Isis Pelagia: Images, Names and Cults of a Goddess of the Seas (Religions in the Graeco-Roman World, 190)

"In Isis Pelagia: Images, Names and Cults of a Goddess of the Seas, Laurent Bricault, one of the principal scholars of the cults of Isis, presents a new interpretation of the multiple sources that present Isis as a goddess of the seas. Bricault discusses a wealth of relatively unknown archaeological and textual data, drawing on a profound knowledge of their historical context. After decades of scholarly study, Bricault offers an important contribution and a new phase in the debate on understanding the "diffusion" as well as the "reception" of the cults of Isis in the Graeco-Roman world. This book, the first English-language monograph by the leading French scholar in the field, underlines the importance of Isis Studies for broader debates in the study of ancient religion"-- Provided by publisher Contents 6 Preface 8 Illustrations, Tables and Map 10 Abbreviations 16 Introduction 20 Chapter 1 The Origins of Isis, Goddess of the Seas 30 1.1 The Masters of the Waves in Ancient Egypt 31 1.2 Isis, Navigation, and the Aquatic Element during the Pharaonic Period 34 1.3 Isis, the Phoenicians, and the Greeks 38 1.4 Arsinoe, Aphrodite, Isis and the Marine Element 42 Chapter 2 The Canonization of a New Prerogative 62 Chapter 3 Representations of Isis, Goddess of the Seas 73 3.1 Th e Isis-with-a-Sail Type 73 3.1.1 Origin and Definition 73 3.1.2 A Typology 77 3.1.3 Evolution and Questions of Identification 105 3.1.4 Attempts at Contextualization 115 3.2 The Problem of Sculpted Representations of the Isis-with-a-Sail Type 128 3.2.1 A Long-Debated Body of Statuary 128 3.2.2 The Problematic Contribution of Textual Sources 147 3.3 Other Representations of Isis, Goddess of the Seas 150 Chapter 4 The Names of Isis, Goddess of the Seas 166 4.1 Isis Eὔπλοια 168 4.2 Isis πελαγία 171 4.3 Isis σώτειρα 177 4.4 Isis Φαρία 179 4.5 Isis κυβερνῆτις and ὁρμίστρια 186 Chapter 5 A Cult for Isis, Goddess of the Seas 190 5.1 The Cult Sites of Marine Isis 190 5.2 Ritual Practices 202 5.3 Festivals in Honor of Isis, Goddess of the Seas 222 5.3.1 The Navigium Isidis 222 5.3.2 The Sacrum Phariae 248 Chapter 6 Sarapis and the Sea 251 6.1 Sarapis: Fulfilling the Need for a God 251 6.1.1 Sarapis, from Memphis to the Mediterranean 251 6.1.2 Sarapis and the Solar Barque 254 6.2 A New Field of Action for Sarapis 258 6.2.1 The Premises 258 6.2.2 The Assertion: Sarapis, the Annona ... and Isis 262 6.2.3 Sarapis and Neptune 277 6.2.4 Sarapis, the Emperor and the Roman Army 281 6.3 Isis and Sarapis, Figureheads and Names of Ships 289 Chapter 7 Disappearance and Renaissance of Marine Isis and Sarapis 296 Conclusion 308 General Bibliography 312 Index of Ancient Sources 380 General Index 385 In Isis Pelagia , Laurent Bricault offers a new interpretation of many of the various sources on Isis as a goddess of the seas in the Graeco-Roman world.