Eleusis: a relational and material-based approach to ritual practices in West Attica from the sixth to the fourth century B.C.

• Autor(a) principal: Perissato, Felipe
• Data de Publicação: 2023
• Tipo de documento: Tese
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Biblioteca Digital de Teses e Dissertações da USP
• Texto Completo: https://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/71/71131/tde-20122023-170823/
• topic: Eleusis; Ancient Greek religion; Eleusian Mysteries; Lived Ancient Religion; Relational Archaeology; Eleusis; Antike griechischte Religion; Mysterien von Eleusis; Gelebte antike Reliigion; Relationale Archäeologie

This doctoral thesis analyses the development of the sanctuary of Eleusis between the sixth and fourth centuries B.C. in the context of its ritual practices. Unlike the traditional archaeological interpretation which relates spatial and social development of Eleusis to the action of great political leaders, this research investigates the expansion and improvements in the sanctuary through different uses by various agents with lens to the reciprocal shaping between religious experiences and long-term investments. Thus, the thesis traces appropriations by different individuals, as manifested in expressive, ritual and political forms in material objects, discourses and the built environment. In parallel, it seeks to understand how the (built) environment influences different human agents. To this end, this PhD thesis incorporates the processing of archaeological data from ancient topography and epigraphy, in addition to textual sources. The research framing considers the natural landscape and built spaces of the sanctuary at Eleusis, its counterpart in Athens (the City Eleusinion), and the procession road with its roadside sanctuaries, which connects both parts in West Attica. The research was elaborated based on scientific literature review and organization, critical review of sources, crossing analysis of archaeological data from topography and epigraphy, elaboration of GIS Maps and preparation of Epigraphic Repertoire. Based on a relational and material-evidenced approach elaborated from recent theoretical concepts, such as network thinking and Lived Ancient Religion, this thesis is presented in four parts. In the first part, a critical review on the paradigm of Polis Religion is presented with notes to its inconsistencies and limitations in describing religious experiences in Eleusis. It then presents theoretical foundations for an alternative relational model capable of incorporating archaeological sources. Formalities regarding the organisation and methodology of the data are presented in the second part, followed by a critical description of the archaeological, epigraphic and textual sources. The third part investigates the development of the sanctuary properly from the uses by different agents in ritual practices. In addition, considerations are made about the agency of built and natural environment. Thus, the following rituals are analysed: practices of depositing, the ritual practice of procession, the ritual practice of first-fruits offerings (aparche) and the ritual practice of initiations. The fourth part presents a diachronic analysis to the development of the sanctuary through the social organisation through networks at Eleusis. The focus is on the construction of relationships between different individuals based on their interactions with space and material objects in the historical context of Eleusis and the western border of Attica. The results of our approach are the composition of a more complex frame of change in ritual practices and social organisation of the sanctuary of Eleusis. The establishing of relationships between different agents and materiality throughout the historical process demonstrated that the development of the built environment and networks around the sanctuary occurred from tensions, negotiations and innovations in the face of historical contingency.