Spatial Organisation of Cult

The project presents the results of a comparative study of the spatial structures of sanctuaries in ancient Lucania with the aim of reconstructing ritual processes. The coastal regions of Lucania were among the first places in Italy to be colonised by Greeks. Therefore, the interaction between Greeks and indigenous inhabitants reaches back to the 7th/6th centuries BC. Nevertheless, by the later 4th/3rd centuries BC an interesting situation had developed due to a decrease in the influence of Greek colonies and an increase in the influence of Italic and Roman material culture. Although the bilateral exchange of material culture is visible in archaeological findings, the question remains as to how far the religious sphere was affected by this. The absence of written sources from indigenous contexts made it necessary to turn to other sources of evidence and eventually led to the idea of analysing architectural remains as a structural framework and environment for ritual actions. Therefore, this study examines Greek and indigenous sanctuaries in detail, both their structural elements and their functionality, in order to identify similarities and differences in their architectural settings, which in turn help to reconstruct the sacred environment of rituals and to offer the possibility of better understanding the rituals themselves. The architectural development of Greek sanctuaries represents a clear structure that is rooted in the Graeco-Roman architectural tradition. The focus lies on the altar, the architectonical representation of the ritual: the sacrifice. Therefore, each altar-temple-ensemble was surrounded by courtyards, which not only served the sacrifice itself, but also underlined the importance of observant participants at each sacrifice. The communal incineration and consumption of sacrificed animals` flesh, promoted communication amongst participants as well as between pious believers and gods. On the contrary, indigenous sanctuaries kept their individual architectural form, which differed from that of Greek sanctuaries. Their central buildings incorporated a quadratic plan regardless of whether they were stand-alone buildings or small shrines associated with larger complexes. There is no evidence for sacrificial structures. Instead, within the quadratic structures there were fireplaces. Bones and pottery prove that commensality took place within the various buildings. By virtue of being enclosed, quadratic buildings limited the number of participants and made the ritual somewhat exclusive. The killing of the sacrificial animal and its observation were not focal points, although commensality definitely was. To summarize, even after centuries of cultural contact and the proven cultural exchange between Greeks and indigenous peoples, each group seems to have stuck to their own architectural layout when it came to ritual practice.

No additional funding sources recorded.