Oxford Readings in Greek Religion

The study of ancient Greek religion has been excitingly renewed in the last thirty years. Key areas of interest have been: the relationship between religion and politics; new and unexpected perspectives opened up by archaeological finds; the symbiosis between myth and ritual; the role of gender differences in the practice and perception of religion; conceptual problems raised by the very notion of 'religion'. This volume gathers together challenging papers by many of the most innovative participants in this renewal. Almost all the articles have been revised by their authors and/or provided with Addenda, to take account of the most recent scholarship. One article has been translated specifically for this collection; another is for the first time provided with illustrations. No single school or style of approach is privileged: the aim is to illustrate a range of possible methods which may be adopted in the investigation of this endlessly fascinating material. The volume also contains an important introductory essay by Richard Buxton.

Religion in Society; What is Polis Religion?; Further aspects of Polis religion; Tribes, festivals, and processions: Civic ceremonial and political manipulation in archaic; Greece; Greek states and Greek oracles; From Oedipus to Periander: Lameness, tyranny, incest in legend and history; Archaeology of the Sacred; Demeter in the ancient Greek city and its countryside; Greek sanctuaries as places of refuge; The archaeology of the hero; Votives and votaries in Greek sanctuaries; Myths and Rituals; Jason, Hypsipyle, and New Fire at Lemnos: A study of myth and ritual; The Locrian maidens; Scapegoat rituals in ancient Greece; Women and sacrifice in classical Greece; Boundary Disputes; Greek magic, Greek religion; Misconceptualizing classical mythology

Professor Richard Buxton, Professor of Greek Language and Literature, University of Bristol.