A Vestige of the Ptolemaic Crocodile Cult in a Curse from Caesarea Maritima against a Pantomime Dancer
A curse tablet found during excavations at the Promontory Palace in Caesarea Maritima is directed against a pantomime dancer. Noteworthy among the gods addressed is a group of crocodile gods. Their importance in the curse is underscored by the depiction of a crocodile at the lower right of the text,...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
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Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Mohr Siebeck
2021
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In: |
Religion in the Roman empire
Year: 2021, Volume: 7, Issue: 1, Pages: 71-77 |
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Caesaria
/ Ptolemaios, III., Ägypten, König 284 BC-221 BC
/ Crocodile
/ Cult
/ Greece (Antiquity)
/ Religion
/ Curse table
/ Pantomimus
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RelBib Classification: | AG Religious life; material religion BE Greco-Roman religions KBL Near East and North Africa |
Further subjects: | B
crocodiles
B Caesaria B Ptolemies B Curse B animal cult B Pantomime |
Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
Summary: | A curse tablet found during excavations at the Promontory Palace in Caesarea Maritima is directed against a pantomime dancer. Noteworthy among the gods addressed is a group of crocodile gods. Their importance in the curse is underscored by the depiction of a crocodile at the lower right of the text, the only drawing on the tablet. The present article suggests that these crocodile gods are a remnant of the Ptolemaic crocodile cult, which was presumably introduced into the region when it was under Ptolemaic rule in the third century BCE. |
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ISSN: | 2199-4471 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Religion in the Roman empire
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1628/rre-2021-0007 |