är hög tid att Schiller tillgängliggörs i uppdaterad språkdräkt och i en utförligt kommenterad utgåva.
Greklands gudar och andra dikter rymmer exempel från hans olika poetiska genrer: från det berättande till det centrallyriska, från det upproriska till det sedelärande, från klagosång till jublande dryckesvisa och från vitsiga epigram till långa tankedikter.
Översättningarna är gjorda av Jimmie Svensson, verksam som forskare inom litteraturvetenskapen, där han särskilt ägnat sig åt versifikatorisk form. Han har också försett boken med en inledning där dikterna, Schiller och eftervärldens bilder av denne presenteras närmare.
265 kr
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Discover the Worlds of the Greek GodsFor centuries, the Greek gods have captivated the imagination of readers with their complex personalities and timeless myths. The Greek Gods and Their Worlds offers a fresh perspective, exploring not just the well-known stories, but delving into the distinct domains and nuanced lives of the gods. This thematic journey reveals the realms they ruled, their origins, relationships, and the unique way they shaped ancient mythology.By showing the gods in the realms they inhabit, readers will gain a richer understanding of their individual traits, with fresh retellings of iconic myths in context—making them easier to understand, remember, and relate to. Through thirteen insightful chapters, you’ll explore:The drunken world of DionysosThe mournful world of DemeterThe audacious world of ApolloThe dreamy world of HermesThe seductive world of AphroditeThe bloody world of AresThe wild world of ArtemisThe violent world of AthenaThe jealous world of HeraThe wondrous world of HephaistosThe turbulent world of PoseidonThe inherited world of ZeusThe fiery world of HestiaEach chapter is enhanced with vibrant illustrations and a rich selection of mythological sources, from hymns and epic poems to ancient art, offering a vivid window into the gods' powerful, enigmatic worlds.With potential for expansion into Norse, Roman, and Celtic mythologies, The Greek Gods and Their Worlds is a must-have for anyone fascinated by ancient mythology.
201 kr
Skickas inom 5-8 vardagar
Del 16 - Arcturus Oracle Kits
Classical Mythology Oracle
Includes 50 cards and a 128-page book
Häftad, Engelska, 2024
201 kr
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136 kr
Skickas inom 7-10 vardagar
‘An incisive, inspiring and vitally illuminating account of a city which changed the ancient world and which deserves to be remembered by the modern. A masterful book written by a master historian.’ – Bettany Hughes, bestselling author of Istanbul and Helen of TroyContinuously inhabited for five millennia, and at one point the most powerful city in Ancient Greece, Thebes has been overshadowed by its better-known rivals, Athens and Sparta. According to myth, the city was founded when Kadmos sowed dragon’s teeth into the ground and warriors sprang forth, ready not only to build the fledgling city but to defend it from all-comers. It was Hercules’ birthplace and the home of the Sphinx, whose riddle Oedipus solved, winning the Theban crown and the king’s widow in marriage, little knowing that the widow was his mother, Jocasta.The city’s history is every bit as rich as its mythic origins, from siding with the Persian invaders when their emperor, Xerxes, set out to conquer Aegean Greece, to siding with Sparta – like Thebes an oligarchy – to defeat Pericles’ democratic Athens, to being utterly destroyed on the orders of Alexander the Great.In Thebes: The Forgotten City of Ancient Greece, the acclaimed classical historian Paul Cartledge brings the city vividly to life, and argues that it is central to our understanding of the ancient Greeks’ achievements – whether politically or culturally – and thus to our own culture and civilization.
129 kr
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Ibland dyker det upp uttryck som kanske känns främmande för att de inte används så ofta, som att någon persons svaga punkt är dennes akilleshäl är något som många känner till. Men varifrån kommer det uttrycket och en del andra uttryck, kanske mindre kända, som ibland dyker upp. Här får vi på ett pedagogisk sätt reda på bakgrunden till dem och när de används. Boken sammanfattar tolv berättelser ur den grekiska mytologin relaterade till just de uttryck vi ibland använder oss av. Berättelserna är vackert illustrerade av akvareller.Den andra delen av boken, inspirerad av berättelserna, reflekterar över likheterna i våra olika världskulturer samt några filosofiska principer bakom dessa uttryck.
