Writing and Religious Traditions in the Ancient Western Mediterranean
open access | peer reviewed
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edited by
- Lorenzo Calvelli - Ca' Foscari University of Venice - email orcid profile
- María Dolores Dopico Caínzos - Universidade de Santiago de Compostela - email orcid profile
Abstract
From the sacred spaces of the Iberian Peninsula to those of Italy and the surrounding islands, this volume opens a window onto the vibrant world of ancient religions as seen through the lens of epigraphy. Inscriptions are investigated as objects conveying written messages that could circulate among humans but were also addressed to the divine. Their analysis contributes to the understanding of rituals and gestures that have long disappeared but that can be reconstructed through a refined interdisciplinary approach. By weaving epigraphy with archaeological evidence and literary sources, the book conjures a rich tapestry of individual and collective practices, offering readers not only accomplished scholarship but also a vivid journey into the multifaceted universe of sanctuaries in the ancient Mediterranean.
Keywords High-Imperial epigraphy • Indigenous sanctuary • Romanization • History • Theonym • Triangular mensa • Pre-Roman Italy • Severan dynasty • Thermal sanctuary • Hispania Citerior • Phoenicians • Sanctuaries • Ancient Rome • Religion • Cult • Aequi, pre-Roman sanctuaries • Devotional gestures • Archaeological evidence • Bronze votives • Local divinities • Valle Sabbia • Hispania citerior • Theonymic formulas • Latin inscriptions • II Iron Age • Civica religio • Bronze • Romanisation • Polytheistic inscriptions • Epigraphy • Archaeology • Dedications • Integration • Roman cult places • Temples • Votive table • Sanctuary • Written communication • Graffiti • Spatial analysis • Iuppiter Aeternus • Votive deposits • Onomastics • Brescia/Brixia • Celtiberia • Spring • Clusium • Etruscan • Inscriptions • Roman • Urbanism • Fons calidus • Ancient Iberia • Northwest • Callaecia • Religious practices • Ritual practices • Valle Camonica • Rituals • Astarte • Ancient Italy • Fortuna Primigenia
Thema codes QRAX • NKX • 1QB • 3CT
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/978-88-6969-931-3 | e-ISBN 978-88-6969-931-3 | ISBN (PRINT) 978-88-6969-932-0 | Published Sept. 24, 2025 | Language es, it, en
Copyright © 2025 Lorenzo Calvelli, María Dolores Dopico Caínzos. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.