Ancient Religions

by Sarah Iles Johnston (Editor)

Religious beliefs and practices, which permeated all aspects of life in antiquity, traveled well-worn routes throughout the itinerant charismatic practitioners journeying from place to place peddled their skills as healers, purifiers, cursers, and initiators; and vessels decorated with illustrations of myths traveled with them. New gods encountered in foreign lands by merchants and conquerors were sometimes taken home to be adapted and adopted. This collection of essays by a distinguished international group of scholars, drawn from the groundbreaking reference work Religions of the Ancient World , offers an expansive, comparative perspective on this complex spiritual world.

Genres: Religion, History, Mythology, Ancient History, Ancient, Anthropology

288 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 2007

About the author

Sarah Iles Johnston is the College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Professor of Religion and Professor of Classics and Comparative Studies at The Ohio State University.

Reviews

[Iset · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting overview of ancient Mediterranean and Near East religions, which each chapter contributed by a different academic. The book is divided in half, with the initial part taking a thematic approach – for example, a chapter on ritual which discusses this aspect in a number of different societies and religions – and the second part taking a geographic approach, attempting to relate a brief history of ancient religion in that region.

[Paige McLoughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of essays on religion in the ancient Mediterranean. Fairly eclectic on various cultures and periods. Not bad I read this before along with a lot of other works on this topic.