Del 2 - Percy Jackson and The Olympians
Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters (Book 2)
Häftad, Engelska, 2025
109 kr
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The second book in the bestselling Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Now with a new cover look! Discover the story behind the Disney+ series.HALF BOY - HALF GOD - ALL HERO.I've almost made it a year without one of my teachers turning into a monster. Just one more day to go. Surely even I can get through that?Percy Jackson's life has been surprisingly quiet since he stopped all-out war on Mount Olympus. That is until an innocent game of dodgeball turns monstrously ugly. . .Now Camp Half-Blood - the only safe place on earth for demigods like Percy - is under attack, and unless he can find the magical Golden Fleece, everything he's come to love will be destroyed.Percy and his friends must journey into the Sea of Monsters to save their camp. But as the son of the sea god - how hard can this quest be?Return to the World of Percy Jackson in the best-selling, brand-new adventure featuring the original hero in Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Wrath of the Triple Goddess – out now in paperback!And don't miss the next adventure from the World of Percy Jackson, The Court of the Dead, out now!
116 kr
Skickas inom 7-10 vardagar
Get ready to meet the goddesses . . .From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Stone Blind and Pandora’s Jar, Natalie Haynes.These are the stories of the Greek goddesses. As fearsome, powerful and beloved as their male counterparts, it’s time to look beyond the columns of a ruined temple to the awesome power within.We meet Hera, who, whilst most often known for enacting vicious, creative revenge on the women – mortal or otherwise – who catch the wandering eye of her husband Zeus, turns out not to be such a villain after all.We meet Demeter, a mother who will go to any lengths, no matter the cost, to retrieve her daughter Persephone from Hades’ clutches.We’ll be introduced to The Furies, three women who will literally go to the ends of the earth to enact bloody vengeance but who, surprisingly, are the goddesses who can teach us the most about the way we live now.Examining the role of these goddesses and more, Divine Might will change everything you thought you knew about our most ancient stories. Full of fire, fury and devotion, Natalie Haynes brings the divine women of Olympia kicking and screaming into the modern age.'The great champion of women in Greek myth . . . One of the delights of the book is that Haynes reacquaints us with forgotten goddesses' – Daily Mail
126 kr
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The stories of the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece are sprawling, dramatic and wonderfully strange; their lives intertwine with mortals and their behaviours fluctuate wildly from benevolent to violent, from didactic to fickle, from loving to enraged.Greek Myths: Gods and Goddesses is part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, cloth-bound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover.Classicist and author Jean Menzies captures the magic of Greek myths by drawing on a wide variety of vivid retellings from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, which bring to life the stories of Zeus, Athena, Poseidon, Hermes, Pandora and many more. Coupled with her own entertaining commentary, this is the perfect book for learning about the world of the Greek deities and a treat for all fans of Greek mythology.Discover even more mythology with Greek Myths: Heroes and Heroines edited by Jean Menzies.
131 kr
Skickas inom 7-10 vardagar
Find out what happened when King Midas was granted his wish, how Icarus flew too close to the sun, and relive the adventures of Jason and the Argonauts in these stories of love, betrayal, infatuation and punishment.Greek Myths: Heroes and Heroines is part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, cloth-bound, pocket-sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover.Greek myths have been part of Western culture since they were first set down by the ancients and, as there is no one definitive account, the stories have been ripe for reinterpretation through the centuries. Classicist and writer Jean Menzies has brought together fifteen retellings of famous myths from the likes of Andrew and Jean Lang, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Emilie Kip Baker, each chosen for its clarity and vivacity. The result? An enlightening and lively volume of stories and a treat for all fans of Greek mythology.Discover even more mythology with Greek Myths: Gods and Goddesses edited by Jean Menzies.
132 kr
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From the award-winning poet and playwright behind Barber Shop Chronicles, The Half-God of Rainfall is an epic story and a lyrical exploration of pride, power and female revenge. There is something about Demi. When this boy is angry, rain clouds gather. When he cries, rivers burst their banks and the first time he takes a shot on a basketball court, the deities of the land take note.His mother, Modupe, looks on with a mixture of pride and worry. From close encounters, she knows Gods often act like men: the same fragile egos, the same unpredictable fury and the same sense of entitlement to the bodies of mortals.She will sacrifice everything to protect her son, but she knows the Gods will one day tire of sports fans, their fickle allegiances and misdirected prayers. When that moment comes, it won’t matter how special he is. Only the women in Demi’s life, the mothers, daughters and Goddesses, will stand between him and a lightning bolt.
