Magic and Religion in the Ancient Mediterranean World : Studies in Honor of Christopher A. Faraone

This volume explores aspects of ancient magic and religion in the ancient Mediterranean, specifically ways in which religious and mythical ideas, including the knowledge and practice of magic, were transmitted and adapted through time and across Greco-Roman, Near Eastern, and Egyptian cultures. Offering an original and innovative combination of case studies on the material aspects and cross-cultural transfers of magic and religion, this book brings together a range of contributions that cross and connect sub-fields with a pan-Mediterranean, comparative scope. Section I investigates the material aspects of magical practices, including first editions and original studies on papyri, gems, lamellae containing binding curses and protective texts, and other textual media in ancient book culture. Several chapters feature the Greco-Egyptian Magical Papyri, the compilation of magical recipes in the formularies, and the role of physical book-forms in the transmission of magical knowledge. Section II explores magic and religion as nodes of cultural exchange in the ancient Mediterranean. Case studies range from Egypt to Anatolia and from Syria-Phoenicia to Sicily, with Greco-Roman religion and myth integrated in a diverse and interconnected Mediterranean landscape. Readers encounter studies featuring charismatic figures of Magi and itinerant begging priests, the multiple understandings of deities such as Hekate, Herakles, or Aphrodite, or the perceived exotic origin of cult statues, mummies, amulets, and cursing formulae, which bring to light the rich intercultural networks of the ancient Mediterranean, and the crucial role of magic and religion in the process of cross-cultural adaptation and innovation. Magic and Religion in the Ancient Mediterranean World appeals to both specialized and non-specialized audiences, with expert contributions written in an accessible way. This is a fascinating resource for students and scholars working on magic, religion, and mytholog Cover 1 Half Title 2 Title 4 Copyright 5 Contents 6 List of Contributors 9 List of Figures 11 List of Tables 14 List of Abbreviations 15 Prologue – A Kind of Magic: A Tribute to Christopher Faraone 17 Section I Materials 24 1 Mustering Knowledge in the Longer Greco-Egyptian Formularies 26 2 The Composition of GEMF 31/PGM I and Its Sources 45 3 He Means ‘Rose’: Marginal Notes in the Greek Papyri of the Theban Magical Library 60 4 The Magic Hour: Cultures of Timekeeping in GEMF 57/PGM IV 94 5 Practice Your Spells When It Suits You Best: The “Cycles of the Moon” Transmitted in GEMF 74/PGM VII and GEMF 55/PGM III 113 6 Stars and Stones: Practice, Materiality, and Ontology in Astrological Rites 132 7 The Limits of Textuality in Artemidoros’ Oneirocritica 160 8 Magical Magnets? Mastering the Winds on a North Aegean Island 179 9 Fencing in the Drivers and the Chariot Horses in a Latin Defixio from Hadrumetum (DT 277+278) 206 Section II Cross-Cultural Contexts 226 10 The Problem of the Magi 228 11 Magicians and Mendicants: New Light from the Marmarini Inscription 250 12 Egyptian Herakles and Syrian Aphrodite?: Phoenician Art and Cultural Exchange in the Ancient Mediterranean 272 13 Uncovering an Earlier Version of the Demeter-Persephone Story: The Anatolian Background of Hekate’s Appearance in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter 297 14 A Bronze Medallion in Madrid: Cross-Cultural and Material Transmission of an Amuletic Tradition From Syria to Sicily 318 15 “Bind Them as a Sign on Your Hand”: Amulets and Tefillin in Rabbinic Texts 348 16 A Misplaced Mummy: Thelxinoe’s Corpse in Xenophon’s Ephesiaka 362 Epilogue – A Kind of Magic: The Work and Legacy of Christopher Faraone 380 Index 390 Ancient,magic;,Ancient,Near,Eastern,religion;,Greco-Roman,magic;,Ancient,Near,Eastern,magic;,Greco-Egyptian,Magical,Papyri;,Egyptian,magic;,Egyptian,religion;,Ancient,religion;,Greco-Roman,religion;,Ancient,magical,practices;,Papyri;,Ancient,mythology Ancient magic,Ancient Near Eastern religion,Greco-Roman magic,Ancient Near Eastern magic,Greco-Egyptian Magical Papyri,Egyptian magic,Egyptian religion,Ancient religion,Greco-Roman religion,Ancient magical practices,Papyri,Ancient mythology