Polytheism and Society at Athens

by Robert C.T. Parker

This book is the first attempt that has ever been made to give a comprehensive account of the religious life of ancient Athens. The city's many festivals are discussed in detail, with attention to recent anthropological theory; so too, for instance, are the cults of households and of smaller groups, the role of religious practice and argumentation in public life, the authority of priests, the activities of religious professionals such as seers and priestesses, magic, the place of theatrical representations of the gods within public attitudes to the divine. A long final section considers the sphere of activity of the various gods, and takes Athens as a uniquely detailed test case for the structuralist approach to polytheism. The work is a synchronic, thematically organized complement (though designed to be read independently) to the same author's Athenian Religion: A History (OUP, 1996).

Genres: History, Spirituality, Religion, Nonfiction, Academic

576 pages, Paperback

First published November 24, 2005

About the author

Robert has been Wykeham Professor of Ancient (Greek) History since 1996. Before that he was Tutor in Greek and Latin Languages and Literature at Oriel College, Oxford; before that, an undergraduate and graduate at New College. He gave the Towsend lectures in Cornell in 2008 and the Sather lectures in Berkeley in 2013.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

A vast treasure trove of information about how polytheism was practiced in Athens leading up to and during the Classical era, with information about holidays, particular home practices, the differences between the civic practice of religion and the personal, and more - all rooted in archaeological and textual evidence. Both original research from the author and other scholars in the field. If you're a reconstructionist or just deeply curious this is a must-read. Please note that it was written at an advanced academic level and does read rather slowly if that isn't your regular type of reading (yes, I crawled through it)