132 kr
Skickas
From the award-winning poet and playwright behind Barber Shop Chronicles, The Half-God of Rainfall is an epic story and a lyrical exploration of pride, power and female revenge. There is something about Demi. When this boy is angry, rain clouds gather. When he cries, rivers burst their banks and the first time he takes a shot on a basketball court, the deities of the land take note.His mother, Modupe, looks on with a mixture of pride and worry. From close encounters, she knows Gods often act like men: the same fragile egos, the same unpredictable fury and the same sense of entitlement to the bodies of mortals.She will sacrifice everything to protect her son, but she knows the Gods will one day tire of sports fans, their fickle allegiances and misdirected prayers. When that moment comes, it won’t matter how special he is. Only the women in Demi’s life, the mothers, daughters and Goddesses, will stand between him and a lightning bolt.
203 kr
Skickas
Robin Lane Fox's Travelling Heroes: Greeks and their Myths in the Epic Age of Homer proposes a new way of thinking about ancient Greeks, showing how real-life journeys shaped their mythical tales.The tales of the ancient Greeks have inspired us for thousands of years. But where did they originate? Esteemed classicist Robin Lane Fox draws on a lifetime's knowledge of the ancient world, and on his own travels, to open up the age of Homer. His acclaimed history explores how the intrepid seafarers of eighth-century Greece sailed around the Mediterranean, encountering strange new sights - volcanic mountains, vaporous springs, huge prehistoric bones - and weaving them into the myths of gods, monsters and heroes that would become the cornerstone of Western civilization: the Odyssey and the Iliad. 'A beautiful evocation of a tantalizing world ... Travelling Heroes is a tour de force'Rowland Smith, Literary Review'Lyrical, passionate ... his great gift is to make this long-ago world a vivid, extraordinary and sometimes frightening place ... a wonderful story' Elizabeth Speller, Sunday Times'Original, daring and arguably life-enhancing ... produced with a sweeping narrative flourish worthy of a cinematographer or screenwriter' Paul Cartledge, Independent'Lane Fox argues his case with tremendous style and verve ... learned, and always lively' Mary Beard, Financial TimesRobin Lane Fox (b. 1946) is a Fellow of New College, Oxford, and a University Reader in Ancient History. His other books include The Classical World, Alexander the Great, Pagans and Christians and The Unauthorized Version. He was historical advisor to Oliver Stone on the making of Stone's film Alexander, for which he waived all his fees on condition that he could take part in the cavalry charge against elephants which Stone staged in the Moroccan desert.
475 kr
Skickas inom 5-8 vardagar
Ancient Greek culture is pervaded by a profound ambivalence regarding female beauty. It is an awe-inspiring, supremely desirable gift from the gods, essential to the perpetuation of a man's name through reproduction; yet it also grants women terrifying power over men, posing a threat inseparable from its allure. The myth of Helen is the central site in which the ancient Greeks expressed and reworked their culture's anxieties about erotic desire. Despite the passage of three millennia, contemporary culture remains almost obsessively preoccupied with all the power and danger of female beauty and sexuality that Helen still represents. Yet Helen, the embodiment of these concerns for our purported cultural ancestors, has been little studied from this perspective. Such issues are also central to contemporary feminist thought. Helen of Troy engages with the ancient origins of the persistent anxiety about female beauty, focusing on this key figure from ancient Greek culture in a way that both extends our understanding of that culture and provides a useful perspective for reconsidering aspects of our own. Moving from Homer and Hesiod to Sappho, Aeschylus, and Euripides, Ruby Blondell offers a fresh examination of the paradoxes and ambiguities that Helen embodies. In addition to literary sources, Blondell considers the archaeological record, which contains evidence of Helen's role as a cult figure, worshipped by maidens and newlyweds. The result is a compelling new interpretation of this alluring figure.
Christ among the Messiahs
Christ Language in Paul and Messiah Language in Ancient Judaism
Häftad, Engelska, 2015
469 kr
Skickas inom 5-8 vardagar
Recent scholarship on ancient Judaism, finding only scattered references to messiahs in Hellenistic- and Roman-period texts, has generally concluded that the word ''messiah'' did not mean anything determinate in antiquity. Meanwhile, interpreters of Paul, faced with his several hundred uses of the Greek word for ''messiah,'' have concluded that christos in Paul does not bear its conventional sense. Against this curious consensus, Matthew V. Novenson argues in Christ among the Messiahs that all contemporary uses of such language, Paul's included, must be taken as evidence for its range of meaning. In other words, early Jewish messiah language is the kind of thing of which Paul's Christ language is an example. Looking at the modern problem of Christ and Paul, Novenson shows how the scholarly discussion of christos in Paul has often been a cipher for other, more urgent interpretive disputes. He then traces the rise and fall of ''the messianic idea'' in Jewish studies and gives an alternative account of early Jewish messiah language: the convention worked because there existed both an accessible pool of linguistic resources and a community of competent language users. Whereas it is commonly objected that the normal rules for understanding christos do not apply in the case of Paul since he uses the word as a name rather than a title, Novenson shows that christos in Paul is neither a name nor a title but rather a Greek honorific, like Epiphanes or Augustus. Focusing on several set phrases that have been taken as evidence that Paul either did or did not use christos in its conventional sense, Novenson concludes that the question cannot be settled at the level of formal grammar. Examining nine passages in which Paul comments on how he means the word christos, Novenson shows that they do all that we normally expect any text to do to count as a messiah text. Contrary to much recent research, he argues that Christ language in Paul is itself primary evidence for messiah language in ancient Judaism.
Old Society, New Belief
Religious transformation of China and Rome, ca. 1st-6th Centuries
Inbunden, Engelska, 2017
1 300 kr
Skickas inom 5-8 vardagar
In the first century of the Common Era, two new belief systems entered long-established cultures with radically different outlooks and values: missionaries started to spread the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth in Rome and the Buddha in China. Rome and China were not only ancient cultures, but also cultures whose elites felt no need to receive the new beliefs. Yet a few centuries later the two new faiths had become so well-established that their names were virtually synonymous with the polities they had entered as strangers. Although there have been numerous studies addressing this phenomenon in each field, the difficulty of mastering the languages and literature of these two great cultures has prevented any sustained effort to compare the two influential religious traditions at their initial period of development.This book brings together specialists in the history and religion of Rome and China with a twofold aim. First, it aims to show in some detail the similarities and differences each religion encountered in the process of merging into a new cultural environment. Second, by juxtaposing the familiar with the foreign, it also aims to capture aspects of this process that could otherwise be overlooked. This approach is based on the general proposition that, when a new religious belief begins to make contact with a society that has already had long honored beliefs, certain areas of contention will inevitably ensue and changes on both sides have to take place. There will be a dynamic interchange between the old and the new, not only on the narrowly defined level of "belief," but also on the entire cultural body that nurtures these beliefs. Thus, this book aims to reassess the nature of each of these religions, not as unique cultural phenomena but as part of the whole cultural dynamics of human societies.
326 kr
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Whatever we may think of Alexander--whether Great or only lucky, a civilizer or a sociopath--most people do not regard him as a religious leader. And yet religion permeated all aspects of his career. When he used religion astutely, he and his army prospered. In Egypt, he performed the ceremonies needed to be pharaoh, and thus became a god as well as a priest. Babylon surrendered to him partly because he agreed to become a sacred king. When Alexander disregarded religion, he and his army suffered. In Iran, for instance, where he refused to be crowned and even destroyed a shrine, resistance against him mounted. In India, he killed Buddhists, Jains, and Hindus by the hundreds of thousands until his officers, men he regarded as religious companians, rebelled against him and forced him to abandon his campaign of conquest. Although he never fully recovered from this last disappointment, he continued to perform his priestly duties in the rest of his empire. As far as we know, the last time he rose from his bed was to perform a sacrifice. Ancient writers knew little about Near Eastern religions, no doubt due to the difficulty of travel to Babylon, India, and the interior of Egypt. Yet details of these exotic religions can be found in other ancient sources, including Greek, and in the last thirty years, knowledge of Alexander's time in the Near East has increased. Egyptologists and Assyriologists have written the first thorough accounts of Alexander's religious doings in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Recent archaeological work has also allowed scholars to uncover new aspects of Macedonian religious policy. Soldier, Priest, and God, the first religious biography of Alexander, incorporates this recent scholarship to provide a vivid and unique portrait of a remarkable leader.
997 kr
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Late Bronze Age tombs in Greece and their attendant mortuary practices have been a topic of scholarly debate for over a century, dominated by the idea of a monolithic culture with the same developmental trajectories throughout the region. This book contributes to that body of scholarship by exploring both the level of variety and of similarity that we see in the practices at each site and thereby highlights the differences between communities that otherwise look very similar. The introduction of wealthy burials in the transition from the Middle Helladic period and the building of elaborate tombs during the Late Bronze Age underscores a long-acknowledged change in cultural importance of burials and their locations for contemporary society. Initially archaeologists were interested in these tombs because of the impressive finds that were discovered in them, but as the body of literature on mortuary rituals has grown more recently these tombs have been utilized as lenses through which we can study the related society in novel ways. By bringing together an international group of scholars working on tombs and cemeteries on mainland Greece, Crete, and in the Dodecanese we are afforded a unique view of the development and diversity of these communities. The papers provide a penetrative analysis of the related issues by discussing tombs connected with sites ranging in size from palaces to towns to villages and in date from the start to the end of the Late Bronze Age. Death in Late Bronze Age Greece contextualizes the mortuary studies in recent debates on diversity at the main palatial and secondary sites and between the economic and political strategies and practices throughout Greece. The papers in the volume illustrate the pervasive connection between the mortuary sphere and society through the creation and expression of cultural narratives, and draw attention to the social tensions played out in the mortuary arena.
1 907 kr
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Arete and the Odyssey's Poetics of Interrogation explores how the enigmatic Phaeacian queen, Arete, is at the heart of an epic-scale "poetics of interrogation" used throughout the Odyssey to negotiate Odysseus' kleos, or epic renown. Arete's interrogation of Odysseus has been especially problematic in scholarship, but diachronic and synchronic analysis of similar interrogations across Indo-European, Orphic, and Greek epigrammatic corpora show that the "stranger's interrogation" is a formula that demands performance and negotiation of status. Within the Odyssey, this interrogation is part of an intraformular network used to generate kleos, and the queen's question initiates the longest and most complex negotiation of Odysseus' status in epic and memory. Arete's role as interrogator not only explains her strange authority and resonance with both Penelope and comparative afterlife figures, but it also establishes a gendered, agonistic tension between she and her husband, Alkinoos, that influences the structure, genre, and narratology of performances across the Phaeacian episode. This book reinterprets the Odyssey's central episode and challenges several assumptions about Nausikaa and Alkinoos' famed hospitality, even demonstrating how the Apologue is organized as a response to competing inquiries into Odysseus' fundamental status in tradition. The Odyssey ultimately navigates away from Odysseus' public reputation and roots his status in private memories, and Arete's carefully arranged interventions signal the larger process by which the Odyssey immortalizes Odysseus in poetry as a nostos hero. The queen and her question invite new applications of oral poetics that shed light on the structure, composition, and reperformance of the Odyssey.
1 907 kr
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Studies on the Derveni Papyrus, volume II brings together two new editions of the first fragmentarily extant columns of the Derveni Papyrus and seven scholarly articles devoted to their interpretation. The Derveni Papyrus is by far the most important textual discovery of the 20th century regarding early Greek philosophy, religion, exegetical theory and practice, linguistic ideas, and a host of other areas and issues. But the editorial and interpretative history of this extraordinary document has been very checkered. While the interpretation of the better preserved later columns is still highly controversial in many regards, at least the text of those columns has by and large found a scholarly consensus; but the editorial and interpretative situation with the worse preserved first columns is quite different. This volume offers not one but two editions of the first columns, by Richard Janko and by Valeria Piano, given that it is not currently possible to agree upon a single edition; and it explains clearly and in detail the papyrological problems and doubts that lead to these two editions, making it possible for readers (even non-papyrologists) to form their own informed judgment about the most likely readings to be adopted. Furthermore, it contains a number of articles by leading scholars on the Derveni Papyrus, above all offering original solutions to the question of the relation between the earlier and the later columns, but also providing analysis and interpretation of other, related problems.
1 229 kr
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The Material Dynamics of Festivals in the Graeco-Roman East explores the various ways in which the experience of civic festivals in the Graeco-Roman East was created and framed by material culture. By the second and third centuries AD, Greek festivals were thriving across the eastern Mediterranean. Much of our knowledge of these festivals, and their associated processions, rituals, banquets, and competitions, comes from material culture-- inscriptions, coins, architecture, and art-works. Yet each of these pieces of material evidence was the result of a conscious act, of what to record, and where and how to record it, with varying patterns discernible across different areas, and in different media. This volume draws attention to the choices made in a variety of different forms of material culture relating to Greek festivals from the Hellenistic to Roman periods, and unpicks the ways in which they encode or forge particular social relationships and power structures, as well as creating senses of community or communication between different groups. These helped to fix ephemeral events into public memory, to present particular views of their significance for the wider community, and to frame the experience of their participants.
1 430 kr
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From the Archaic to the Roman imperial period, an impressive number of gods and goddesses are attested in the Greek world under the titles of Soter and Soteira ('Saviour'). Overseeing the protection of individuals and cities, these gods had the power to grant an essential blessing - soteria ('deliverance', 'preservation', 'safety'). This book investigates what it meant to be 'saved' and the underlying concept of soteria in ancient Greece. It challenges the prevailing assumption that soteria was a predominantly Christian concern, and demonstrates instead its centrality and significance in the relationship between the Greeks and their gods. This book focuses on the power of 'saviour' gods in the life of the Greeks, how worshippers searched for soteria as they confronted the unknown and unknowable, and what this can reveal about the religious beliefs, hopes, and anxieties of the Greeks. It goes beyond religious vocabulary and cult epithets to investigate worshippers' thought world and lived experience, the different choices individuals made among the plurality of gods in the Greek pantheon, the multiple levels on which divine 'saviours' operated, and the values attached to the Greek notion of soteria. Building on existing paradigms in the study of Greek polytheism, and combining close analysis of epigraphic, literary and material evidence, this book argues that soteria for the Greeks entailed a very different experience from the Christian, eschatological notion of 'salvation', and that what was offered was 'salvation' on earth.
Adventures with Iphigenia in Tauris
A Cultural History of Euripides' Black Sea Tragedy
Inbunden, Engelska, 2013
1 232 kr
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Human sacrifice, a spirited heroine, a quest ending in a hairsbreadth escape, the touching reunion of long-lost siblings, and exquisite poetry--these features have historically made Euripides' Iphigenia in Tauris one of the most influential of Greek tragedies. Yet, despite its influence and popularity in the ancient world, the play remains curiously under-investigated in both mainstream cultural studies and more specialized scholarship. With Adventures with Iphigenia in Tauris, Edith Hall provides a much-needed cultural history of this play, giving as much weight to the impact of the play on subsequent Greek and Roman art and literature as on its manifestations since the discovery of the sole surviving medieval manuscript in the 1500s. The book argues that the reception of the play is bound up with its spectacular setting on the southern coast of the Crimean peninsula in what is now the Ukraine, a territory where world history has often been made. However, it also shows that the play's tragicomic tenor and escape plot have had a tangible influence on popular culture, from romantic fiction to Hollywood action films. The thirteen chapters illustrate how reactions to the play have evolved from the ancient admiration of Aristotle and Ovid, the Christian responses of Milton and Catherine the Great, the anthropological ritualists and theatrical Modernists including James Frazer and Isadora Duncan, to recent feminist and postcolonial dramatists from Mexico to Australia. Individual chapters are devoted to the most significant adaptations of the tragedy, Gluck's opera Iphigénie en Tauride and Goethe's verse drama Iphigenie auf Tauris. Richly illustrated and accessibly written, with all texts translated into English, Adventures with Iphigenia in Tauris argues elegantly for a reappraisal of this Euripidean masterpiece.